Yankees Will No Longer Play Frank Sinatra’s ‘New York, New York’ After Losses

From now on, the Yankees will celebrate being the kings of the hill only if they’ve earned it.

As announced this week, the Major League Baseball team has decided to end its tradition of playing Frank Sinatra‘s “New York, New York” over stadium speakers at the end of each game, win or lose, now opting to save the track for victories only.

The ruling comes after players and staff reportedly complained about having to listen to the song after losses. Fans at Yankee Stadium can still expect to hear Ol’ Blue Eyes’ 1979 version of “New York, New York” on days where the team takes home a dub, but on days with less favorable results, one of a few substitutes will play after the final out, according to NBC New York.

In the case of the Yankees’ 4-0 spring-training loss to the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, a different, much more apt Sinatra track was queued up at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla.: “That’s Life.”

The incorporation of “New York, New York” into Yankee tradition stretches back decades, with Steinbrenner — who owned the team up until his death in 2010 — first commandeering the tune in 1980. The story goes that he first heard Sinatra’s recording at Le Club in Manhattan; after testing it out over the speakers at Yankee Stadium, Steinbrenner reportedly wrote directly to the crooner for permission to make it an official part of game days.

Sinatra’s version of the song reached its peak at No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980. It was originally performed by Liza Minnelli as the 1977 theme song from the Martin Scorsese musical film New York, New York, and her rendition sometimes played after Yankee losses before the team started using Sinatra’s on all occasions.

The Yankees’ partial retirement of “New York, New York” comes shortly after the team made headlines for implementing a different change: lifting its longtime ban on players sporting facial hair.