Get Your Metrocards out...

The Subway Series that's about to take place this weekend really has a lot of interesting storylines to it, most notably that this could, perhaps, be the first Subway Series that neither team wins a game. The way both teams are going right now, they could just play 25 innings or more and not come to a conclusion.

It brings me to another intriguing storyline: Today. With the Make-up game from May 16th being played this afternoon at 2pm, both teams will have to make that legendary Bus trip from The Bronx, down the Major Deegan, over the Triborough, across the Grand Central Parkway and out to Shea Stadium for the 8pm start of the second game. In the past (and as documented by Todd Pratt in the 2000 Highlight Video), the teams have been given a Police escort for their trip.

There's one mitigating factor that could complicate this, however, and it does not involve the first game going 14 innings.

With the first game scheduled for 2pm, it will, more than likely, end at around 4:30 or 5pm 5 or 5:30pm (Forgot...It's the Yankees, so we're looking at nothing shorter than 3 hours). This would probably put the players on the road at around 6pm...right in the teeth of rush hour. How, exactly will they manage to get through the traffic? A police escort will help, but in the past, these Same Day/Different Stadium Doubleheaders have been played on Saturdays, when traffic wasn't an issue. Now, you're going to run into every schmo making their mass Exodus from the City to the Hamptons or the Berkshires or whatever Foofy weekend getaway they go to. The Deegan will be a mess, even if the traffic pattern is going in the opposite direction, the Triborough will be a disaster, and I don't even want to know about the Grand Central. A 45-minute trip could take an hour and a half in this kind of traffic.

There's really only one foolproof way to solve the problem.

Send them on the Subway! Bring back the classic Tin Can 4 and the Redbird 7 cars, and make a special Express charter train. On the 4, Yankees get the front 5 cars, Mets get the back 5 cars, switch 'em up at Grand Central, escort them from the 4 down the ramp to the 7, make sure the 7 is ready to go, Mets get the front 5 cars on the 7, Yankees in the back. Assuming there's no trouble, the trip should take about 45 minutes, tops. Have the players wave to the fans from the train. It's a great photo op, and a great way to send out both Stadiums in style.

I'll be at Sunday's game this weekend, a very, very rare Weekend Afternoon appearance at Shea. I had assumed, when I bought the package, that the game would be moved to Sunday night. Obviously, that didn't happen. I'll try to get through it. At least until it rains.