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STUDIO:  A&E Home Video
MSRP: $59.95
RATED:  Not Rated
RUNNING TIME: 1067 Minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Featurettes

 

The Pitch

The New York Yankees play ball.


Scratchin’ ass.

The Humans

Reggie Jackson, Derek Jeter, Joe Torre, Don Mattingly, Howard Cosell, Keith Jackson and Joe Buck

The Nutshell

The game was baseball. From the 1970s through the modern era, the Yankees pwn’d all challengers. There are many factors to their successes. Poorly defined salary caps, steroids and a little talent are just a few of the culprits. Through the power of the MLB and A&E, you now get to watch some of the Yanks’ best games.

The Lowdown

Many baseball fans hate the Yankees. There’s the outright theft of Reggie Jackson. There’s the fact that they aren’t my beloved Boston Red Sox. There’s Steinbrenner. But, there’s also loveable drunk Billy Martin. This is a team that comes with a lot of baggage.


I’ve got nothing.

There isn’t anything inherently special about these broadcasts. They are almost direct dubs of the original broadcasts. But, the games are why you watch. We start off with the team’s rebirth in the 1970s. Let’s be honest, after a run in the early 1960s…they sucked balls. Then, Mr. Reggie Jackson walked into their lives. Under Fowler and Martin’s watchful eye, Jackson became Mr. October and won the most decisive World Series win for The Yankees.


ColecoVision HD. Coming soon.

Jump ahead in time to the 2001 World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Watching that game on Disc 4, you start to see parallels with each game presented in the set. They make you feel good about having fun. Everyone’s talented and they’re busting their asses for the win. There’s no worries about steroids or multiple channels covering every facet of the game. There is only the one main show and the excitement behind each inning.


Dead.

What it all boils down to is the performance. Derek Jeter, Reggie Jackson and others are playing at the peak of their careers. The audience is given these collective moments in time to savor the game at its most idealized form. If you can find pleasure in that, if you can enjoy such simple goodness…then this release is for you. Otherwise, stop reading here.


The elusive Mr. October was very hard to capture on film.

The Package

The DVD looks amazing, especially when you consider that the MLB were using stock footage from the 1970s for the first half of the package. The A/V Quality is shaky as to be expected. But, it holds together pretty well. If you know a baseball fan, this collection would make for an excellent present. The featurettes are weak sauce that only offer minor blips that setup the importance of each game.

7.5 out of 10