FALL CLASSIC COLLECTOR’S EDITION 1996-2001
A Review By Phil Speranza
Make some room on your DVD shelf next to your Yankeeographys
because MLB Productions has a hit on their hands. They answered the 2004 Boston Red Sox box set
with a Yankee compilation that was second to none.
While the Red Sox set included only the 2004 World Series the Yankees collection includes some of the greatest World Series Games of the Joe Torre Era. The Red Sox set is guaranteed to last 86 years so it should keep the Sox fans happy for a long time. This set includes five complete World Series Games, all of which are Yankee victories of course. And if that wasn't enough, in addition to the complete games there are two bonus disks.
As exciting as the complete games are, unfortunately it doesn’t include John Sterling and Michael Kay like the YES Network Yankee Classics do. It does include the original national broadcasts, which has commentators that feature Bob Costas, Joe Buck, Tim McCarver and Joe Morgan. The picture couldn’t be sharper and it does seem to be a full featured DVD as opposed to some past releases.
The full games included 1996 Game 4
which features Jimmy Leyritz leading the Yanks back
from a 6-0 deficit to a 8-6 extra inning triumph that tied the series at 2
all. The next game is another come from
behind victory. The third game of the
1998 series features the Bombers beating
The third complete game is another game three, this one again against the Braves that features a walk off homer by Chad Curtis. Mariano Rivera took a win this time around instead of his usual save. The forth complete game DVD is a Game 5 series ender against the Mets in 2000, the first Subway Series since 1956. The Yankees won it in the top of the ninth on a single by super sub Louie Sojo. Mike Stanton got the win in relief of Andy Pettitte. The loss went to former Yankee farmhand Al Leiter.
The final complete
game while a Yankee victory is unusual in the fact that the Yankees lost this
series to the Arizona Diamondbacks. What made this game
unique was that this was the 911-year and due to the suspension of baseball
that year at midnight of that game it became November. It was the first baseball game played in
November. And Derek Jeter homered in the bottom of the tenth thus becoming the first
“Mr. November”.
The two Bonus DVDs are worth the price of admission on their own. They include all the MLB World
Series videos plus a plethora of bonus footage that includes Roger “Rocket”
Clemens 2000 ALSC game 4 masterpiece. Other inclusions
are highlights from Gooden's No Hitter, David Cone’s and David Well’s Perfect
Games, Jeter’s ALDS series saving flip, and many other highlights by names like
David Justice, Jim Leyritz, and Paul O’Neill. There is abundance of behind
the scenes footage that includes locker room, interviews and press conferences
and much, much more.
The
packaging is a Trivia Buffs delight as it is full of boxscores,
highlights and facts. It will jar your
memory reading the cases alone.
These disks
are a must have for Yankee fans. As soon as I posted the
banners I saw many of you pre order these fine DVDs. So what are the rest of you
waiting for?
