o much for that well-known line in the old song "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Posted on 05/18/2004 9:50:33 PM PDT by NYC GOP Chick
o much for that well-known line in the old song "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."
The Yankees have quietly retired a longtime stadium starter, Cracker Jack. Now, young fans will have to ask, "Buy me some peanuts and Crunch 'n Munch," which is the popcorn snack the Yankees have chosen to replace Cracker Jack.
"It's sacrilege," John L. Donahue, a Yankees fan and stockbroker from Huntington, N.Y. , said yesterday. "How do I explain this to my little boy when I take him to his first Yankee game? If the Cracker Jack name means nothing to the Yankees, will they do the same to Ruth and Gehrig?"
Cracker Jack was developed in the late 1800's and has been part of the baseball experience for about a century. Not to mention that Crunch 'n Munch has no prize in the box.
But the Yankees' chief operating officer, Lonn Trost, said yesterday that fans have not been complaining. While acknowledging that the 1908 song immortalized Cracker Jack as a baseball institution, Mr. Trost added, "I would assume that Cracker Jack didn't have any competition back then."
"Cracker Jack is just a brand name," he added. "We're selling a caramel crunch that is the same thing as Cracker Jack. It's the same difference as Frigidaire versus refrigerator, or aspirin and Bayer, or Jell-O and gelatin."
David Bernstein, director of hospitality at Yankee Stadium, said it all started when he heard that Cracker Jack would be available only in bags, not boxes.
"Bags break open and don't sell as well," said Mr. Bernstein, who then taste-tested the two brands together, along with officials from Centerplate, the company that handles catering and concessions at Yankee Stadium.
"We tasted them both, and believe it or not, Crunch 'n Munch won," he said.
Charles Nicolas, a spokesman for Frito-Lay, which owns Cracker Jack, said he was sorry to hear of the Yankees' decision. But like hopeful fans everywhere, he added, "There's always next year."
Chris Kircher, a spokesman for ConAgra Foods, the Omaha company that makes Crunch 'n Munch, said, "We'd have no heartburn if Yankee fans started standing up in the seventh inning and singing, 'Buy me some peanuts and Crunch 'n Munch.' ''
At Shea Stadium, the Mets are sticking with Cracker Jack, said Dave Howard, executive vice president for business operations.
And Mr. Bernstein did not rule out switching back. "We may wind up going back to Cracker Jack because - well, you know, the song," he said, "but we'd have to go through our supply of Crunch 'n Munch first."
Yeesh!
One more reason why I plan to go to St. George and watch minor league baseball. Whenever I go to the Stadium I just bs my way down to the box seats, load up on the pricey beer and return. If I'm going to get rooked, at least I'll spend my money on real beer instead of "Girl's Lite" and "Miller's Water Crossing."
Never liked the stuff except for the doodads inside and even they got lame when I turned 10.
Are you watching the Yankees now? With this 0-0 score, I don't know if I'm watching baseball or soccer! ;D
Sacrilege!!!
Thanks for reminding me. Turning the game on now.
Jeter still hittin' .195? :)
Just one more confirmation for me that BASEBALL IS DEAD.
Only time I went to see the Rangers at MSG it ended in a scoreless tie. At least I saw Gretsky. :D
I hope so! :)
Bring your own Cracker Jack if you want it. Save money, too.
LOL! And onto the 11th inning!
This is actually an game of historical import.
Scoreless ties this deep is almost unheard of.
Always on top of the "important" news, the Slimes is just a little late in reporting this... I remember Crunch n Munch at the Stadium last year.
I guess it doesn't matter, as long as the story is not about the atrocities at Abu Ghraib. If it were, we'd have team coverage from every angle: Which vendor sold the first box? When? What does his (unnamed) boss have to say about it? What is Crunch n Munch? Where is it made? Who gave the orders to sell Crunch n Munch? Is it all George's fault? Or George Bush's fault?
Jeter's .191 average is Bush's fault.
Wow. Jeter just swung at ball four.
Like I can poke fun of anyone, after what the Big Unit did to my Braves tonight. :)
If anything, that makes you more entitled! ;)
Martin, Baseball can not be dead. Thats impossible, the character of the country is based on Baseball, Football and Soccer.
Character of course being based on what you learn in sports, school and on to the rest of your life.
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