Set the stage, a hot and muggy night in Atlanta, Georgia the
date was June, 14 2012 and the New York Yankees were in the ATL to take on the
Atlanta Braves in Interleague play. This was the night after Alex Rodriguez hit
his 23rd grand slam of his career tying the great Lou Gehrig for
first on the All-Time list and it was about an hour before game time. I had
been at the ball park since the gates opened at 5:00 pm and I watched the
Yankees take batting practice, I watched the team stretch and joke and have
fun, and I saw what would become my greatest Derek Jeter moment of my life.
As you know I was born in the Bronx, New York and moved to
Atlanta with my mother in 1999. I was in New York for the 1996, 1998, and 1999
World Series and the 1997 and 1995 playoffs so I got to see plenty of Jeter
first hand. When I moved here to the south the thing I missed most was my
Yankees and seeing them, Jeter specifically, play live. That’s weird that I
didn’t miss my childhood friends that I had made in my 14 years as a New
Yorker, my school, etc., all I missed was my Yankees. With this in mind when
the Yankees come down to Atlanta I always purchase my tickets well in advance
for the best seats in the house as close to the Yankees dugout as I can get.
On this day I had second row seats directly to the left of
the Yankees dugout, you could see inside the dugout the entire game. The game
was not my fondest memory though, it was when the Yankees came off the field
shortly after 6:00 pm ET and Derek Jeter walked over to the stands to say hello
and to sign autographs. Immediately my section was flooded with fans but I
didn’t mind and neither did Jeter. I tried to get an autograph that day but
obviously all the children went first and we were so swarmed I never got close
enough to but that was okay too. I was more than content watching Jeter sit
there and sign autographs and interact with fans, Yankees and Braves alike,
until the 7:00 hour when the National Anthem was played in Atlanta. Derek sat
there and signed autographs and took pictures and interacted with us for right
at an hour.
These are the kinds of moments that most of the casual fans
will never know about or hear about because MLB Network and ESPN aren’t talking
about it. This is something that all true Yankees fans know, love, and
appreciate about Jeter and this is just a sliver of what made him truly unique
and special to not only the fans but to the game of baseball. Jeter played the
game like a kid and acted like a fan and we love him for it. Thank you Derek
and if you see AJ Burnett around, who snubbed thousands of fans more than once
on that night, tell him I said hello.
Very good Daniel!
ReplyDeleteIt is a shame more fans couldn't get to see him in person. He is a Yankee Icon, no doubt about it. He did everything the right way, which can't be said of my favorite players...that's for sure! LOL
20 years at SS for the same team is, in it self, a monumental feat.
I believe there should be of a new era in Yankee history, for the 2000's and on. The game to-day has little resemblance to the game I grew up with! The fans are different, the parks...hell damn near everything has changed the way the game is played to-day.
Back in the day, did you know the way a hitter was out, was to hit him with the ball! Of course, that was a year or two before my time! The days of the "Gas House Gang", 40 game winners...even 30 game winners...all gone.
As of this week I will not make comparisons to the Greatest Yankees Pre-2000!
You do know as Jeff put it, very well (except for the end), 40 years from now you guys will have the same discussions about another player! Good luck, "what one has never seen, can't be explained", more to the point..."what one will not believe, is unexplainable"!
So, believe it or not, I have always liked Jeter as a player and have said time and again, "He is the greatest SS the Yankees have ever had. Or one of the best two SS! Forgive me "Scooter", you were great for your time, but time moves on, and you ain't no more!