Hey Gaslamp Ballers:

Interleague play returns,and guess what:the Padres are scheduled to take on the New York Yankees June 17-19 at Yankee Stadium. We Padre fans know about the '98 World Series when those Yankee fans with IQs so low they have their own wind chill factor chanted "Padres Suck" when the N.L. Champions were introduced. And of course,the Yanks,who won 114 regular season games,swept the Friars,and many Gaslamp Ballers were disgusted when the Yankees celebrated the sweep at the Q. Some of my favorite highlights from the '98 World Series:

1. Tony Gwynn's home run to the upper deck of Yankee Stadium in Game 1. The greatest home run he ever hit. The greatest World Series home run in Padres history.

2. 65,000+ fans attending Games 3 and 4 of the Series,not only the largest crowds to see a ball game ever in San Diego,but that is also larger than any crowd at a World Series game at that cesspool at Chavez Ravine. Dodger fans,you've been owned!

3. While the Yanks celebrated their 24th World Championship,the 65+K at the Q gave the '98 N.L. Champs a curtain call,thanking the Padres for a great season,and the greatest moment in San Diego sports history.

4. And during the opening week of the 1999 season,the Padres proudly raised the 1998 N.L. Champions banner and the Padres received the N.L. Champions rings,a reward for being the greatest Padres team ever.

Yes,the Pads and Yanks have met during interleague play. In 2002,the Bronx Bombers made their only regular-season appearance in San Diego to date,winning 2 out of 3,but the Padres played hard in all 3 games,with Brian Lawrence stifling New York for San Diego's 1st ever win over the Yanks,and in the 2nd game of that series,61,000+ fans came to the Q to see a future Cy Young Award winner named Jacob Edward Peavy make his Major League debut against New York...and by the way,the game was on national TV,courtesy of Baseball on Fox. (Peavy did very well in that game.) In 2004 the Padres and Yankees played at Yankee Stadium,and in the 1st game,the Friars spanked the Yanks 10-3,as Adam Eaton dominated Murderer's Row (Jeter,A-Rod,Matsui,Sheffield,Giambi,Posada,etc.) and Phillip Joseph Nevin put the icing on the cake with a huge home run in the 9th inning to lock this one up for San Diego. The Padres lost the 2nd game of that series,although Dennis Tankersley (?) pitched a decent game,and in the 3rd game,former Yankee David Wells returned to the Bronx,and for once the Yankee fans who chanted "Padres Suck" 6 years ago,would cheer for a Padres pitcher who was one of the Yankees' own. Boomer pitched a heck of a game,but the Padres' bullpen could not give David the win,and the Yanks won in extra innings.

Now the Padres and Yankees meet at Yankee Stadium,this time this will be the final season for Old Yankee Stadium as the new Yankee Stadium will be built for the 2009 season. We know the Padres and Yankees are struggling,with San Diego fighting to just have a decent season,but the Yankees are doing bad too. Remember when Notre Dame had that 0-5 start,and a 3-9 season last year (which included 38-0 disasters against USC and Michigan)? Hopefully like the Fighting Irish's upcoming 2008 schedule,the Padres fortunes will change for the better when they will take all 3 games from the Yankees in two weeks at Yankee Stadium.

If any of you Gaslamp Ballers have any comments on this post,feel free to do so. And:are there any Padre fans in New York City? Gaslamp Ball invites you to tell why you are a Padres fan. And I invite all Gaslamp Ballers to share their thoughts of the '98 World Series,and were they there at the Q,and were they there for the '98 pennant ceremony and the ring presentation?

Go Padres...Experience it! Sweep the Yankees on June 17-19!