By BRIAN COSTELLO

Last updated: 6:53 pm
July 21, 2008
Posted: 3:43 am
July 13, 2008

As both New York baseball stadiums prepare to close, The Post looks back at the 25 most memorable moments in the history of Yankee Stadium. This week, No. 11.

April 18, 1923

The doors opened to Yankee Stadium and 74,200 piled in to see the Yankees face the Red Sox, and Babe Ruth made sure they got their money's worth.

The Yankees slugger said before the game, "I'd give a year of my life if I can hit a home run in the first game."

In the third inning he delivered. With two on, he drilled a homer to the right-field bleachers, something that would become a familiar sight in the new ballpark that would be known as "The House That Ruth Built."

It was a bit of redemption for Ruth, who missed most of the 1922 season to suspension. He hit just .118 in the World Series, and the Yankees lost to the Giants.

The new $2.5 million stadium drew a huge crowd, with 25,000 people getting turned away at the gates. Dignitaries including the governor and military colonels were in the crowd to see the Yanks beat the Sox, 4-1.

Fans marveled at the size of the new stadium, the biggest and most costly stadium in baseball. Bob Shawkey pitched well for the home team, and Ruth provided the winning margin.

The game did not go perfectly for Ruth, though. He made an error in the fifth inning, when he muffed Joe Harris' fly ball, juggling the ball before letting it fall to the grass.

Ruth would hit 259 home runs at Yankee Stadium, second only to Mickey Mantle's 266.