Yankee Stadium dirt anything but dirt cheap on eBay

Ever thought you would pay good money for dirt? Savvy entrepreneurs are hoping to capitalize on Yankees fans' love for their cherished stadium by selling dirt from the baseball field for as much as $199.99.

The offers were found on eBay and Craigslist yesterday, along with ticket stubs from the last game played at the House that Ruth Built and paint chips from there.
"It's kind of like taking advantage of people who are vulnerable to their emotions right now," said Ryan Smith, 20, a die-hard fan from the Upper East Side.

The team played its last home game at the 85-year-old stadium Sunday to a packed house of fans who were warned by officials in the days leading up to the big finale not to take home anything they didn't pay for.

It seems, however, that some people didn't listen. Dirt was being offered for sale on the Web in vials, in glass containers that read "Yankee Stadium Infield Dirt, Final Game, September 21," or simply heaped in a pile on a table.

Yankees fan, Laurence Watkins, 23, of the Bronx, scoffed at the offers. He said he is willing to spend $2,000 on the right team memorabilia, though he wouldn't purchase it online.

"I'd rather go to the store," Watkins said. "That's a true fan."

Yankees officials could not be reached for comment yesterday.

A sports memorabilia dealer, however, warned buyers to be wary of the online offers, saying that it's difficult to verify an item's authenticity.

The team currently is in negotiations with the city to parse out who owns what items from the stadium. Those pieces that the team claims as theirs -- parts of the center field scoreboard, carpet and shower stall doors from the clubhouse -- are already officially on the block for thousands of dollars.

Gabe Esquilin, 40, a fan from the South Bronx, said he understands how things work in a capitalist society. During games in the late '70s and early '80s he said he took the back of a chair and some dirt from the stadium. He has since thrown out these pieces, but if he had kept them, he said he would also probably try to sell them on eBay.

Despite his love for the Yankees, Smith said he would never buy Yankees Stadium dirt, explaining: "Dirt is dirt. source>>>

Read More