Thursday, February 13, 2014

It was said of him, ‘if HE did steroids, we need a new league’

He only had 100 RBI’s ONCE, because he was more valuable at lead-off or batting 2nd.
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A .312 lifetime hitter.
He endured criticism when he won Gold Gloves(4) for near perfect play because others said he could not make an error on balls he was too slow to reach.
Across 17 years he averaged being on the field for 120 of 162 games.
He has a .308 postseason batting average, and .321 in SEVEN World Series. 8 times he hit over .400 in the postseason.
3,316 hits so far. His 3000th hit was a home run.
He saved the Yankees into the world series with one of the most memorable (thinking and then reacting) defensive plays (THE FLIP) against the Oakland Athletics with Yankees down 3-1 in games and the series on the line on that play.
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His swan into the stands in one of the greatest regular season games ever played is an icon of his effort every day.
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His fielding running away from the infield and throw in rotation to first has been attempted  by many, but so far….
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Severely injured 3 times.
He never was the MVP, despite hitting .343.
He will never achieve his dream of as many rings as Yogi.
And he was on second for the late tag THAT night
And he never complained about a damn thing.
Derek Jeter announced yesterday this season would be his last.
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He will be remembered in the same breath as the Gehrig’s for his contribution to the sport, the team and a life.
And if he DID steroids, we DO need a new league.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

He mastered every aspect of a position player's game. He was clutch, he was money, and the ladies loved him. He was born for baseball and he was born for pinstripes. You don't see many like him in any endeavor.