Fans, players say goodbye to Yankee Stadium

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Baseball fans and players began saying goodbye to Yankee Stadium on Sunday, celebrating the last game played at the most storied sports venue in America before the wrecking ball strikes.

The gates were opened seven hours before game time at "The House That Ruth Built" -- so named for home run legend Babe Ruth -- to accommodate fans who reminisced about great moments from the stadium's history.

The team will play next season in a new Yankee Stadium nearing completion across the street from the current one, which was gutted and rebuilt after the 1973 season.

The Yankees won all 26 of their World Series championships since the stadium opened in 1923. It has also hosted three Popes, great boxing matches, a classic American football championship and a rally for Nelson Mandela shortly after his release from prison.

"This place has been part of our history. Not just baseball but our country," Yankee manager Joe Girardi said before the game.

"There's something about this building that is special to all of us," Girardi said, adding that he took an early walk on the field today and was "just kind of soaking it in."

Fans were given a chance to walk the perimeter of the field and visit the shrines to past Yankee greats in Monument Park.

Some struck mock home run-robbing poses in the outfield where Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle once roamed and security guards offered constant warnings against attempts to take any dirt or grass as souvenirs.

Brooklyn native John Restivo, 47, flew to New York from his current home in Atlanta and said the spirit of the team and the fans would relocate without problem across the road.

"Maybe next year we christen it with a championship," he said.

The team's efforts to win one more crown in the old ballpark failed this season as the Bronx Bombers were virtually eliminated from the playoffs.

Former Yankee catcher Yogi Berra, remembered for his slogans such as "It ain't over 'til it's over" nearly as dearly as for his Hall of Fame credentials, conceded that time was up.

"I'm sorry to see it over, I'll tell you that," Berra told reporters before the game.

Berra, who began playing at Yankee Stadium just after World War Two, said there was one piece of memorabilia he might want before the stadium comes down.

"Home plate would be fine," he said. "I'll work on something else later."

(Editing by Daniel Trotta and Eric Walsh)