New York Yankees World Series 2009 Game 6 036

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the American League's East Division. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1901 as the Baltimore Orioles. The team moved to New York City in 1903 as the New York Highlanders, taking the Yankees as their official name in 1913. From 1923 to 2008, the Yankees' home ballpark was Yankee Stadium; in 2009, they moved into a new ballpark, also called Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees have won 27 World Series championships and 40 American League pennants, both MLB records. Forty-three Yankees players and eleven Yankees managers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, including Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Yogi Berra. In pursuit of winning championships, the franchise has utilized a large payroll to recruit talent, particularly under former owner George Steinbrenner.

Due in part to their success, the Yankees have garnered widespread popularity and a dedicated fanbase. The Yankees brand is recognized worldwide.

Yankee Stadium is a stadium located in The Bronx in New York City. It serves as the home ballpark for the New York Yankees, replacing the previous Yankee Stadium, built in 1923. The new ballpark was constructed across the street, north-northeast of the 1923 Yankee Stadium, on the former site of Macombs Dam Park. The ballpark opened April 2, 2009, when the Yankees hosted a workout day in front of fans from the Bronx community. The first game at the new Yankee Stadium was a pre-season exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs played on April 3, 2009, which the Yankees won 7–4. The first regular season game was played on April 16, a 10–2 Yankee loss to the Cleveland Indians.

Much of the stadium incorporates design elements from the previous Yankee Stadium, paying homage to the Yankees' history. Although stadium construction began in August 2006, the project of building a new stadium for the Yankees is one that spanned many years and faced many controversies. The stadium was built on what had been 24 acres (97,000 m²) of public parkland. Replacement ballfields opened in April 2012. Also controversial was the price tag of $1.5 billion, which makes it not only the most expensive baseball stadium ever built, but the third most expensive stadium of any kind (after Wembley Stadium in London and MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey).