“The only New Yorker with more hits than Derek Jeter is John Gotti” was the line I tried out earlier tonight when I was trying to come up with something clever to start this thing.
What I heard in return was, “can’t you come up with something a little more timely?”
The answer…no.
Given Michael Jackson was not from New York and Shawne Merriman only choked out Tila Tequila…I’m stuck with the Gotti reference.
So take THAT, New York! Baseball and mobsters…that’s all you’re good for.
I digress.
By climbing out of an 0-for-12 funk, Jeter laced hit number 2721 down the first base line and tied Lou Gehrig atop the Yankees all-time hits list.
And while I’m sure we never celebrated Tim Wallach (yes, my second Wallach reference this week) or Tony Fernandez when they set their respective team records…the Jeter milestone is significant.
You see, with Jeter tied with Gehrig, the next in line is Babe Ruth (2518) and Mickey Mantle (2415) on the Yankees list. Basically, you can look at the names among most of New York’s leaderboards and see Hall of Famers.
When Fernandez topped Lloyd Moseby in Toronto, not a soul thought “well…there got THAT legacy.”
And that’s exactly what Jeter is doing…securing his legacy.
“You look at all the great players that have played in this organization throughout the years,” Jeter told reporters following the game. “To say that you have more hits than them or at least tied for the most hits in the history of the organization is definitely hard to believe. It means a lot.”
Jeter goes for the Yankees hit record Friday against the Baltimore Orioles and starting pitcher Chris Tillman. It’ll be the first time the two have faced off.
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