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9/11's impact on NYC and baseball, and the Yankees journey to the 2001 World Series, the first major event in the US since the tragedy
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00:00:00Viewer's discretion
00:00:07Viewer's discretion
00:00:27The chance of a lifetime for Luis Gonzalez
00:00:312-2, bottom of the ninth
00:00:34Game 7 of the World Series, bases loaded
00:01:04On any day of the week, at any hour of the day, New York City is in motion
00:01:11A heart beating to a perpetual rhythm
00:01:18No one, least of all the 8 million people who give the city life
00:01:22Think that it could all change in an instant
00:01:26But when you least expect it
00:01:29When all you can think about are catching trains and racing to the office
00:01:33It can suddenly stop
00:01:35And when it does
00:01:37What we hold on to are the little things
00:01:40Those moments that once seemed so ordinary
00:01:44My dad drove me to work
00:01:51Maybe about a week before September 11th
00:01:53In his fire chief's car
00:01:54Just me and him
00:01:55My dad was Chief Gerard, or Jerry, Barbara
00:02:02New York City Fire Department
00:02:03The best dad a girl could have
00:02:04And one of the many things he gave me
00:02:05Was a love for the Yankees
00:02:06Because he grew up with that
00:02:07We always sort of incorporated the Yankees in our summer
00:02:11He pulled over between the Word Center and Two World Financial where I used
00:02:27To work
00:02:30And then I was scared
00:02:32Of Brian
00:02:36He pulled over between the Word Center and Two World Financial where I used to work
00:02:40then pulled out of his wallet these four Yankee tickets for September 10th and
00:02:44he wanted me to have these tickets and we kind of went back and forth you know
00:02:48dad why don't you go why don't we go together and he said no no that Tuesday
00:02:53morning which was the 11th we have a big Chiefs meeting and I you know I want to
00:02:57get there on time so I want you to go
00:03:02tonight's game here at Yankee Stadium has been postponed
00:03:06actually it's September 10th the game ended up being rained out anyway and it
00:03:12was the last time I saw him was when he came to the Yankee tickets just into our
00:03:17newsroom a plane has crashed into the World Trade Center a major terror attack in the
00:03:22United States and here in New York and the World Trade Tower
00:03:26the World Trade Center has just collapsed it's just a chaotic scene down here like
00:03:32nothing I've ever seen before
00:03:36September 11 2001 was the worst day in the history of the city everyone in the
00:03:43city should remain calm but the very best thing to do right now would be to remain
00:03:47home
00:03:51I could see from the very beginning with the number of casualties and the tremendous
00:03:57damage that was done and even the thought that we probably be attacked again during
00:04:02that period of time that this was this is going to be really really difficult
00:04:05parent plane crashing into the Pentagon causing a huge fireball a large plane has
00:04:11crashed in Western Pennsylvania the final death toll from this terrible tragedy
00:04:17will not likely be known for weeks the world is a very different place from the
00:04:21the way we left it about two and a half hours ago
00:04:27I'd ask the people of New York City to do everything that they can to cooperate not to
00:04:34be frightened to go about their lives as normal everything is safe right now in the city and the
00:04:39people who are doing the relief effort need all the help they can get in the anxious days
00:04:45following September 11th the nation united behind the strength and heroism of New
00:04:51York's firefighters police officers and relief workers
00:04:55ordinary citizens thrust into extraordinary circumstances
00:05:03we need more volunteers
00:05:10chase stadium served as a staging area for rescue supplies and the New York Mets baseball team
00:05:16overlooking its exalted status banded together with other volunteers
00:05:21people came in from Wall Street who had walked home and two days later you know I need to do something I have to help what can I do I had that
00:05:33same feeling that that so many other Americans had just I needed to do something
00:05:38the Yankees too pitched in following the team's first post 9-11 gathering manager Joe Torrey led a group of players on a goodwill trip downtown
00:05:52we went to the armory which was the most emotional and we didn't really know if we should be there
00:05:59this is where families were all gathered to wait on word if their loved ones were alive
00:06:14and if they weren't alive evidence that they weren't alive so they were doing DNA samplings
00:06:21I felt anyway completely out of place you know I'd kind of walk this you know what am I doing here
00:06:28what do I have to offer these people
00:06:33I remember one very poignant moment when Bernie Williams went up to this woman
00:06:38and he was sort of fumbling and he says I don't I don't know what to say
00:06:42he says but you look like you need a hug
00:06:45and he put his arms around her and I think sort of broke the ice
00:06:49to see that you know these people needed this
00:06:52and I think at that point in time I realized that there was a role for us
00:06:57if any group of New Yorkers needed comfort it was the city's fire department
00:07:06which lost 343 firefighters at the World Trade Center
00:07:12on the morning of September 11th Brooklyn's Ladder 101 carrying seven men was called to the Twin Towers
00:07:24none of the seven made it back
00:07:27I can't believe it happened
00:07:30it's it'll never go away it's always there the rest of my life
00:07:36after 9-11 I was visiting one of the widows
00:07:41one of the guys I lost firefighter Joe Mafio
00:07:44I was at her house and I got a call that the Yankees are at the firehouse
00:07:48he said yeah I got somebody who wants to talk to you
00:08:00excuse me sir this is Derek Jeter
00:08:02I said no it can't be Derek Jeter
00:08:04he said yes sir this is Derek Jeter
00:08:05he called me sir a few times and I talked to him a few minutes and I was
00:08:08I couldn't even talk to him I was like tongue tied
00:08:13they were there just to cheer us up a little bit
00:08:17I really wanted to be there but I knew I was in the right place by visiting one of the widows
00:08:21in New York the sound of bagpipes echoed throughout the city
00:08:32each day meant another wake
00:08:34another funeral
00:08:36another lost hope
00:08:38you can mourn and you can be very very sorrowful
00:08:41and at the same time you can go on with your life
00:08:45the only two things that got my mind off it
00:08:48for any period of time in the fall of 2001
00:08:52were baseball and my son's football games
00:08:55one thing that I've been really missing
00:08:57and I'm gonna really break down tonight
00:08:59I'm gonna go to a Met game
00:09:01here in New York City tonight the first major sporting event since last week's catastrophe is underway
00:09:07Major League Baseball at Shea Stadium
00:09:09where the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves put on a stirring show of support for New York and America
00:09:16for fifteen minutes or twenty minutes
00:09:19I could feel that I was in a state of normalcy again
00:09:23we almost needed to go
00:09:25I think that when something serious happens in your life
00:09:28whether it's a death in your family or a traumatic event
00:09:31or a historic event
00:09:33you cling to things that are familiar and comfortable to you
00:09:37a ball game on a Friday night in New York was as ordinary as it gets
00:09:46but not on this night
00:09:49it was New York's first mass gathering since the attack ten days earlier
00:09:549-11 heroes lined the field
00:09:58as 41,000 fans came together in a show of strength and resolve
00:10:03but still
00:10:05the evening was met with a measure of unease
00:10:07it was nerve-wracking
00:10:10because you couldn't be there without thinking about
00:10:14possibly an attack
00:10:16I think the first couple of airplanes that went by
00:10:20people got nervous and I looked at them
00:10:22people did not know how to react at the ball game
00:10:26there was all this hidden anxiety
00:10:30let's continue to mourn and let's continue
00:10:33not to show any emotion other than mourning
00:10:37but in the bottom of the eighth
00:10:40with his team down by a run
00:10:42Mets catcher Mike Piazza lifted the crowd in a triumphant salute to the city
00:10:47and it's a deep to left center
00:10:50Andrew Jones on the line
00:10:52this one has a chance
00:10:54to run by Piazza
00:10:56and with that crack in the back
00:10:58spontaneously people stopped mourning
00:11:01and stood and cheered
00:11:03it was an amazing night
00:11:16because everybody's intent changed
00:11:19it wasn't just a ball game
00:11:22it wasn't just a song
00:11:24it became a fight song
00:11:27it became a call
00:11:29I wanna wake up
00:11:31boom
00:11:32in the city
00:11:33that doesn't sleep
00:11:35to fight
00:11:36I'm king of the hill
00:11:38head of the list
00:11:40cream of the crop
00:11:41at the top of the heap
00:11:44boom
00:11:53people came to Shea Stadium to be together
00:11:56and that sense of unity
00:11:58in a time of crisis
00:11:59is incredibly empowering
00:12:02this is what we're all about
00:12:04not terrorist attacks
00:12:05and horrible things
00:12:07let's show people
00:12:08that we can act normally
00:12:10and maybe it'll help other people
00:12:11start acting that way
00:12:12we can get through this
00:12:26the physical act
00:12:28of going to a ball game
00:12:30it was a sense of moving forward
00:12:32that nothing else had
00:12:34because everything else
00:12:36was 9-11
00:12:389-11 was in essence
00:12:39the longest day of our lives
00:12:41because it went on for several months
00:12:43I mean as long as they were still
00:12:45digging people out of the pit
00:12:47it was still 9-11
00:12:49in the aftermath of September 11th
00:12:52the mood of the country changed
00:12:55baseball games became
00:12:57communal gathering places
00:12:59for fans to express their emotions
00:13:04and as much of the country
00:13:05turned a sympathetic eye to New York
00:13:07the Red Sox asked you to join us
00:13:09in a tribute to the spirit
00:13:11of the people of New York
00:13:13the city's baseball teams
00:13:15became the objects of affection
00:13:17I could not under any circumstances
00:13:20ever imagine
00:13:21cheering for the Yankees
00:13:22but I think America's
00:13:24sense of New York changed
00:13:26in September 11th
00:13:27and the days afterwards
00:13:29the face of New York changed
00:13:32it was 343 New York firefighters
00:13:36who walked into the fires of hell
00:13:38to save strangers
00:13:40and it becomes very difficult
00:13:42to hate the Yankees
00:13:44it was amazing to see
00:13:46the transformation
00:13:47because for the rest of that year
00:13:49anyway
00:13:50we weren't the hated Yankees
00:13:52I mean it was kind of like
00:13:54we were the symbol
00:13:55for these people in New York
00:13:57going through this
00:13:58with a new found mission
00:14:01the Yankees marched to their
00:14:02fourth division title in a row
00:14:04and prepared to face Oakland
00:14:06in the first round
00:14:07of the playoff series
00:14:13the Yankee playoff series
00:14:15gave me something else
00:14:16to focus on
00:14:17instead of dead bodies
00:14:19you know
00:14:20bombing Afghanistan
00:14:21seeing the footage
00:14:22of the Twin Towers
00:14:23falling over and over again
00:14:25ooh another game
00:14:26you know
00:14:27something else to watch
00:14:29Yankees took this
00:14:30and went back to the World Series
00:14:32because they were defending champions
00:14:35and they went back to the World Series
00:14:37in order to fully defend America
00:14:40we must defeat the evildoers
00:14:43where they hide
00:14:44but even in the seemingly
00:14:46safe haven of Yankee Stadium
00:14:48news of the war on terror
00:14:50the recent bombings in Afghanistan
00:14:52was inescapable
00:14:54to me every day
00:14:55especially during the playoffs
00:14:56every day at the stadium
00:14:57was just an emotional roller coaster
00:14:59before the game
00:15:00and after the game
00:15:01we're meeting firefighters families
00:15:03you know
00:15:04kids of pilots killed in the crash
00:15:06and so
00:15:07you're crying
00:15:08five minutes before a game starts
00:15:10because you just
00:15:11you just feel that
00:15:12the A's are going home
00:15:14up two games to none
00:15:16the strain on the Yankees showed
00:15:18they lost the first two games
00:15:20in a best of five series at home
00:15:22and it looked as if their season was over
00:15:24then just as their 1-0 lead was about to vanish in game 3
00:15:29they were brought back to life
00:15:33by the defensive genius of shortstop Derek Jeter
00:15:37this is a good one
00:15:39oh the flip
00:15:40oh the flip
00:15:41Jeter came out of nowhere
00:15:43literally out of nowhere
00:15:44and when he flipped the ball
00:15:46I didn't think that it would get there in time
00:15:48because it really was a bang bang play
00:15:50and when they called him out
00:15:52oh that saved the series
00:15:54and a win in game 4
00:15:56brought the series to a deciding game 5
00:15:58and the Yankees
00:16:00back to the place they most wanted to be
00:16:04being in that stadium
00:16:05and the energy
00:16:06and what was going on
00:16:07you know
00:16:08I think was very special
00:16:09I think you were very lucky to beat Yankee Stadium
00:16:11during that playoff run
00:16:12the crowd cheered
00:16:19the crowd cheered
00:16:20and it was almost the senses
00:16:21they were cheering just to cheer
00:16:23did he get it?
00:16:25did he get it?
00:16:26did he get it?
00:16:27did he get it?
00:16:28he got it?
00:16:29he got it?
00:16:30oh god
00:16:31the emotions for so long
00:16:33have been negative
00:16:34it was just such a relief
00:16:36to have something positive
00:16:38and they're worn in the front
00:16:45the Yankees were on the middle
00:16:46and they're tight
00:16:52it's a great boost for the city
00:16:53I mean it makes people for the city feel very proud
00:16:56I mean they identify so much with the Yankees
00:16:58Yankee Stadium is a special place
00:17:00and we just feel the heartbeat of the people
00:17:03the Yankees were suddenly invincible
00:17:10the Yankees win
00:17:11in the second round of the playoffs
00:17:13they polished off the Seattle Mariners
00:17:15the best team in baseball
00:17:17in five games
00:17:18it was almost like this city needed something
00:17:22to try to get away from it
00:17:24just for a few hours
00:17:26it gave people something to look forward to the next day
00:17:29all the way into the World Series
00:17:31I think the players
00:17:33they developed a sense of fate
00:17:35everything that's gone on
00:17:36it makes sense that New York
00:17:37would have a championship
00:17:39you had a heart as big as this city
00:17:41and you showed what being New Yorkers is all about
00:17:44God bless you
00:17:45yeah!
00:17:532,400 miles from ground zero
00:17:56the World Series opened in Phoenix, Arizona
00:17:59Diamondbacks in the World Series
00:18:01the four year old Diamondbacks had built their team around veterans
00:18:11and made it to the World Series faster than any expansion team in history
00:18:15there was a bunch of old guys on that team
00:18:19just a bunch of crotchety old guys that had never been to a World Series
00:18:23never won squat, myself included
00:18:26in contrast
00:18:28this Yankee team was one of the most accomplished in the history of baseball
00:18:32winning four World Series in the previous five years
00:18:36I remember they walked in here for game one
00:18:39and I'm looking over there
00:18:41I'm trying to find a reason not to like them
00:18:43you know, because you want to put something in your head
00:18:45man, I don't like these guys
00:18:47you know
00:18:48man, I couldn't find anything
00:18:49these guys walk with a swagger
00:18:51but it's not arrogance
00:18:52it's just confidence
00:18:53I guess most of the media is saying that
00:18:55you know, they think that the country is going to be behind the Yankees
00:18:59it's a little ironic because most often the people pull or go against the Yankees
00:19:05we were the bad guys coming in
00:19:07the ones that, how dare they do that to our brothers and sisters in New York
00:19:11we had to be very careful with the things that we said
00:19:14and the way we conducted ourselves in interviews
00:19:17because we understood the sensitive nature of what had happened
00:19:21but our job now was to play baseball and to beat your team
00:19:30Showing remarkable confidence of their own
00:19:32Arizona's hitters opened the series with an offensive explosion
00:19:36Great supply ball into right center field
00:19:40scoring is Finland, scoring is Williams
00:19:43and the route is on in Arizona
00:19:46but the backbone of the team was pitching
00:19:49and Schilling, his eighth strike out of the ninth
00:19:53in the first two games of the series
00:19:55Arizona's aces, Kurt Schilling and Randy Johnson
00:19:59drained the life out of New York's lineup
00:20:02by the time they were through
00:20:04Arizona was halfway to a world title
00:20:07and Randy Johnson
00:20:09twirls a complete game three hit shutout
00:20:13to give the Arizona Diamondbacks
00:20:16a two games to none lead in this world series
00:20:25We all knew that this series is going back to New York
00:20:29this series is going back to Yankee Stadium
00:20:31and this series is going back to a place
00:20:34that couldn't wait to embrace baseball
00:20:37because of what the city went through
00:20:4048 days after the attack
00:20:43New York remained on high alert
00:20:48Armed guards were visible on city streets
00:20:51Security checkpoints were posted at bridges and tunnels
00:20:55Soldiers with M-16s patrolled train stations
00:20:59There's a moroseness to the city
00:21:02Dog faces of doom and gloom everywhere
00:21:05because every moment we've been told
00:21:07in the subway you might perish from an anthrax attack
00:21:10Everywhere you looked you saw potential terrorists
00:21:13Paranoia was thick in the air
00:21:16and naturally media kept feeding that
00:21:19downtown at City Hall
00:21:24before the World Series
00:21:26We're preparing for the Yankees coming home
00:21:30On Sunday we have the marathon
00:21:33and these are large events
00:21:35and all of a sudden out of Washington
00:21:37the FBI puts us on super duper alert
00:21:41top secret
00:21:42I don't even know what they called it at the time
00:21:44I think it was pre-color
00:21:46There may be additional terrorist attacks
00:21:49within the United States
00:21:50and against the United States interests
00:21:53over the next week
00:21:54And we all look at each other
00:21:56and we say well what does this mean?
00:21:58If you think it's necessary to cancel the baseball game
00:22:00we will
00:22:01If you think we need to cancel the marathon
00:22:03we will
00:22:04You want us to close the airports?
00:22:06We will
00:22:07But we need some direction
00:22:08So they did
00:22:09The FBI gave the information
00:22:10so we were able to assess it
00:22:12and we decided we'd go forward with it
00:22:13This is 1010 Wins
00:22:15Good morning
00:22:16It's 51 degrees
00:22:17at 620 on this Tuesday
00:22:19October 30th
00:22:20The FBI is warning Americans
00:22:22and law enforcement
00:22:23to be on the highest alert
00:22:24possible for terror attacks
00:22:25They're down
00:22:26but they're not out
00:22:27The Yankees host the Arizona Diamondbacks
00:22:28tonight in Game 3 of the World Series
00:22:30The Bombers badly need a win
00:22:32The last thing
00:22:34that I thought I would feel
00:22:35after September 11th
00:22:37was
00:22:38was joy
00:22:39but there were the Yankees
00:22:41You know
00:22:42it was an outlet
00:22:43for every ounce of happiness
00:22:44you could muster
00:22:45you know
00:22:46every celebration
00:22:48Since September 11th
00:22:50Greg Manning's days and nights
00:22:52have been confined
00:22:53to the burn center
00:22:54at New York Presbyterian Hospital
00:22:56where he kept vigil over his wife
00:22:58Lauren
00:22:59a World Trade Center survivor
00:23:01Lauren was burned
00:23:03on more than 80% of her body
00:23:05Her chances of surviving
00:23:06were really one in five
00:23:08I don't think any of the doctors
00:23:11really had any hope for her
00:23:13Lauren was sedated for a long time
00:23:15and she really didn't start to wake up
00:23:17until the middle of the World Series
00:23:19and one of the first things
00:23:21that she had the chance to do
00:23:22when she was awake and aware
00:23:24was to look at me
00:23:26and one of her nurses said
00:23:27you know
00:23:28the World Series is
00:23:29at Yankee Stadium tonight
00:23:30and I looked at her and I said
00:23:32you know
00:23:33and I've got tickets
00:23:34and the nurse said
00:23:35are you going?
00:23:36I said it's up to her
00:23:37and so Lauren looked at me
00:23:39and you know
00:23:40one of the first things she said
00:23:41was to go
00:23:43she waved at me
00:23:44and she mouthed go
00:23:45that was the first time
00:23:47that in Lauren's case
00:23:49I was willing to jump up and down
00:23:51and start screaming
00:23:52because then you know
00:23:53we really knew she had turned the corner
00:23:54and so I said
00:23:55okay honey
00:23:56I'm going to the game
00:24:06people are lined up
00:24:0710, 20, 50 deep
00:24:09it's a mob scene outside
00:24:13much more of a police presence
00:24:15you go through the magnetometer
00:24:17hand search
00:24:19this had another level of intensity to it
00:24:22I remember seeing guys
00:24:24holding automatic weapons
00:24:26and I remember thinking to myself
00:24:27this is now my America
00:24:31walking into the locker room
00:24:32and seeing a bomb dog
00:24:33go through your locker
00:24:36these were reminders of what was going on
00:24:38around us
00:24:42another reason for the heightened security
00:24:44was the appearance of a guest from Washington
00:24:50as we walked in the locker room
00:24:51there was a gentleman standing there
00:24:52we had never seen before
00:24:53he says
00:24:55well President Bush is going to come
00:24:57and he's going to throw out the first pitch
00:24:59and we need a secret service agent on the field
00:25:03and so I'm going to dress as an umpire
00:25:07he had communications
00:25:08he had guns
00:25:09he had things hooked on the back
00:25:10he had things hooked on the front
00:25:12and I said
00:25:13how are you going to hide all that stuff
00:25:14he says don't worry
00:25:15he says it'll disappear
00:25:16all of a sudden
00:25:18all of a sudden
00:25:19there was a knock at the door
00:25:22and President Bush walked into our room
00:25:24thank you
00:25:25will you do me a favor
00:25:26and say hi to my son
00:25:27because he's one of your biggest supporters
00:25:28Jimmy
00:25:30Jimmy how are you
00:25:32well when you're president
00:25:33all you have to do
00:25:34is say you're showing up
00:25:35and they kind of ask you to throw out the first pitch
00:25:37no matter what time of year it is
00:25:38this is my first World Series
00:25:40is it really?
00:25:41yeah
00:25:42I vowed I'd never go to a World Series
00:25:43unless the Rangers got in
00:25:45and I changed that vow
00:25:47you know I wanted to make sure
00:25:48that if I was going to throw out the ball
00:25:51I was able to do so
00:25:53with a little zip
00:25:54you know I didn't want people to think
00:25:55that their president was incapable
00:25:56of finding the plate
00:25:58so I go underneath the Yankee Stadium
00:26:00in the bowels of Yankee Stadium
00:26:02and there's a hitting cage there
00:26:04and he's wearing his bulletproof jacket
00:26:06and he's getting his arm loose
00:26:08and Derek Jeter comes up to him
00:26:11hey Prez how are you doing?
00:26:12good Derek
00:26:13good luck tonight
00:26:14thank you sir
00:26:15he says say I hear you're throwing out the first ball
00:26:17so I just asked him if he was going to be throwing the first pitch
00:26:19from the mound or in front of the mound
00:26:21the president said I think I'll throw from the base of the mound
00:26:24Jeter said I wouldn't do that if I were you Mr. President
00:26:26and I told him you better throw from the mound
00:26:28otherwise you're going to get booed
00:26:29I said this is Yankee Stadium
00:26:31I said okay I'll throw from the mound
00:26:33and he's walking out
00:26:36and he looks over his shoulder
00:26:37and he says
00:26:39don't bounce it
00:26:40they'll boo you
00:26:42and so the pressure all of a sudden
00:26:43I mean I'm sitting there kind of fairly relaxed
00:26:45and feeling fairly loose
00:26:46and the great Derek Jeter
00:26:48don't bounce it
00:26:49they'll boo you
00:26:50and all of a sudden the pressure mounted
00:26:52the president of the United States
00:26:55I'd never felt what I'd felt before when I walked out of that dugout
00:27:04I felt the raw emotion of the Yankee fans
00:27:07USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
00:27:12The crowd just erupts in a chant of USA
00:27:16there is nothing like it that I've ever experienced at a ballgame
00:27:20it was overwhelming
00:27:22it was just overwhelming
00:27:23it was just overwhelming
00:27:24President Bush is standing out there like a brick wall
00:27:27I'm not afraid of terrorists
00:27:29I'm going to stand all out here
00:27:30I'm going to give you a thumbs up
00:27:31and I'm going to throw a strike
00:27:33Great first pitch! Bam!
00:27:35I didn't vote for him
00:27:38but at that point
00:27:39my personal feelings about him as a politician was gone
00:27:47I watched him and he was my representative
00:27:49and I had never felt that way before
00:27:51Very nice throw Mr. President!
00:27:53Good stuff, good stuff!
00:27:56At that moment everybody there was there for baseball
00:27:59and to show the world
00:28:00that in spite of what can happen to us
00:28:02we'll pull ourselves together
00:28:04and what is our life
00:28:06and our way of life
00:28:07will continue
00:28:08United we stand
00:28:10We stand together in the face of this threat
00:28:13We will play baseball
00:28:15in the midst of the beginnings of this war
00:28:18No matter what the threat may be to us
00:28:21the United States of America will stand strong
00:28:23and will never be intimidated
00:28:25The business at hand was now baseball
00:28:30and the spotlight turned to Roger Clemens
00:28:33The Yankees were desperate for a win
00:28:39and Clemens delivered
00:28:41as he shut down the Diamondbacks
00:28:43and threw the crowd into a frenzy
00:28:45The place was alive
00:28:54You could look in the stands
00:28:55and people just needed this
00:28:57and they wanted this
00:28:58and they were just thrilled to be there
00:29:00and to be a part of it
00:29:02We knew so many colleagues who had died
00:29:13you really were kind of afraid to crack a smile
00:29:17but you know when you go to Yankee Stadium
00:29:19you could stand up and scream
00:29:20jump up and down
00:29:21it was just this wonderful release
00:29:24In the end
00:29:30the Yankees entrusted a 2-1 lead
00:29:32to Mariano Rivera
00:29:33the best closer in postseason history
00:29:37Cutting the series deficit to two games to one
00:29:45the Yankees were back in it
00:29:47While much of New York rejoiced
00:29:50a somber mood prevailed nine miles to the south
00:29:56The workers at Ground Zero
00:29:58were in their 50th straight day
00:30:00of round-the-clock cleaning
00:30:04It had turned into a recovery operation
00:30:06by that time
00:30:07and we were no longer really trying to
00:30:09find anyone alive
00:30:11and we're gonna dig
00:30:13and we're gonna do what we can
00:30:15It was a really sad time
00:30:18You know the whole impact
00:30:20of what was going on
00:30:21had sunk in
00:30:22The crane would come
00:30:25pull stuff up
00:30:26and you'd be looking
00:30:27for you
00:30:28God knows why
00:30:29You know what you're looking for
00:30:31but you know
00:30:32that's what you're doing
00:30:33you're sifting through
00:30:34It's constantly sifting through
00:30:35whatever was down there
00:30:38It comes time for a break
00:30:39So we come down to Lieutenant Simms
00:30:41and starts walking back
00:30:42and he's hungry
00:30:43I'm hungry
00:30:44I said okay
00:30:45And I said don't eat anything
00:30:46What do you mean?
00:30:47I said I'm taking care of it
00:30:48Don't eat anything
00:30:49I talked to a friend of mine
00:30:51who works on Wall Street
00:30:52He says we're gonna get you dinner
00:30:53Wayne had two big bundles
00:30:55I don't know where he got them from
00:30:57I don't know how he got them there
00:30:59He sent me more steaks
00:31:00asparagus vinaigrette
00:31:01cheesecake with whipped cream
00:31:03curly fries
00:31:04oh it was just unbelievable
00:31:06We worked hard
00:31:07you know it was like a depressing
00:31:08kind of atmosphere
00:31:09but we're gonna make the best
00:31:10of this bad situation
00:31:11I remember telling him
00:31:13you know the Yankees are playing tonight
00:31:15tonight
00:31:16The game has probably started already
00:31:18We found a recliner
00:31:19and a 27 inch TV
00:31:21Welcome back to the Yankee Stadium
00:31:22Welcome back to the Yankee Stadium
00:31:23Welcome to the Boothills
00:31:24We hooked it up and there it was
00:31:25This guy was happy
00:31:27for a brief period of time
00:31:28and enjoyed something
00:31:29and we felt really good about that
00:31:31It was wonderful
00:31:33It was wonderful
00:31:34Me and this TV set
00:31:35and four or five acres of rubble
00:31:38But I had a full belly
00:31:40Yankees in the World Series
00:31:42Steak
00:31:43I was an American
00:31:45God bless America
00:31:50Throughout the World Series
00:31:53A tattered flag
00:31:54found among the ruins
00:31:55at Ground Zero
00:31:57flew from the top of Yankee Stadium
00:31:59A stark reminder
00:32:01Prior to 9-11
00:32:03Seventh-inning stretch
00:32:04is usually reserved
00:32:05for Peanuts and Cracker Jack
00:32:07and you know
00:32:08it's all for fun
00:32:09but people are not
00:32:11taking American flags with them
00:32:12to the ballpark
00:32:13There was a seriousness
00:32:15post 9-11
00:32:16that you never felt
00:32:17in the stadium before
00:32:19When I heard
00:32:20God bless America
00:32:21it was very hard
00:32:22to hold back tears
00:32:23I looked at my mom
00:32:24she had tears in her eyes
00:32:25I think
00:32:26you know half the people
00:32:27around me were crying
00:32:28It was very powerful
00:32:30The flag meant something different
00:32:33It meant something more
00:32:34at least to me
00:32:35My dad died in this tragedy
00:32:37and that's why people
00:32:38are putting flags out
00:32:39because 3,000 people
00:32:40tragically died
00:32:41But there were those
00:32:43for whom any reminder
00:32:44was still too much to bear
00:32:47I always excused myself
00:32:49you know
00:32:50and just walked away
00:32:51whenever they sang
00:32:53God bless America
00:32:54It was because
00:32:55I just
00:32:56I really couldn't deal with it
00:32:59and it was because
00:33:00my brother died
00:33:01Sean Powell's brother
00:33:03Scott
00:33:04was a civilian
00:33:05working with the uniforms
00:33:06at the Pentagon
00:33:07In his department
00:33:11He was really the only person
00:33:13who didn't escape
00:33:14And I had a really tough time
00:33:17dealing with that
00:33:18It was almost like
00:33:20I didn't want to know that
00:33:21We all grieve differently
00:33:24But I think that
00:33:26the most therapeutic thing
00:33:27for me
00:33:28was to get back to work
00:33:29as soon as possible
00:33:30I had to cover that whole series
00:33:34Obviously
00:33:35I knew that
00:33:36I would have
00:33:37the constant reminders
00:33:38I didn't want to give myself
00:33:40an opportunity
00:33:41to have some sort of breakdown
00:33:42So I always left
00:33:43It was sort of like clockwork
00:33:45And I always thought
00:33:46the bathroom
00:33:47was like the safest place
00:33:48It was a great spot
00:33:50for me just to go
00:33:51and just kind of wait it out
00:33:53But even in the bathroom
00:33:54you couldn't escape
00:33:55the sound of the applause
00:33:57It was always my signal
00:34:01that the coast was clear
00:34:02I could kind of come back
00:34:03and resume work
00:34:07Here's Curt Schilling
00:34:08His numbers this postseason
00:34:09are fantastic
00:34:15The Yankee fans
00:34:16they are angry
00:34:18loud
00:34:19obnoxious
00:34:20rude
00:34:21vulgar
00:34:22incredibly passionate people
00:34:24If they boo you
00:34:28as a visiting player
00:34:29that just means you don't suck
00:34:32Oblivious to the taunts
00:34:33Curt Schilling
00:34:34was nearly untouchable
00:34:35in game 4
00:34:36Schilling just pounded it by him
00:34:38and a fly ball
00:34:41straight away
00:34:42center field
00:34:43hit well
00:34:44Williams on the run
00:34:45he's not going to get
00:34:46In the top of the 8th
00:34:47Yankee fans watched
00:34:48in sobering silence
00:34:49as the Diamondbacks
00:34:50went on the offensive
00:34:51To short
00:34:52Jeter
00:34:53won a play
00:34:54and
00:34:55safe
00:34:56as Pasada dropped it
00:34:57it's 3-1
00:34:58Arizona
00:35:00With his team ahead
00:35:01by two runs
00:35:02in the bottom of the 8th
00:35:03Arizona manager
00:35:04Bob Brenly
00:35:05pulled Schilling
00:35:06in favor of his closer
00:35:07That's enough
00:35:08That's enough
00:35:09That's enough
00:35:10Listen you're at 88 right now
00:35:11We got BK locked and loaded
00:35:12for the last 6 hours man
00:35:13Let's
00:35:14you know
00:35:15You're a hero already man
00:35:16I'm alright to go another one
00:35:17I mean
00:35:18Let's save him
00:35:19Let's save him
00:35:20Pitching your ass off
00:35:21That's good
00:35:22I knew
00:35:23Physically
00:35:24I was near
00:35:25the end of my tank
00:35:26that night
00:35:27But I still felt
00:35:28that I was better
00:35:29than anybody
00:35:30he was going to bring in
00:35:33Well BK Kim is a guy
00:35:34without a whole lot
00:35:35of experience
00:35:36He's from Korea
00:35:37Doesn't speak a lot
00:35:38of English
00:35:39Not even his teammates
00:35:40really know him
00:35:41that well
00:35:42Stuff wise
00:35:43It's electric
00:35:44He's electric
00:35:49Struck him out
00:35:50and the inning is over
00:35:51Kim fans aside
00:35:53in his World Series debut
00:35:56In that eighth inning
00:35:57there was nobody questioning
00:35:58whether Kim should have been
00:35:59in the game or not
00:36:00I mean we were down
00:36:02two runs
00:36:03and you know
00:36:04your thought process
00:36:05as a player
00:36:06is just
00:36:07hit
00:36:08run
00:36:09walk
00:36:10hit by pitch
00:36:11anything
00:36:12O'Neal brings it back
00:36:13floats one to left
00:36:14gets a big save
00:36:15and the tying run
00:36:16will come to the plate
00:36:17here in the ninth inning
00:36:18So now it's Tino Martinez
00:36:20and the Diamondbacks
00:36:21are one out away
00:36:22taking a three games
00:36:24to one lead
00:36:26For some reason
00:36:27I just didn't like
00:36:28seeing Tino
00:36:29come to the plate
00:36:30I was like
00:36:31this is a dangerous
00:36:32game
00:36:33the whole freaking team
00:36:34is dangerous
00:36:36It was pretty dire
00:36:37at that point
00:36:38I was sitting there
00:36:39I had a sweater coat on
00:36:40and I pulled it up
00:36:41to my eyes
00:36:42because I didn't
00:36:43want to see
00:36:44and then I started screaming
00:36:54nonsense
00:36:55just screaming
00:36:56it was unbelievable
00:36:57Oh my
00:36:59what a focus
00:37:00Yankee Stadium
00:37:01and the Yankees
00:37:02are backing
00:37:03the World Series
00:37:04X-3-3
00:37:05People are so pumped
00:37:07I have never felt
00:37:09the upper deck
00:37:10go up and down
00:37:11like an accordion
00:37:12Everyone in the stadium
00:37:15was jumping up and down
00:37:16at that point
00:37:17that's the best game
00:37:18I've ever been to
00:37:19still
00:37:24Even after New York's
00:37:25comeback
00:37:26Bob Brenly stayed with Kim
00:37:27and in the tenth
00:37:29sent him out for his
00:37:30third inning of work
00:37:31The game did start
00:37:33on Halloween night
00:37:34with a full moon
00:37:36We know we already had
00:37:37Mr. October well established
00:37:39and Reggie Jackson
00:37:40and Derek Jeter
00:37:42comes to the plate
00:37:43and the clock
00:37:44strikes twelve
00:37:45and we now have
00:37:46batting for the
00:37:47New York Yankees
00:37:48Mr. November
00:37:49Swim and a drop to
00:37:50right field
00:37:51going backstage
00:37:52and the Jets
00:37:53at the wall
00:37:54See ya!
00:37:55See ya!
00:37:56See ya!
00:37:57Oh what a ball game!
00:37:59A game winning
00:38:00walk off home run
00:38:02by Derek Jeter
00:38:05And this series
00:38:06is now tied at two
00:38:08This fits perfectly
00:38:10with the scene
00:38:11We see New Yorkers
00:38:13battling
00:38:14whether they are in
00:38:15pinstripes
00:38:16in a police uniform
00:38:17down at Ground Zero
00:38:19just average Joes
00:38:20walking the street
00:38:21Everyone shared
00:38:22the same spirit
00:38:23You think about
00:38:24the raw emotions
00:38:25that everybody
00:38:26took into the
00:38:27ballpark that night
00:38:28and you begin to think
00:38:30you know what
00:38:31something bigger
00:38:32is going on here
00:38:33and we just have to
00:38:34sit back and watch
00:38:35it play out
00:38:36and you know what
00:38:37it's going on here
00:38:38and you know what
00:38:39it's going on here
00:38:40and you know what
00:38:41it's going on here
00:38:43Dear Derek Jeter
00:38:44As you have heard
00:38:45there was a
00:38:46horrible accident
00:38:47that involved the
00:38:48Twin Towers
00:38:49There was a hijacking
00:38:50on a plane
00:38:51Terrible people are
00:38:52in this world
00:38:53but you and I
00:38:54both know that
00:38:55Well Derek Jeter
00:38:56was always my favorite
00:38:57player so I decided
00:38:58to write a letter
00:38:59to him
00:39:00I wasn't feeling very
00:39:01well during that time
00:39:02I was kind of sad
00:39:03very sad actually
00:39:04and I thought it would
00:39:06be a good way to
00:39:07get my spirit level
00:39:08up a little you know
00:39:09Out of respect
00:39:10I would love it
00:39:11if he would pay me
00:39:12a visit because
00:39:13that horrible hijacking
00:39:14happened to be my
00:39:15father
00:39:16My husband Victor
00:39:17was the captain
00:39:18of United Flight 175
00:39:19that struck the
00:39:20South Tower
00:39:21When Brielle
00:39:22found out about
00:39:23her dad
00:39:24she you know
00:39:25of course
00:39:26there were a flood
00:39:27of emotions going on
00:39:28and she just needed
00:39:29something to make
00:39:30her feel good
00:39:31My dad was a great
00:39:33father to me
00:39:34and he would want me
00:39:35to conquer my dream
00:39:36meeting you
00:39:37Love Brielle
00:39:40I was just sitting
00:39:41on my couch one day
00:39:42and Derek called
00:39:43he was like
00:39:44do you know who this is
00:39:45I was like no
00:39:46I thought it was like
00:39:47someone just playing a joke
00:39:48on me you know
00:39:49and he was like
00:39:50it's Derek Jeter
00:39:51Nuh uh
00:39:52and it just
00:39:53it actually was him
00:39:55so he invited me
00:39:56up to the stadium
00:39:57invited me to meet him
00:39:58and I was just like
00:39:59yeah
00:40:00yeah it's fine
00:40:01after the telephone call
00:40:03with Derek Jeter
00:40:04Brielle ran up to her room
00:40:05and I heard her sing
00:40:07and that was the first time
00:40:08that she started singing
00:40:10since September 11th
00:40:11and gosh the feeling
00:40:14that I got
00:40:15just to know that
00:40:16something was making her happy
00:40:18something was giving her pleasure
00:40:20something was making her forget
00:40:22I got up to the stadium
00:40:24and it was just amazing
00:40:25and nobody was there
00:40:26and nobody was there
00:40:27so um
00:40:28it was like I had a whole stadium
00:40:29to myself
00:40:30and the Yankees
00:40:31how cool is that?
00:40:36Derek Jeter came over
00:40:37and I just looked at him
00:40:39and I could not say anything
00:40:41I was stunned
00:40:42it was awesome
00:40:43what is that?
00:40:46oh my god
00:40:49some people say
00:40:51things like
00:40:52uh
00:40:53baseball
00:40:54could that be so important
00:40:55to somebody
00:40:56and making them feel good
00:40:57uh
00:40:58each person's different
00:40:59you never really know
00:41:00what it is that's going to click
00:41:02I mean
00:41:03baseball
00:41:04baseball just made 9-11
00:41:06a little better for
00:41:07for us
00:41:08Yankee Stadium game 5
00:41:21the swing game in the World Series
00:41:23between the three time defending champion
00:41:25New York Yankees
00:41:26and the Arizona Diamondbacks
00:41:27Yankees all the way
00:41:29they tie to two games apiece
00:41:31aw last night was unforgettable
00:41:34and we're just well on our way
00:41:36to another World Series victory
00:41:38everybody was ready for bed
00:41:39they're ready to call it a night
00:41:41turn off the TV
00:41:42and then all of a sudden
00:41:43we're all jumped up
00:41:44and you know
00:41:45raring to go again
00:41:46I want the Yankees to win
00:41:47but I want the Yankees to win
00:41:48more so for New York City
00:41:49this year
00:41:50as long as the Yankees
00:41:51continued to pull off miracles
00:41:53nobody was complaining
00:41:55about the late hours
00:41:56they were keeping
00:41:57America
00:42:01America
00:42:05to a city steeped in despair
00:42:09the Yankees
00:42:11had become a beacon of hope
00:42:12I was close to the bottom
00:42:14at that point
00:42:15and getting to Yankee Stadium
00:42:17was enlightening
00:42:18it was
00:42:19it lifted me
00:42:20I felt that there was
00:42:22other people around me
00:42:23that were in the same predicament
00:42:24and that
00:42:25they were rallying
00:42:26to get out of the muck
00:42:27and I chose that point
00:42:28to get out of the muck myself
00:42:30you're at a game that
00:42:33you went as a child
00:42:34with your brothers
00:42:35and we played baseball
00:42:36our whole lives
00:42:37and now you're at a game
00:42:39by yourself
00:42:40Kieran Lynch's older brothers
00:42:42Sean and Farrell
00:42:43worked on the 104th floor
00:42:45of the World Trade Center's
00:42:46North Tower
00:42:47on the morning of September 11th
00:42:54a frantic Kieran called Farrell
00:42:56from his Connecticut office
00:42:58I said to him
00:43:00get Sean
00:43:01and he said that
00:43:02he was heading over there now
00:43:03and that he would contact me
00:43:05as he made his way down
00:43:07Kieran waited by a phone that never rang
00:43:12I called my father
00:43:15not too long after that
00:43:16and she picked up
00:43:17in his cheery
00:43:18Irish accent
00:43:19and I had to tell him
00:43:22what happened
00:43:25you know
00:43:26I was witnessing on TV
00:43:27and he asked me what I should do
00:43:33you know
00:43:35this is a grown man
00:43:36asking me
00:43:37what I should do
00:43:38and I said
00:43:41I said better get a priest
00:43:44in the months following 9-11
00:43:46Kieran struggled to carry on
00:43:48without his brothers
00:43:52his first visit back to New York
00:43:54would not be a trip to Ground Zero
00:43:56but to Yankee Stadium
00:43:58for Game 5 of the World Series
00:44:04you know
00:44:05stepping into Yankee Stadium
00:44:06for the first time
00:44:07was a connection
00:44:08to my brothers
00:44:09I felt I had to be at the game
00:44:11and it was almost like
00:44:12a
00:44:13to certain
00:44:14destiny
00:44:15to a certain degree
00:44:16that I was at the game
00:44:17I was
00:44:18resolved to the fact that
00:44:20I'm moving on
00:44:21and I'm going to get better
00:44:23and I'm going to
00:44:24do everything I can
00:44:25to make sure I can
00:44:26keep
00:44:27Sean O'Farrill's memories alive
00:44:28by the fifth inning of Game 5
00:44:32by the fifth inning of Game 5
00:44:34the series was following
00:44:35a familiar pattern
00:44:37the Yankees weren't hitting
00:44:39and Arizona was
00:44:41in a high fly ball
00:44:43deep right field
00:44:44and that ball
00:44:45long gone
00:44:46and the Diamondbacks
00:44:47have drawn first flood
00:44:491-2 pitch
00:44:50and Barajas
00:44:51hits it into deep
00:44:52left field
00:44:53back at the wall
00:44:54it's 2-0 Arizona
00:44:56once again
00:44:59the Yankees were down
00:45:00to their final three outs
00:45:01and in danger
00:45:02of falling behind
00:45:03in the series
00:45:04then
00:45:05Bob Brenly again
00:45:06gave rise
00:45:07to second guessing
00:45:08new pitcher Kim
00:45:09new left fielder
00:45:10Danny Batista
00:45:11Kim is in the game
00:45:13people were literally screaming
00:45:15what is he doing?
00:45:16this guy had his heart ripped out
00:45:18on the mound
00:45:19but when he brought him out
00:45:20it was just like
00:45:21you're asking for
00:45:22another disaster
00:45:23now it's up to Brocious
00:45:25for New York
00:45:26they're at second
00:45:27two out
00:45:282-0 Arizona
00:45:29here in Game 5
00:45:30you can't expect
00:45:31to come back
00:45:32time and time again
00:45:33not two
00:45:34three nights in a row
00:45:35especially in the World Series
00:45:36off the same guy
00:45:39ball one
00:45:41I have several rituals
00:45:42for luck
00:45:43at key moments
00:45:44I felt that
00:45:45if there was ever a time
00:45:46when I needed
00:45:47to do
00:45:48this
00:45:49with my cap
00:45:51this was the moment
00:45:53Yankees trying to work their magic
00:45:55one more time
00:45:57and then the pitch
00:45:59and then the pitch
00:46:00and then the pitch
00:46:02it's going to the left
00:46:03it's going back
00:46:04through the wall
00:46:05for the Yankees
00:46:06and it is
00:46:07holy shit
00:46:11holy shit
00:46:12holy shit
00:46:13holy shit
00:46:14I'm not believing
00:46:15what I'm seeing now
00:46:16it just happened again
00:46:17two nights in a row
00:46:18once again
00:46:19deja vu
00:46:21probably
00:46:22the most unbelievable feat
00:46:24in World Series history
00:46:26you have got
00:46:28to be kidding me
00:46:31the next thing I remember
00:46:32people grabbing the cap
00:46:34rubbing the cap
00:46:35hugging each other
00:46:37it was hysteria
00:46:39I was standing by myself
00:46:41so I was grabbing guys
00:46:42on the other side of me
00:46:43and I didn't even know
00:46:44these guys are high-fiving
00:46:45and hugging each other
00:46:46I've never been part of anything
00:46:47like that in my life
00:46:48never in the history of the World Series
00:46:52had a team won a game
00:46:53after a two-out bottom of the ninth
00:46:55game-time home run
00:46:56now
00:46:58the Yankees had a chance to do it
00:47:00for the second night in a row
00:47:03the score was still tied in the bottom of the 12th
00:47:09when New York got a runner to second
00:47:12and Alfonso Soriano came to the plate
00:47:15Yankees had played five games in the series
00:47:36and they've been utterly dominated
00:47:38and yet here they are
00:47:40one victory away
00:47:41from winning the World Series
00:47:42and by then you're convinced
00:47:44that they can do anything
00:47:50it was really miraculous
00:47:52you knew you were part of great history
00:47:54those are the games where Yankee fans want to stay
00:47:58and they want to soak it in
00:48:03those two games
00:48:04were absolutely like miracles
00:48:06they just lifted
00:48:08the spirits of New York
00:48:12and the Yankees
00:48:13whether they could accept us or not
00:48:15through humility or whatever
00:48:17really had their city on their shoulders
00:48:19I think it was great going to the ballpark
00:48:23I really do
00:48:24you know it helped out a whole lot
00:48:26it was almost like therapy
00:48:27but as I got closer to home
00:48:32walking downtown
00:48:34walking downtown where Ground Zero is
00:48:36it was a very eerie feeling
00:48:42it's almost like I never went to the game
00:48:46looking and seeing the world's face still burning
00:48:49and you could still smell the smoke
00:48:52seeing the cops
00:48:55and everything like that
00:48:56you know it was devastating
00:48:58I remember always going home
00:49:00and trying to get the sports center
00:49:02to try to recapture
00:49:04the game I just left
00:49:06you know to keep that energy level up
00:49:08good morning 65 degrees at 620 on this November 3rd
00:49:12the mayor and some firefighters are at odds
00:49:14over who should be in charge at Ground Zero
00:49:16the FBI raids an apartment in Trenton
00:49:18in connection with the Anthrax case
00:49:20marathon Sunday looks good with sunshine
00:49:22some clouds and a high of 58
00:49:24the Yankees go for their fourth straight ring
00:49:25tonight in Arizona
00:49:26it'll be petted against Johnson
00:49:28for game six and seven Arizona
00:49:30we discussed whether or not
00:49:32the mayor would go
00:49:33and the one concern was that
00:49:34if something happened in the city
00:49:36it wasn't that he was an hour out
00:49:38two hours out
00:49:39he would be probably five six
00:49:41maybe even seven hours out
00:49:43and the decision was made
00:49:45we're going
00:49:47we decided that we were going to take
00:49:49a group of people
00:49:50including some of the family members
00:49:52that wanted to come to Arizona
00:49:54to see the sixth game
00:49:55which we fully expected to win
00:49:57my dad's watching
00:49:59and that's why we know the Yankees will win
00:50:01because my dad always wanted the Yankees to win
00:50:03you know Mayor Giuliani let us talk
00:50:05you know he certainly knew that it was important for us
00:50:08to get our feelings out there
00:50:10and we went to the ballpark
00:50:12and the Yankees got cream that night
00:50:15it was brutal
00:50:17up the middle
00:50:18and the Diamondbacks take a game six lead
00:50:23Jim Wall runs and it's 3-0 Arizona
00:50:26from the start
00:50:29from the start
00:50:30the Diamondbacks had Andy Pettit's number
00:50:35this is a drubbing right now
00:50:37this is just getting ridiculous
00:50:39to the right side of base hit
00:50:43two more runs come home
00:50:45the ugliness continues for the Yankees
00:50:48it's 14-0
00:50:49facing Randy Johnson
00:50:52the Yankees were just as helpless at the plate
00:50:56and if things weren't bad enough for New York
00:50:59alarming news came from the home front
00:51:02I think we lost like 15-2 or something right
00:51:05and my cell phone rings
00:51:07and it's the health commissioner
00:51:09and he says to me
00:51:10find a landline if you can and call me at home
00:51:12so I go inside and I call him
00:51:15and he says the tape that was on your desk
00:51:18tested positive for anthrax
00:51:21and whenever you say the words landline to me
00:51:23I know this is not to give me good news
00:51:26I said I gotta go back
00:51:27and he requires us to go back
00:51:28we gotta get a plane right now and head back
00:51:30tonight investigators are examining traces of anthrax
00:51:33found in a package sent from NBC to City Hall
00:51:36anthrax had taken the lives of four victims
00:51:39and the news that it had spread through the mail
00:51:42gave rise to more fear
00:51:44we have a confirmed identification of anthrax
00:51:47in an item that was sent to the mayor's office
00:51:49it goes back sometime
00:51:51nobody has shown symptoms
00:51:52it should all probably work itself out pretty easily
00:51:55in addition to getting in around 6 in the morning
00:51:57going directly to City Hall
00:51:59and then starting the marathon
00:52:01and then riding in the front of the marathon
00:52:04throughout the city
00:52:06and we got back on a plane about 12-1 o'clock again
00:52:09and got there just in time for game 7
00:52:12from Bank One Ballpark in downtown Phoenix
00:52:16it's game 7 of the 2001 World Series of Baseball
00:52:20there were 60,000 people in Bank One Ballpark
00:52:22and every one of them had a white pom-pom
00:52:24they're playing music and the pom-poms are going
00:52:26but I can feel the stadium move
00:52:28and I had hair on my neck standing up
00:52:30and I'm terrified
00:52:31but I mean, oh my God, how fun is this?
00:52:37I was nervous to cap
00:52:38and I said, guys
00:52:40there's nothing I can tell you
00:52:42I mean, here we are
00:52:43we win the game
00:52:44and that's all we need to do
00:52:46I always say good luck
00:52:48if nothing more than two or three words
00:52:50don't be afraid to make mistakes
00:52:52whatever it is
00:52:53just to let them know that I'm with them
00:53:01few events in sports can compare to the seventh game of a World Series
00:53:05this one would be the culmination of a series
00:53:08that in its own humble way
00:53:10had served a grander purpose
00:53:12and no one wanted to see it end
00:53:15on this night
00:53:16fans of a wounded nation
00:53:18would have one last chance to lose themselves
00:53:21in a baseball game
00:53:25you can watch the Yankees take on the Diamondbacks
00:53:27right here at Rockefeller Plaza
00:53:29look at this, we are in the spirit
00:53:31those are Yankee flags surrounding the ring
00:53:36New Yorkers gathered in public places around the city
00:53:39hoping that the perseverance and heart shown by the Yankees
00:53:42throughout the series
00:53:43would end with one more glorious night
00:53:46in Arizona
00:53:48the Yankees and the Diamondbacks
00:53:50place their destinies
00:53:51in the hands of their aces
00:53:53usually you get in these situations
00:53:55with such a build up and such anticipation
00:53:57it can't help but let you down
00:53:59how can you possibly live up to it
00:54:03yeah here's Clemens and Schilling
00:54:05doing exactly that
00:54:08these guys were on top of their game
00:54:13and whoever blinked first
00:54:14was probably going to pay the price
00:54:16of losing the world championship
00:54:20into our center field
00:54:21that ball is going to put Arizona on top
00:54:24Danny Batista delivers again
00:54:26going for third
00:54:28out
00:54:30but it's 1-0 Arizona
00:54:32yes sir yes sir
00:54:33Clemens faltered briefly
00:54:34but in the seventh
00:54:36the Yankees fought back
00:54:38Martinez with a base hit to right
00:54:40and the Yankees have tied it
00:54:43and with the Yankees batting in the eighth
00:54:45Joe Torre faced a dilemma
00:54:47Don Zimmer said to me
00:54:49who's the pitcher?
00:54:50and I said Mendoza
00:54:51he says why not Rivera
00:54:53I said I can't bring Rivera in
00:54:55it's a tie game
00:54:56it's a tie game
00:54:57I got to wait until we get a lead
00:54:59I said just have you know
00:55:01Soriano hit a home run
00:55:02he'll solve the whole problem
00:55:04into the end of the clock
00:55:06it is high
00:55:07it is far
00:55:08and it is gone
00:55:13and I said that solves that problem
00:55:15Alfonso Soriano has given the Yankees a G1 lead
00:55:21you have no more decisions to make
00:55:23Rivera will be up in the Yankee bullpen
00:55:26and the Yankees are six outs away
00:55:29from winning their fourth straight world championships
00:55:33and Schilling will lead
00:55:36on the short end of a 2-1 game
00:55:40I give up the home run I thought cost us the World Series
00:55:45because they got Mariano Rivera in the bullpen
00:55:47so the game's over
00:55:49so many teams have tried
00:55:51so many teams have failed
00:55:53against Mariano Rivera
00:55:54since 1998
00:55:56Rivera had come through in all 23 postseason save opportunities
00:56:01and the 0-2 pitch is on the way
00:56:03and Bautista strikes out
00:56:05and Rivera fans the side in the eighth
00:56:08and we figured
00:56:09lock, stock and barrel
00:56:11it's another World Series victory
00:56:12I was like this is the year
00:56:14this is the year they have to win
00:56:16it's destiny
00:56:18bottom of the ninth inning
00:56:20last chance for the Diamondbacks
00:56:22down 2-1
00:56:24I'm sitting like this
00:56:25just oh please God please
00:56:27Mark Grace gets up to start the inning
00:56:29and loops it in to center field
00:56:33I'm sitting out in the right field seats
00:56:35and I look up at the clock
00:56:36and the digits on the clock say 9-11
00:56:39that gets you thinking
00:56:43and he bunks back to the mound
00:56:45there's a play at second
00:56:46into center field
00:56:48Rivera threw it away
00:56:49the Diamondbacks have two on and nobody out
00:56:52Mariano Rivera is the closer of all closers
00:56:55he's the mother of all closers
00:56:57it's almost like you don't believe
00:56:58you see what's actually happening
00:56:59in front of your face
00:57:01and a line drive
00:57:02base hit
00:57:03down the right field line
00:57:04the game is tied
00:57:05something has to happen in the bottom of the ninth
00:57:08for this series
00:57:09it's been unbelievable
00:57:12my first thought was oh my God
00:57:13we're going to win the World Series
00:57:14you're talking about
00:57:15just as low as you can be
00:57:17to back to the top
00:57:18in a matter of seconds
00:57:20and it hit him
00:57:22the bases are loaded
00:57:25when that happened
00:57:29at that point
00:57:30I kind of knew
00:57:31I was like oh no
00:57:33oh no this can't be happening
00:57:35the chance of a lifetime
00:57:36for Luis Gonzalez
00:57:392-2 bottom of the ninth
00:57:41game seven of the World Series
00:57:43bases loaded
00:57:45infield in
00:57:46one out
00:57:48I also was having a baby
00:57:49I mean
00:57:50I'm going crazy
00:57:51come on
00:57:52Gonzo
00:57:53please get a hit
00:57:56Florida
00:57:57center field
00:57:58the Diamondbacks
00:57:59are world champions
00:58:03oh my gosh
00:58:07walk off RBI
00:58:09I'm running straight to Gonzo
00:58:11and
00:58:12Bedlam
00:58:13I mean it's just
00:58:15we just beat the Yankees
00:58:16we won the World Series
00:58:17we're this close to just having something really cool
00:58:23you know
00:58:24not just for us
00:58:25and not just winning
00:58:26but for the city
00:58:27you know
00:58:28life is not fair
00:58:29I mean if it was
00:58:30if there was ever a fair time for the Yankees to win the World Series
00:58:33that was the year
00:58:35after that
00:58:37I didn't wear
00:58:38any purple or any green
00:58:40for months
00:58:41for months
00:58:42at Bank One ballpark
00:58:43New York's 9-11 family members absorbed their sadness
00:58:48the Yankees magical ride
00:58:50was over
00:58:51seeing all the kids that we were with
00:58:53who had just lost their dads
00:58:54and the 3,000 lives that were lost
00:58:57we certainly had a perspective
00:58:59and it's disappointing
00:59:00but
00:59:01you know
00:59:02we had gotten so much
00:59:03already
00:59:04out of the games
00:59:09play at the play
00:59:10Yankees win
00:59:11it was a compelling story
00:59:12look
00:59:14I'll say this
00:59:17the Yankees
00:59:18should count themselves lucky they
00:59:21got that far in the World Series
00:59:23they were absolutely
00:59:26ripped apart
00:59:3028 runs to 3
00:59:32and the Diamondbacks other 3 wins
00:59:35and in the 3 games they won
00:59:39they won by 1 run each game
00:59:41it's kind of like
00:59:44I don't know how
00:59:49you know
00:59:50to feel about that
00:59:51it was a great story
00:59:55they had to win those 3 games
00:59:56in Yankee Stadium
00:59:58for it to be right
01:00:00throughout the fall of 2001
01:00:03New York had become a symbol of strength
01:00:06to the rest of the nation
01:00:08healing had taken many forms
01:00:11and come from many sources
01:00:13those who were caught up in the high drama
01:00:15of the World Series
01:00:16had found their healing
01:00:18in the simple pleasure
01:00:19of watching a baseball game
01:00:23waking up every day
01:00:25September 11th on
01:00:26was unimaginable
01:00:28loved ones were missing
01:00:29it was the worst thing you could imagine
01:00:30really
01:00:32anything positive that can come out of such a terrible thing
01:00:36is something you see yourself gravitating towards
01:00:38and I think that's what this World Series was
01:00:40the purpose of the Yankees and baseball in general
01:00:47is entertainment
01:00:49and it was a great escape for us
01:00:52you know it's not about winning or losing
01:00:55it's about what baseball brought to the city
01:00:58it brought me away to get back and be close to my dad
01:01:00it's amazing to think that what happened down in lower Manhattan
01:01:05that we can move on from there
01:01:07baseball does get played
01:01:09life goes on
01:01:11and that World Series was part of the healing process
01:01:14it was something about baseball which is the American sport
01:01:18and it's outdoors
01:01:20and it's in the fall
01:01:21and it was right in the city
01:01:23that had been brutally attacked
01:01:25it had a wonderful impact on the morale of the people of the city
01:01:28it was exactly what they needed
01:01:29to get their eyes up
01:01:31off the ground
01:01:32looking into the future
01:01:38yes sir
01:01:39yes sir
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