Accident Forces Yanks To Play Shea

April 13, 1998 / 10:20 PM EDT / CBS/AP

A 500-pound support beam fell in 75-year-old Yankee Stadium on Monday, forcing postponement of two games between the New York Yankees and Anaheim Angels and shifting a third game to Shea Stadium.

There were no fans inside the ballpark -- baseball's most storied landmark -- when the beam fell from the underside of the upper deck into the mezzanine section and landed on seats between third base and left field about 2 p.m., city officials said.

More than 20,000 people had been expected at Monday night's game at the stadium, known as "the House that Ruth Built." Mayor Rudy Giuliani said someone almost certainly would have been killed if the collapse had happened during the game.

The beam crushed one of the blue plastic-backed seats into pieces and left a 6-inch hole in the concrete. The beam tore another hole in the ceiling of the upper deck.

"Yankee Stadium is crumbling. ... Everybody is in a little disarray right now," said pitcher David Cone.

While night games Monday and Tuesday were postponed, the Yankees later announced they would play the Angels at 1 p.m. EDT Wednesday at Shea Stadium, home of the rival New York Mets. The Mets are also scheduled to play at Shea that day, at 7:40 p.m. against the Chicago Cubs.

The earliest the Yankees can play in the stadium would be Friday night against the Detroit Tigers. If the stadium is not repaired by then, that series would be moved to Shea.

"As a Yankee fan, I'd rather that we were playing, but as a mayor we have to make sure it's safe," Giuliani said at an impromptu news conference at the stadium.

The announcement was made while the Yankees were taking batting practice. The team began the season on the road and did not have its first home game until last Friday.

"It is sad. You don't want to see that happen like that. It's an old stadium," said pitcher David Wells.

Monday night's game would have been the Yankees' fourth home game.

The stadium, owned by the city and leased to the team, will turn 75 years old Saturday.

It opened on April 18, 1923, underwent renovations in 1974 and 1975, and reopened in 1976. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has been trying to get a new ballpark, complaining the current stadium doesn't have enough parking and amenities.

One possibility is to construct a stadium near Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. Steinbrenner also has spoken with New Jersey officials about the possibility of that state constructing a ballpark near Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

Yankee Stadium is fourth-oldest ballpark in the majors, behind Detroit's Tiger Stadium (1912), Boston's Fenway Park (1912) and Chicago's Wrigley Field (1914).