Mazel Tov! Yanks To Play At 1:00 PM On Yom Kippur

Some might argue that the only authority higher than ESPN is God, and today, the Big Man Upstairs won out.

Originally the Yankees and Red Sox were scheduled to play Sunday September 27th at 1:00 PM.

(By the way, I used this picture because I always thought Don Zimmer was Jewish. He's not. But still...Zimmer?, come on!)

Predictably, the World Wide Leader chose to “flex” that game (to use NFL parlance) and move it to Sunday night at 8:00 PM.

Only problem is, the 27th is Yom Kippur…the holiest day of the Jewish year.

As you might imagine, Yankee fans who bought tickets for that game (and those who were planning to watch it on TV) were banking on a 1:00 start in order to be home before sunset….the official start of the holiday.

And there in lies the dilemma. Major League Baseball – it’s your move.

With the prodding of New York City Congressman Anthony Weiner, ESPN and MLB agreed to move the game back to 1:00 PM....Mazel Tov!

Weiner met with the press pre-change and offered up a snappy soundbite to express his verklempt-ness over the move to a night game (by the way, I can make that joke because I'm Jewish).

My favorite part about Weiner's involvement though, is that when he confronted commissioner Bud Selig about the scheduling conflict, Selig admitted to the Congressman that his own rabbi told him the time change was a problem.

See, if I've said it once I've said it a thousand times...never come between a Jewish person and his Yankees/Red Sox rivalrly. Especially if the game falls on Yom Kippur and we're fasting all day and we're tired and hungry and VERY cranky.

Also, you may not remember (I know I certainly forgot and I wrote the damn story!), the Jets moved their September 27th game from 4:15 to 1:00 in order to accommodate their "Chosen Fans."

Maybe that played a part in MLB buckling under the pressure, forcing them to act if only to avoid coming across as less-sensitive than their football counterpart.

Whatever. Either way me and my fellow pious pinstripe proponents are happy with the decision.

Nothing makes 24 hours of atonement more tolerable than a Yankee victory over the Red Sox.

Matt Estreich for The Huddle