Yankees' Johnny Damon Wasn't Always My Homeboy

Remember the good ol' days of baseball?

The Yankees were Pedro Martinez's daddy (or was it the other way around? It still is unclear, but either way, someone has daddy issues...) and Johnny Damon was Boston's homeboy.

My, a lot has changed since then.

I remember when Damon came to the Yankees.

It wasn't because I read it on the Internet or saw it on ESPN. It was because my uncles were so upset I could hear them crying all the way from NY.

Back then, Damon was known for his homely looks, often compared to Jesus.

All over, “Jesus Is My Homeboy” t-shirts were the rage, as vintage clothes were coming back.

It didn't take long for the Johnny—Jesus comparison to take flight.

And so “Johnny Damon Is My Homeboy” was born.

The only problem was that back then he played for the Red Sox, so I really don't care about his days as a homeboy.

But in the 2005 offseason, when my uncles cried, he was traded to my favorite team.

And my team has a standard for their players.

No homeboys allowed. Hometown heroes, sure. But homeboys? No.

Damon immediately underwent his transformation, just as Randy Johnson did when he came over from the Diamondbacks.

Before I knew it, I could barely tell the difference between Damon and Matsui (okay, I'm stretching it a bit, but I need some dramatic effect here!).

Dare I say it—Johnny Damon was hot.

He could be my homeboy any day of the week.

Long gone was his long greasy hair, porn-stache, and Bee Gees-esque beard.

In came his flowing hair and clean-shaven face. My, how that smile made my heart flutter.

I went to my first Yankees game in 2006. It was against the Red Sox.

I couldn't tell who loved or hated Johnny Damon, but he was everyone's homeboy.

And it was pretty strange seeing both Yankees and Red Sox jerseys with the same name on the back.

Only time will tell which city gets to call Johnny Damon their homeboy next.

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