"There were wind studies performed before. There will be wind studies performed as we go forward, and we're just looking like you are to see whether or not it's the weather, the wind, what happens when the old building goes down," Trost said Tuesday.
He spoke after a news conference to announce memorabilia sales from the old Yankee Stadium. Seats are going for $1,500 a pair and $1,999 for specific pairs - the Jeffrey Maier chair will be sold separately - through Yankees-Steiner Collectibles, cheaper than the top single-game ticket price at the new ballpark.
The home-run total at the new stadium is vastly higher than the most in the first 13 games of a season at the old Yankee Stadium, 36 in 2007, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
"Based upon wind analysis and wind studies, the winds we were having were the least likely winds to occur," Trost said. "We'll always look and we'll always analyze. And right now, I don't know if I can do anything about wind."
Trost said the Yankees might consider changes in 2010 to the first row behind the outfield fences. Possible fan interference already has led to a pair of umpire video reviews.
"We're going to have to look at that, you know, this year to see whether or not that row, which is both in left field and right field, impedes play in any way," he said. "But we can't do anything this year."
He said no changes were planned to the policy preventing fans with tickets in other parts of the stadium from getting close to the field during batting practice. Seats in the first nine rows, called the Legends Suite, cost $500 to $2,625 and come with access to three restaurants and lounges. The area is separated from the rest of the lower deck by a concrete moat.
"There's an area by the Legends Suite which is not an area that fans can get into," Trost said. "If you purchase a suite, do you want somebody in your suite? If you purchase a home, do you want somebody in your home?"
Trost thinks it's too early to tell whether changes announced by the Yankees between the first and second homestands will eliminate all the empty seats near the field. The Yankees cut the price of 116 of 258 front-row seats. They also are giving free tickets to those with season plans for seats that cost $325 or more a game.
"Every day we look at it and analyze it," he said. "Could you really tell what's taken place in two homestands with 90 percent of them in rain? I can't."
The team was more sure about what remains of the old ballpark.
A piece of the famous facade and the grass with the interlocking "NY" logo behind home plate cost $50,000 each. A 1-square-foot piece of sod goes for $120 and freeze-dried grass in $80. Some items will be auctioned online through July 24.
The Yankees paid New York City $11.5 million for the memorabilia from the ballpark, which was owned by the city. Trost criticized Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, a frequent Yankees opponent who said the team underpaid.
"He continues to grandstand, that he has an agenda, that we don't know what it is," Trost said. "I certainly hope his constituency likes what he's doing, because they're paying for it."
Trost said demolition of the old ballpark, which is under management of the city, will start in July. The team is discussing what to send to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
The seat Maier sat in before reaching over the right-field wall to give Derek Jeter a home run against Baltimore in the 1996 playoffs will be sold specially. The wall was cut out that Jeter jumped over during his famous 12th-inning catch against Boston on July 1, 2004, along with the seats he landed in likely will be auctioned.
"We kind of want to savor the wall," said Brandon Steiner, whose company is handling sales.
Current and former players have asked for their favorite memorabilia from the old ballpark. Mike Mussina said in September he wanted the huge flag pole. Moving the frieze won't be easy.
"It's not easy to remove and not light," Steiner said. "It won't be easy to take that far without a major vehicle."
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