Posts Tagged ‘jeter’
Today, the record books for baseballs most historic franchise have changed. Number seven is now number two, and number two is now number one. By appearing in today’s game Derek Jeter passed the legendary Micky Mantle to become the Yankees’ all-time leader in games played. All it took was 18 years and 2402 appearances.
In typical Jeter fashion, the Yankees’ captain downplayed the achievement, saying: “I take pride in coming and doing my job. I think that’s probably the best way to put it. “My job is obviously to come and play games, try to stay on the field and try to stay healthy. I’ve done it for a long time, I guess.”
At this point in their history, there is not that much that hasen’t been done in a Yankee uniform. Records have been set, records have been broken and most stones have been unturned. But yesterday, history was made. Derek Jeter, the third captain in the team’s history, became the first person to reach 3,000 hits as a Yankee. To make the moment even sweeter, he was able to do it at Yankee stadium; in front of the hometown fans that hold him in such high regard.
At times, this season and last, it has seemed like the Jeter of old was nothing but a memory. But when push came to shove, Derek did what he does best: came through in the clutch. Going into the game, Jeter had only 2 home runs. What does the man do? He blasts a 422-footer, becoming only the 2nd man to ever reach 3,000 with a home run. Not only that, he does it off of a division rival’s ace (David Price). For good measure, he also went 5-5 in the game and drove in the winning run. It is only fitting that when Jeter reaches his big moment, he does it in such a fashion that any Yankee fan can appreciate: big.
When Jorge Posada asked to be removed from the linup in Saturday’s game between the Yankees and Red Sox, it started as a ripple; but soon grew into a tsunami. First it was for undisclosed reasons, then there was the in-game press conference, then the conflicting stories and then it was resloved. Oh, and a little Jeter controversy was thrown in for good measure.
The situation was handled badly by both general manager Brian Cashman and Posada. Posada should have taken his demotion to 9th in the batting order on the chin. He has an abysmal .165 batting average and frankly doesn’t really deserve to bat higher than 9th. At the same time, he is a Yankee legend and should be shown a little more respect than he has been.