Supreme Yankee Fan

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor Roots for her Favorite Team at Yankee Stadium

By Howard Goldin

BRONX, NEW YORK, August 5- A very large mid-week matinee crowd of 44,593 were at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday and saw a one-sided 11-3 Yankee victory over the Baltimore Orioles. One of the dedicated Yankees aficionados in the ballpark was Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

The distinguished jurist returned to her place of birth to witness an event she loves, a Yankees game. The Bronx native of Puerto Rican ancestry has been a baseball, specifically New York Yankees, fan since her childhood. Her father, Juan, hails from Santurce and her mother, Celina, is from Lajas, in Southeast Puerto Rico. The youngster lived in the Bronxdale Houses in Soundview and later in Co-op City as a youngster. She attended Cardinal Spellman High School in the borough and later graduated with honors from Princeton University, the NYU School of Law and Columbia University Law School.

Interestingly, in a time of bitter partisanship between the major political parties in the United States, Sotomayor’s credentials led to her being appointed to the bench by presidents from both parties. She was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York by George H. W. Bush in 1991. Six years later, Bill Clinton selected her to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. She reached the height of her profession in 2009 when Barack Obama nominated her to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Her visit on Wednesday was neither her first time in the current Yankee Stadium nor her first time at a Yankees game. Sotomayor threw out the ceremonial first pitch before a Yankees game on September 26, 2009 and she spoke humbly and emotionally as the graduation speaker at the NYU Commencement in May of 2012. On Wednesday, her presence was not political nor to gain attention. She wanted to watch and root for her favorite sports team.

In an informal meeting with reporters during the game, she stated, “Having sat in the old stadium bleachers anonymously, there is quite a chord that gets touched when you come back on a day like today and people are screaming out ‘Justice’ or ‘Sonia’ and it brings a little bit of a tear to my eye.”

Of her feeling at being in Yankee Stadium, she emotionally stated, “The spirit of the Yankees is still in the house. It’s very moving to me and important to me that the comfort they gave me most of my life-watching [them] win-continues.”

Before the game began, she joined the “bleacher creatures” in the roll call of the Yankees starters. Of the group of fans she sat with, she remarked, “I pay homage to the bleacher creatures; they are the greatest fans…To sit in sweltering heat when the sun is blazing, to sit out there in the rain, to sit out there on days when we’re losing and not to take it out on the players takes heart…I felt proud to be out there with them”

When asked why she came to the game, she replied, “I went to watch the Yankees play the [Washington] Nationals in Washington, DC and they won and [Media Relations Director] Jason [Zilo] asked me to come and sit in the bleachers.”

She spoke of her greatest Yankee memory, “The Bucky Dent home run against Boston. I was in law school and made a bet with my best friends.”

Asked if she was the only Yankees fan on the Supreme Court, she responded, “Justice [Anton] Scalia is fond of reminding me that he was the first Yankees fan on the Court…I keep telling him the only difference is that I was born in the Bronx and he wasn’t.’” Although the two justices are divided on judicial principles and philosophy, the two are united in support of the Yankees.

Her tribute to the fans of her favorite club is as follows, “We have the best fans in the world; they are so knowledgeable.” 

In 1995, a Sotomayor ruling had a very important impact upon the sport of baseball. The baseball strike of 232 days ended after she issued an injunction that prohibited MLB from unilaterally implementing a new collective bargaining agreement using replacement players.

She still remains loyal to the sport of baseball, to her favorite team, the Yankees, and to her birthplace, the Bronx.

King of New York

King Felix Conquers Yanks; Seattle Wins, 1-0

By Howard Goldin

BRONX, NEW YORK, August 5- Yankee Stadium---Each of Saturday afternoon’s two starting pitchers, Hiroki Kuroda and Felix Hernandez, began the game as winners of his last five decisions. Thus, many of the 47,067 in attendance expected to see a competitive pitching duel.

Those who wanted to see outstanding pitching were not disappointed. The four Yankees hurlers and Hernandez for the Mariners lived up to billing. Kuroda gave up only a single run in 6.1 innings on the mound. John Jaso led off the third with a double to right. With two men out, Jaso scored the only run of the game on a single by Mike Carp. 

Seattle skipper Eric Wedge commented, “That was a quality at bat.”

The three relievers, Boone Logan, David Robertson and Clay Rapada, of the Yankees kept the game close by blanking the Mariners on one hit in 2.2 innings.

The one run was sufficient to claim the victory as Hernandez, the starter for Seattle pitched a masterpiece. The native of Venezuela lived up to his moniker ‘King” by his complete mastery over Yankees batters.

The 26-year old earned his 10^th win of the year by pitching his third complete game while giving up only two hits. The game on Saturday was the fifth this season in which he left the contest without yielding a run. Of that accomplishment, he stated, “It’s always special as a pitcher when you throw a shutout.”

The first of the two hits off Hernandez was a two-out double by Robinson Cano in the first. The game was the 32^nd in the last 35 during which Cano hit successfully. Cano’s next home run, his 25^th, will rank him as one of four second basemen who have reached the mark of 30 doubles and 25 homers in four straight seasons.

Since Cano was the only Yankee to reach second base, Joe Girardi remarked, “We had only one chance today; that’s how good he [Hernandez] was.”

The second Yankee hit was a hard grounder by Ichiro Suzuki that first baseman Mike Carp could not handle. The single increased Suzuki’s hitting streak to 11 games. He established a Yankees record of the longest hitting streak in which a batter has only one hit per game (11). He trails Don Slaught by only one game for the longest hitting streak to begin a career with the Yankees.

Hernandez walked two batters during the game. Each walk came with two out. After the game, Hernandez groused, “I hate two out walks.”

In six of the nine frames, Hernandez faced only the requisite three batters. Both managers were astounded by Hernandez.

Girardi said, “Our pitching was great, unfortunately, Felix was a little better. He was great today. He was never in a bad count.”

Wedge had even greater superlatives for his starter, “What you saw today, it doesn’t get any better. That was probably the most impressive start I’ve ever seen as a manager. It can’t be any better than that.”

Hernandez is truly a king in the current Yankee Stadium. In five starts, he is 4-1 with a miniscule ERA of 1.25.

Interestingly, for the second straight day, a native of Venezuela, Freddy Garcia (4-5) will face a native of Japan, Hisashi Iwakuma (2-2). The rubber game of the three game set with begin shortly after 1 p.m.

Helping The Small Business Community

Riverdale Report

By Robert Press

BRONX, NEW YORK, August 5- This past Thursday City Councilman G. Oliver Koppell and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (a candidate for mayor in 2013) held a luncheon at a local North Riverdale restaurant to hear from the local small business owners about how New York City and the Council are doing to help small businesses operate and grow. 

Councilman Koppell opened the luncheon by saying that the City Council is not anti business. Current Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (a possible candidate in 2013 for Koppell's term limited seat) was on hand, and said, “It seems that this is an area where new business wants to be,” and added, “you can see that in the two new shopping centers that are being built here.” Speaker Quinn thanked both elected officials, the roomful of business owners in attendance, and Mr. Andrew Sandler of Councilman Koppell's staff for arraigning the luncheon.

The Speaker was brief in her statement, and then opened the floor up to questions from the business owners. There were many questions asked that Speaker Quinn, Councilman Koppell, or Assemblyman Dinowitz tried to answer. Questions ranged from double parking, having a centralized database, the local repaving job done by the DOT, street vendors, break ins, and the local cityscape to name a few.

In answering the questions Speaker Quinn (looking very comfortable) said that she was not going to B.S. the audience. She agreed that the city needs to centralize its database which she is trying to do, but that it can not be done in all areas due to certain laws and regulations. Councilman Koppell said that the DOT has done a miserable job in its local repaving. Quinn in answering the street vendor question said that there was a task force that was created for Manhattan street vendors which may need to come to the area. Quinn said that the DOT can come to a location to survey on how to improve the local cityscape. The final question was about credit card companies charging fees on purchases, and also charging those fees on the taxes that are being collected. There was a little confusion on just who regulates that with Speaker Quinn saying that it was a matter for the federal government which regulates the credit card companies, and that she would check further into it. You can go to my blog at www.100percentbronx.blogspot.com for more and to see photos of the luncheon.

On the subject of the local street milling and repaving you can go to my blog to see how one street was left as the repaving was done, or should we say pushed back a day or more. It took one month from milling to the finishing of the repaving with less than 24 hour notice at times to move cars. We give the DOT a failing grade on this project as while the repaving is very good in most areas there are still places that will have to be redone. However, the way the city is going it is only a reflection of the entire Bloomberg administration slow and uncaring, something different we saw from Speaker Quinn (or was it just good campaigning).

If you have any comments about this column or would like to have an event listed or covered in this column or on my blog you can e-mail us at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com or call 718-644-4199 Mr. Robert Press.

Dominican Parade

(Photos by Gary Quintal)

The Grand Concourse became a sea of celebration as thousands celebrated the annual Bronx Dominican Parade. In addition to various groups performing, many cultural dancers excited the crowd and celebrated Dominican Pride. 

Tennis Returns to the Bronx

BRONX, NEW YORK, July 27- Tennis
fans from around the world will once again descend on the Bronx next as part of
the yearly EmblemHealth Bronx Open.

The event is held from August
5-12, 2012 at Crotona Park, Bronx. This year's EmblemHealth Bronx Open is a
$50,000 USTA sanctioned Challenger Event, attracting some of best Women Tennis
Professional players in the world as they prepare for the US Open Championships
at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

EmblemHealth is the title
sponsor of the EmblemHealth Bronx Open, an USTA sanctioned $50,000 women's
tennis tournament Challenger Event. The tournament is held at Crotona Park, in
the Bronx, New York from August 5-12, 2012. Fans have the opportunity to watch
WTA Tour professionals from around the world ranked in the top 200, some of
whom who will compete in the main draw of the 2012 US Open Championships at the
USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens.

Tennis players, enthusiasts
and spectators are invited to a fun-filled week of free special events at
Crotona Park, the Bronx.

Activities include adult and
junior tennis clinics, EmblemHealth Fitness Day For Kids, New York's Bravest
(New York Fire Department) vs. New York's Finest (New York Police Department)
Tournament, and the Disney Kids' Around the World Day Parade displaying the
enthusiasm and artistic talents of NYJTL participants proudly marching with
their 10-foot banners. 

2011 EmblemHealth Bronx Open
Women's Singles Final Recap:

In its 18th year as title
sponsor of the 2011 EmblemHealth Bronx Open, EmblemHealth continued to partner
with the New York Junior Tennis League (NYJTL) to promote education and leading
a healthy, active lifestyle for children and families in New York City.

Andrea Hlavackova, of the
Czech Republic, was the winner over Mona Barthel, 7-6, 6-3, in a hard-hitting
singles final played indoors at Riverside Tennis Club in Riverdale when the match
had to be moved due to torrential downpours. It was the second time in the
tournament’s history that the event final was played indoors.



Throughout the tournament, special events were geared to the dual messages of
using tennis to boost academic and athletic performance. Activities included
Kids’ Fitness Day, daily free tennis lessons, and distribution of more than
2,000 free books to kids. At the Disney Kids’ Day Parade, more than 2,000
children from NYJTL programs marched through in Crotona Park with banners they
designed during their summer programs.



Cablevision has supported the EmblemHealth Bronx Open for the six years
broadcasting the finals, filming ancillary tournament events, and packaging the
final product to air on Cablevision’s Neighborhood Journal. 

The Bionic Senator and the Convicted Councilman

100 PERCENT

By Robert Press

State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. has announced that he will be going in for “Knee Transplant Surgery,” and will be better than before. In fact, Senator Diaz said in a press release, he will become “The Bionic Senator.” 

Diaz Sr. had the knee surgery on July 26th and according to him he will be out of action for 5 or 6 weeks to recover. Diaz Sr. adds that he knows that it is election time and with him up for re-election this bed rest will be torture for him. His doctor has told him that he will be back stronger, better, and faster which kind of reminds us of the television show years ago called “The Six Million Dollar Man.” You can read more at my blog at www.100percentbronx.blogspot.com.

The second trial of Councilman Larry Seabrook is over, and Seabrook this time was convicted on 9 of the 12 charges against him. This trial centered on the $177.00 bagel receipt that Seabrook had submitted to be reimbursed for which was said to be doctored. We wonder if it was a plain, sesame, poppy or everything bagel. Check my blog for comments on the decision.

Also go to my blog to see the car that current State Senate Minority Leader John Sampson is reported to have smashed up. The Ford Taurus valued at over $35,000 was totaled, but the cost of the crash now estimated at over $70,000 continues to mount as the other cars involved have their damage estimates revealed.

Hopefully the Con Edison lockout is over by the time you read this, but a Con Edison spokesman has admitted that outside contractors have been brought in to help during the lockout. He said that Con Ed is also paying for all expenses by the outside contractors which will be passed on to their customers. Since Con Ed is not paying its regular workers will their consumers then get a refund on that.

We don't have enough room to discuss the proposed sugary soda ban by Mayor Bloomberg, which will be approved by his puppets at the Health Department. We just hope that more city council members oppose the proposed ban like Bronx Councilman G. Oliver Koppell. By the way Council Majority Leader Joel Rivera where do you stand and why.

Lastly it appears that those 26 public schools that the mayor wanted to close for poor performance will get to stay open as was the court decision. We have to agree with the mayor about closing schools that perform poorly, but how many have been closed over and over again? By the way it is only a mirror of the mayor’s failed education policy when he only cracked down on the third and seventh grades by holding back students so that next year the 4th and 8th grade test scores would look better at the time of an election year. Since many students do not know the names of almost all of their elected officials and important people in history, we would love to know how many students know the name of the current mayor of New York City. Ed Koch, Barrack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Derek Jeter would probably top the list of countless names.

If you have another name that may top the list, have any comments about this column, would like to have an event listed or covered in this column or on my blog you can e-mail us at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com. Or call 718-644-4199 Mr. Robert Press.

Jerry Seinfeld to Play Lehman

BRONX, NEW YORK, July 26- For the first time in 14 years, Jerry Seinfeld is presenting full performances of his signature stand-up comedy in New York City. Seinfeld will perform five stand-up shows – one in each New York City borough – on five Thursday nights this Fall.

Seinfeld, a New York native, got his start as a comedian in the City in the 1970s, but other than appearing at benefits and occasional short sets at local comedy clubs, he has not performed a full show in a NYC theater since his sold-out Broadway engagement, “I’m Telling You For The Last Time,” at the Broadhurst Theater in 1998, shortly after the final episode of his iconic TV show, Seinfeld.

"I was born in Brooklyn, went to school in Queens and started out as a comedian in Manhattan. I feel like New York City taught me how to be funny. I'm so excited to perform a special series of shows for my beloved home town," said Seinfeld.

Seinfeld’s five-borough performances will all fall on Thursday nights – the same as the television show that bore his name – and will feature special guest Colin Quinn, who Seinfeld directed in the hit Broadway show “Colin Quinn: Long Story Short” at the Helen Hayes Theater in 2010-11.

Tickets for all five-borough shows go on sale to the general public on Monday, July 30 at 10 am. All performances begin at 8pm. 

PLAYING SCHEDULE:

Manhattan

Thursday, October 4, 2012 at 8pm

The Beacon Theatre located at 2124 Broadway

Tickets are available online at www.BeaconTheatre.com or by calling 866-858-0008

Bronx

Thursday, October 11, 2012 at 8pm

Lehman Concert Hall located at 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West

Tickets are available online at www.LehmanCenter.org or by calling 718-960-8833

Queens (Flushing)

Thursday, October 18, 2012 at 8pm

The Colden Auditorium at Queens College located at 65-30 Kissena Blvd.

Tickets are available online at www.KupferbergCenter.org or by calling 718-793-8080

Staten Island

Thursday, November 1, 2012 at 8pm

The St. George Theatre located at 35 Hyatt Street

Tickets are available online at www.TicketMaster.com or by calling 718-442-2900

Brooklyn

Thursday, November 8, 2012 at 8pm

The Walt Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College located at 2900 Campus Road

Tickets are available online at www.BrooklynCenter.com or by calling 718-951-4500