Yes, I admit it, Jeter is a Hall of Famer

Get ready for something you'd never thought you'd see from a lifelong Boston Red Sox fan.  I'm going to tell you why Derek Jeter is a first ballot Hall of Famer, no question about it.  It took me awhile to come to this conclusion, because during the Yankees run in the late 90s, Jeter was always the quintessential Yankee, a.k.a. the guy on whom I could direct all my hatred towards.  Now I look at him differently, perhaps because he's in the twilight of his career and I can appreciate him more.

I was having a conversation about Jeter a few weeks back with Jason Powles, born and bred Yankee fan and I admitted I thought Jeter was a first ballot Hall of Famer, but thought his numbers were overrated.  It was an interesting conversation, because we looked up his numbers that night and I discovered that his numbers are pretty good.  Not long after that I read an article in ESPN the Magazine by Peter Keating talking about Jeter being "overrated by fans, but underrated by statistical analysts."  For instance, he has a .306 average and an .845 OPS with runners in scoring position and two out throughout his career.  He also has averages of .324/.785 with the bases loaded and .309/.850 in the postseason.  Another interesting stat Keating mentions is Jeter's 1,719 runs scored in about 15 seasons, which is higher now, so it's even more impressive.  And in that time he's also reached base more than any other player.  He now has over 3,000 hits (after going 5-5 Saturday vs. the Rays) and will likely reach base 4,500 times before the end of his career (according to Keating).  That is impressive.

Most of my fellow Sox brethren have said that Jeter's numbers are inflated, especially his runs scored, because he played with guys who could knock him in.  But he still had to get on base and quite frankly the guys on his team weren't the big name big hitting guys he has now.  There were no A-Rods, Teixeiras or even Grandersons or Canos.  It was the Tino Martinezes, the Bernie Williamses, the Paul O'Neills and even the Scott Brosiuses.  Some of them were great players, but none of them Hall of Famers, except maybe Jorge Posada.  In fact, the Core Four, Jeter, Posada, Mariano Rivera and maybe even Andy Pettite (though he might be a stretch) should all be in Cooperstown someday, but they're probably the only members of the '96-'00 championship teams that will be there, as opposed to the '09 team, which could have eight in the HOF by the time they're done.

The reason Jeter is overrated by fans is that he hasn't deserved to make as many All-Star teams as he's made and he certainly shoudn't be a five time gold glover.  Maybe earlier in his career you could convince me that he was a better fielding shortstop, but that didn't happen, because his first came in 2004.  He's also one of those poster boys for the 21st century male athlete, meaning he's one of the reasons that non-baseball fans watch.  (i.e. women are interested because he's a good looking guy.  BARF!)  And that's the reason he gets endorsement deals, because companies know he'll help them sell their products.  So he's a great ambassador for the sport, like Tiger Woods used to be in golf and the way Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are for tennis, Sidney Crosby is for hockey and even Kobe Bryant and Lebron James are in basketball.  In fact, Jeter was the first, the one that set the standard for all the rest of these guys.  I personally don't really like any of them, because I think they come off as too wooden, too rehearsed, too perfect.  Give me Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, Big Papi and Pedro Martinez, Zdeno Charra and Tim Thomas, even old school Bill Parcells, the guys that aren't afraid to unload every now and then to speak their mind.  Hmm, can I think of any non-Boston examples?  I suppose Terrell Owens would be the best one, even though I can't stand him either. 

Over the past few months the subject of Jeter has come up in Cooperstown and all the guys I've heard talk about him say he'll be in when the time comes.  I specifically asked Goose Gossage about Jeter and he talked about him as if he was already a part of the group.  (Granted he's a fellow Yankee, but still I think he was being sincere about it.)  Even without the 3,000 hits I think #2 would have been a shoo-in.  Still, given the things Jeter's done already and all the thrills he's delivered to the Evil Empire, Saturday's performance may have been the best yet. 

His first inning single to give him 2,999 was average, ordinary, nothing special.  Number 3,000 was the opposite, a home run, just the third of the year for the light hitting Captain.  The only other player in MLB history to get 3,000 on a long ball was Wade Boggs, when he was with the Rays.  Can you believe that?  Jeter and Boggs seem the least likely of the 28 who have reached 3,000 to do it with a home run.  (I actually saw Boggsy get #2,000 live in person back in his Red Sox days at Fenway.  It was one of the lamest hits I've ever seen, with Boggs sliding into first.  Oy.)  But more importantly, #3,000 tied the score with the Rays at one.  Later, Jeter got a double to left to surpass the great Roberto Clemente for 27th all time on the hit list.  A single by Curtis Granderson allowed Jeter to score, another run created by the Captain.  He was a perfect 4-4 when his last at bat of the game came in the 8th, with the score tied at four.  Eduardo Nunez was on third, playing at third in place of an injured A-Rod.  There's a lot of talk that Nunez will be the eventual replacement at short for Jeter.  It was poetic as #2 came through again, with an RBI single up the middle to plate Nunez and give the Yankees a 5-4 lead, which Mo Rivera protected with a 1-2-3 9th. 

Jeter had come through again, like he's done so much during his career, helping the Yankees keep pace with Boston, just a game back in the AL East.  It was a fitting way for the Captain to make history and just another reason why the baseball world will someday converge on the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown to pay homage to the man and the legacy he will have left on the national pastime.  I hate to admit it, but it's true.

A little late, but still proud to be an American

Okay, so I meant to write this on Tuesday, the first of two days off, but I ended up having a crazy "weekend."  So this is a little late, but I still wanted to talk all about 4th of July weekend.  I've had the holiday off only once since I started working in the business, in 2008 when I was in West Virginia, although I had a bunch of days off around it the following year when I was in Albany.  (That year I went back to Boston for a few days, went back to Albany on the 4th, anchored the shows, stayed at my place overnight, then went back to Boston for a few more days the next morning.)

4th of July is one of those holidays that always seems fun to me, whether I'm working or not.  (And while I enjoy the fireworks displays, I really don't care about checking them out every year.  Kind of a waste of money we all can't afford anymore, wouldn't you say?)  This year I was even more content to work the holiday weekend, mainly because I just got back from a mini-vacation back in Boston, so I was ready to get back to work.

There's nothing that gets me in gear on the 4th more than the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest.  I remember when ESPN starting carrying it every year, it was a big deal, because it's one of those crazy "not really a sport" events that for one day a year carries as much interest as the big sports.  Plus they had a little pipsqueak guy from Japan who kept winning every year.  Unfortunately Takeru Kobayashi has missed the event the last two years because of a contract dispute with Major League Eating.  I think it's just a ploy and he was just sick of losing the "Super Bowl of Eating" to Joey Chestnut, who won his fifth straight title this year.  In any case, it's a thrill to scarf down a few hot dogs of my own while watching the event, though I don't usually take the time to figure out how many I could eat at one sitting.  (I did this year though.  Probably no more than six, though I can't eat red meat anymore, so they'd have to be turkey dogs.)

Baseball is also perfect for the 4th, because it's still the national pastime and when the whether nice, I get a huge thrill from watching the game, whether it's on TV or in person.  I had the chance to do both this year, as I shot an NYCBL game at DeLutis Field in Rome, between the Thunderbolts and the Utica Brewers.  Captured a home run, some big hits as well as a few great catches before I left in the bottom of the fourth.  (The 4-3 Rome lead ended up holding up, so I guess I left at the perfect time!)  At night, I saw the return of #2 Derek Jeter to the Yankee lineup after a stint on the DL.  The Evil Empire was visiting Cleveland and despite the Yankees taking the lead, Jeter went 0-4, not gaining any ground towards his 3,000 hits (Which will likely happen this weekend.  Great, now I'll have to report on that.), and the Indians came back to win.  (Oh happy day!  But not too happy, because the Red Sox lost.  By the way, it's amazing how after everything that's happened this season, Boston and NY are still the top two teams in the AL and are only separated by a half game.)

I also have to mention the exciting 4th of July Weekend, with David Ragan getting his first ever Sprint Cup win (yeah Roush Fenway!), Novak Djokovic beating out Rafy Nadal in the men's final at Wimbledon and the US Women's Soccer team winning another game at the World Cup, throttling Columbia.  (The ladies then proceeded to royally suck against Sweden yesterday, meaning they have to beat a hungry Brazil team on Saturday in the quarters, otherwise the tourney's already over for the US.)  On the down side, the great Maria Sharapova lost in the Wimbledon women's final to Petra Kvitova, which is only a downer because of how tough it was to get Kvitova's name right every time I tried.  Oy.

On the local scene, Saturday morning I went over to Stonebridge Golf & Country Club, where I frequently go to drive golf balls, to shoot a tourney with some of the greatest Mohawk Valley hockey players ever.  I interviewed and subsequently followed former Clinton high coach Dave Litz (whom I haven't seen since I interned here back in 2006) and the hilarious Dick Popiel, whom I met a few weeks earlier, at the Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame.  Popiel is a reporter's dream, because he has so many great moments and quotes.  At first I figured this would just be what we calll a vosot, but instead it became a nat-pack, because of all the great video I shot of Popiel and the group.  I'd never actually been out on the course at Stonebridge before, so it was cool to see it firsthand.  (I ended up going back there Tuesday to play my first real round of golf there.  I wasn't good, but had a few nice shots and after all, isn't that what playing golf is all about?)

Also this weekend, the MLB All-Star rosters were released.  I never thought I'd hear Yankee fans say that Derek Jeter didn't deserve to make it, but that's because C.C. Sabathia and Mark Teixeira were both snubbed.  (Granted, Sabathia had already said he wouldn't play in the game, but so did Justin Verlander and he still made it.)  Still, I think they got it right for the most part and I love that Toronto's Jose Bautista had the most votes, because it shows that a lot of baseball fans do actually follow the game.  (Ryan Braun from Milwaukee had the most votes in the NL, that too is pretty cool!  The Jays and Brew Crew having the most votes?  Amazing.)  The one thing that bothers me is that when fans are confused about who to elect at a particular position, they seem to go with the Yankee.  Why?  Because they're lazy when the offensive numbers don't point out the best.  Welcome to the post-steroids era, where PEDs are still in use (Andrew Jones even says that in ESPN the Mag this week), but offense is down and fans forget or don't fully know what makes a great player, other than how many homers he's hit.

By the way, the NBA began its lockout this week and there's good reason to expect them to lose the whole season.  Meanwhile, the NFL seems to be heading down the final road to end its lockout.  While I originally said I wouldn't mind not having football this year, I realize how dumb that would be.  What the heck would I run on Sunday nights at 11 for Sports Extra without the Giants, Jets, Bills and even the Saints and a few extra games here and there?  Yeah, we really do need the NFL.  It's a perfect time filler!

Here's a few links to the stories I did over 4th of July weekend. 
First, it's the hockey alumni golf tourney at Stonebridge: http://www.wktv.com/sports/Hockey-alumni-reunion-hits-the-links-124926499.html 
Second, highlights of the Brewers and Thunderbolts:  http://www.wktv.com/sports/Thunderbolts-hang-on-to-beat-Brewers-124986489.html