Businesses close to Stadium will suffer with no Yank games
Facing pressure from politicians and public health experts, and trailing every other major American sports league, Major League Baseball has decided to delay its season to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Packed sporting events are not conducive to controlling the COVID-19 outbreak. No matter how begrudging the decision may have been, postponing games to quell a contagion was the right one.
However, for the Yankees, postponement has not been without consequence. There are the players, who have elected to continue working out in Tampa until the league believes the global pandemic has sufficiently abated. There are the fans, who won’t commute from Westchester and Bergen counties to support their team. And there are the local South Bronx businesses that host Yankee fans before, during and after games.
“Without the Yankees, without making enough money — we might close,” Mohamed Ahmed, who works at S&A Sports in the South Bronx, told the Daily News Friday.
Reclined in a chair behind the counter of his father’s empty store, Ahmed was babysitting the shirseys more than he was selling them, which is typical during the offseason. Located on River Avenue, diagonal from Yankee Stadium Gate 6, S&A is one of many small businesses owned by Yemeni-immigrants dotting the ballpark, responsible for huge backlogs of costly team apparel they won’t be able to sell for at least two weeks.
“When you run as a small business you buy a lot of [merchandise] from the big companies,” Ahmed said. “They really do not care if you work [or] if you don’t — they need their money.” He said he was working hard to postpone the orders, depending entirely on the mercy of his suppliers.
Down the block on E. 161st Street, Ballpark Sports Shop’s Saleh Abbadi had similar concerns about his family’s livelihood surviving the closure. He expected the store to be at least $100,000 behind in sales, and that’s assuming Opening Day is only delayed by two weeks.
“Look at how many boxes are coming in,” Abbadi told the News, gesturing at the stacks of unopened crates that outnumbered customers inside the shop. “Companies [that sold us this] expect us to pay in a month or two.
“Yesterday, all we did was call companies to see if we can cancel [orders]. But nah, they declined everything.”
Retailers that have tried to sell an unexpected surplus of Nike-branded Gerrit Cole jerseys aren’t the only businesses already struggling.
“Every game is a devastating loss, especially if we lose Opening Day,” Joe Bastone of Yankee Tavern said. The bar and restaurant, founded in 1927, has served Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and many others whose names line Monument Park.
The East 161st Street Business Improvement District delivered a survey from the NYC Department of Small Business Services, to Bastone, Abbadi, and other businesses near the stadium. The survey asked them to assess the financial impact of COVID-19, and perhaps, determine eligibility for potential no-interest loans and grants.
Bastone, whose family has owned the bar and restaurant for 56 years, estimated that he’ll lose 75% of his April business if the postponement extends through the month.
Naturally, Bastone’s employees have felt the fallout as well. Around game time, Bastone’s restaurant is usually been staffed by 12-14 employees, many of whom rely on tips. On an off day, that number is halved, and he has expected to reduce shifts more in the coming weeks.
“They make twice the minimum wage, at least, especially when there are games here,” Bastone said. “That’s their bread and butter.” He said he had three staffers call him worried about losing income during the league-wide shutdown.
While Bastone sympathized with the Yankees’ potential losses from gate and concession receipts, he thought the team could play a role in keeping his business afloat.
“If I was the Yankees, I’d buy 20% in all the businesses here and take a really significant role in them.” Bastone referenced the Cubs, who have revenue-sharing contracts with rooftop businesses surrounding Wrigley Field.
Compounding Bastone’s