Swing away, boys... Swing away!

Baseball purists -- sigh -- can now list the Yankees as members of the modern baseball era, that post-1994-strike-disaster-reaction that brought us steroids, HGH, second basemen hitting moon shots, shortstops who could bench press Barry Bonds' head, and baseball stadiums right out of Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

The Yankees have moved in the fences. Get ready for A-Rod's 1,000th home run, much, much sooner than later.

The gang at River Avenue Blues have posted a graphic and some additional information, and it has to be discouraging for pitchers and purists alike.

Apparently unsatisfied with rightfield pop flies that already reach the fifth row, Yankee management has brought the fabled 314-foot right field fence in an extra two feet to 312. During the first season of Coors Field in Denver, Atlanta Braves first baseman Sid Bream hit what was then called by Sports Illustrated the first check-swing home run in baseball history. That laugher of a round-tripper will now no doubt have company.

And the Yankees didn't stop with shortening the right field barrier. While the left field and centerfield fences will remain the same, at 318' and 408' respectively, the left-center power alley has been shortened from 399 to 392 feet, and the right-center power alley from 385 feet to 371. Likewise, the foul ball area behind home plate has been shortened by 12 feet to bring the fans closer to the action.

With a smaller foul ground and three outfield areas shortened by an average of nearly eight feet, look for the Yankees to join the ranks of the teams which regularly post double-digit run totals three or four times per week.

Who are we now, the Rockies East?