Tag: baseball

Cuba Advance to Semifinals in WBC

Team Cuba is going to the semifinals for the first time since 2006. It’s the same year they went to the Championship game but lost to Japan. Cuba defeated Team Australia 4-3. Yoelkis Guibert hit an RBI single to right field, which drove in two runs in the 5th inning. It’s an exciting and emotional win for Team Cuba.

Team Dominican Republic defeated Team Israel 10-0 through 7 innings on Tuesday. The game’s memorable moment was when Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz received a standing ovation in Miami. Cano and Cruz were part of the 2013 team that went undefeated. Both veteran players got a hit in the 7th inning before Jean Segura finished the game by driving in the tenth and final run. 

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are the first players to reach 100 points this season. McDavid holds the highest single-season point total among active players with 129. 

Since joining the Vegas Golden Knights, goaltender Jonathan Quick has been playing lights out. He’s gone 4-0 with a .930 save percentage. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers have found their new quarterback. The Bucs signed quarterback Baker Mayfield to a one-year, $8.5 million deal. Mayfield now has a chance to redeem himself and prove to critics that he can be successful in Tampa. He has weapons in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. 

Sunday Sports Shorts

Team Venezuela beat Team Dominican Republic for the first time in the World Baseball Classic tournament, 5-1. 

Fourteen years ago today, Syracuse and UConn went to six overtimes in the Big East Tournament Quarterfinals.

Marquette wins the Big East Championship. The Golden Eagles defeat Xavier to capture their first Big East title. Congratulations to Marquette! Well deserved! 

Duke wins the ACC Championship. The Blue Devils defeated Virginia on Saturday night. It’s their first ACC title since 2019. Duke has now won 9 in a row—one of the hottest teams entering the NCAA tournament. 

Howard University defeated Norfolk State Spartans 65-64. The win gives Howard its first NCAA men’s basketball tournament birth since 1992, the last time before this season that the Bison won the MEAC Tournament and regular season title. 

Edmonton Oilers took on the Toronto Maple Leafs in arguably the most anticipated Saturday night game. Connor McDavid scored No. 55. Oilers had a 3-1 lead, but then the Maple Leafs rallied. They scored five unanswered goals, and they never allowed Edmonton to gain confidence. The Maple Leafs won 7-4. Maple Leafs are a tough team to beat when all their key players contribute. 

Sports Throwback Thursday: Mickey Mantle, Wilt Chamberlain

Welcome to Sports Throwback Thursday! We have a good one to discuss today featuring two iconic legends: Mickey Mantle and Wilt Chamberlain. Yesterday, we marked the 54th anniversary since Mickey Mantle announced his retirement. Sixty-one years ago today, Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a single game. A record that he still holds to this day. 

Mickey Mantle is one of the greatest to wear the Pinstripe uniform and one of the greatest baseball players ever. Over his 18-year career with the New York Yankees, he won seven World Series titles and the AL MVP three times. In 1969, he announced his retirement from the game of baseball. 

Wilt Chamberlain is one of the most dominant centers ever to play the game of basketball. Wilt might have passed away over 20 years, but he is still talked about by players and is one of the most revered players ever. It’s been 61 years since he scored 100 points. Kobe Bryant, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, and David Robinson have come the closest to that record, especially the late great Kobe Bryant. We don’t know if we will ever see someone break the record, but anything is possible. Look at Lebron James. He surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the NBAs all-time scoring list – a record that no one thought would ever break. Let’s see if the same thing can happen to Wilt’s record in the future. 

FILE – Wilt Chamberlain, of the Philadelphia Warriors, holds a sign reading “100” in the dressing room in Hershey, Pa., March 2, 1962, after he scored 100 points, as the Warriors defeated the New York Knicks. Wednesday marks the 60th anniversary of the greatest scoring effort in NBA history — 36 field goals, 28 free throws, 100 points for Chamberlain, in the Warriors’ 169-147 win in a game played before about 4,000 people in Hershey. It might be the closest thing the NBA has to a single-game record that will never be broken. (AP Photo/Paul Vathis, File)

Sunday Sports Shorts

Duke was in command against Virginia Tech in this ACC matchup. Duke went on multiple runs throughout the second half. It’s an impressive victory for the Blue Devils as they had former alumni and hall of Famer Grant Hill watching them from the stands. The Blue Devils won 81-65. 

Jason Tatum silenced and stunned Philadelphia with a late game-winning three points to lead the Celtics to victory over the Sixers, 110-107. Joel Embiid finished with a game-high 41 points for the Sixers. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 26 points. 

The Columbus Blue Jackets gave a lot of problems to the Edmonton Oilers’ goalies. Edmonton came back to tie the game 4-4 after trailing 4-0, but the Blue Jackets attacked two more goals in the third period to win the game, 6-4. Connor McDavid finished with 4 points (2 goals and two assists). 

Baseball is back. Spring Training is here. The Mets and Yankees lost their games on the road against the Astros and Phillies. Baltimore Orioles beat Minnesota Twins, 10-5. The Toronto Blue Jays played a great game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Vlad Jr, Santiago Espinal, and Addison Barger all homered on Saturday. Pitcher Yusei Kikuchi played a good game with five strikeouts and no earned runs allowed through two innings. Blue Jays won 9-7. 

“Never Gave Up A Day in My Life” – Ep. 6 Reaction

Episode Six of Derek Jeter’s “The Captain” Docuseries, which is called “Never Gave Up a Day in My Life,” focuses on many different moments of Jeter’s career: 2009 world Championship run, collecting 3,000 hits, the broken ankle during the 2012 ALCS against the Tigers, contract issues with Brian Cashman, and meeting his wife.

The 2009 world championship run is unforgettable. When the Yankees signed CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, Nick Swisher, and Mark Teixeira, you knew they were on to something special that year. It’s also the first season playing at the new stadium. After missing the postseason in 2008 for the first time in 15 years, the Yankees wanted to prove this was a fluke. 

Statistically, Derek Jeter had one of the best seasons of his career. He had an MVP-caliber season. Unfortunately, Joe Mauer got the AL MVP honors.

As for the Yankees collectively, they don’t want to miss the playoffs again. The Yankees went on to win the AL East division, swept the Minnesota Twins in the ALDS, defeated the Angels in 6 games to win the pennant, and dethroned the Philadelphia Phillies in 6 games to become world champions.

Alex Rodriguez was unreal throughout that postseason run. Without Alex, they would’ve not won it all. Sabathia stepped up, Hideki Matsui stepped up, and the Core Four were aging, but they were young at heart. 

3,000 Hits

Derek Jeter reached 3,000 hits at Yankee Stadium was spectacular. It happened on July 9, 2011. The pressure to hit 3,000 at home was immense. He did it in a very Hollywood-scripted way. He hit a home run off a great pitcher David Price, and he went 5-for-5, including a game winning hit in the 8th inning. 

2012-2014

Derek had the toughest last few seasons as a Yankee. He was playing through injuries in the 2012 season, and it got worse when he broke his ankle during Game 2 of the ALCS against the Detroit Tigers. He was miserable. He hated missing time off from baseball. But he got back on his feet. 

In 2014, the Yankees kept Derek Jeter in the leadoff and sometimes hit the No. 2 spot. Some would say that the Yankees were trying not to disrespect him because he’s Derek Jeter. He’s the captain. So probably, they wanted to please him and keep him on the leadoff spot. There are no problems in that regard. He earned it through his production throughout the years. 

Buster Olney, one of the most recognizable baseball writers, had the nerve to say that Derek Jeter should’ve volunteered to tell manager Joe Girardi to bring him down from the lineup. That’s utterly ridiculous. Jeter said it best when that champions don’t give up or volunteer to take a day off or quit on their team. I’m paraphrasing, but that’s his attitude. He’s not going to let his team down. He’s not going to quit. He’s going to play through the pain no matter what. He wants to win and contribute at all costs. Many of these sports writers have said some of the most foolish things at times, and in this case, Olney said something beyond ridiculous.

Review

4.5 out of 5 stars

“Hiding in Plain Sight” – Ep. 5 Reaction

Episode five in “The Captain” Docuseries, named “Hiding in Plain Sight,” talks about the struggles of trying to find privacy. Derek Jeter faced throughout most of his career dealing with the New York media or the media in general. When you have success and win, a lot of attention will be coming your way. Having success is a double edge sword. There are pros and cons. 

Everyone wants to have some level of privacy, especially if their family and friends surround them. Jeter stated that he could act a certain way with his family and friends so that he couldn’t do the same thing in public. It’s understandable because we all feel that way or have been in those situations. 

Jeter was very cautious in trying to avoid distractions because the media always look for a story, especially if it’s a negative one. Jeter has always steps ahead and does not give the right quotes that the media is looking for. He was a genius and a master in that regard. He wasn’t going to throw his teammates under the bus if one of them didn’t perform well or they did something outside of the field. Jeter’s goal is to win championships and not bring distractions to the team. 

Another important subject that was brought about in this episode is race. It’s no secret that Derek Jeter is biracial. Jeter probably heard it throughout his life, words or sentences like “Oh, he’s not black enough.” “He’s not white enough.” Those kinds of sentences are ignorant, annoying, and useless. There are a lot of people who are obsessed with race and color. 

Jeter never utters a word about social issues. No athlete should be forced to talk about social problems if they don’t want to. Some athletes hesitate not to speak about it because they don’t like to get canceled or be bashed by people on social media. Colin Kaepernick got kicked out of the NFL not only because he was outspoken. We must also remember that he wasn’t performing well on the field. He was on a decline before he spoke out. 

“Hiding in Plain Sight” is a good episode, but it’s probably my least favorite one out of all of them so far. We got two more episodes left to go to check out. 

Review:

4.3 out of 5 stars 

“Bigger Than Baseball” – Ep. 4 Reaction

Episode four of the miniseries, “Bigger Than Baseball,” touched on the impact of September 11th. It is the saddest day in the history of America. We got to hear from Jorge Posada, Tino Martinez, and Derek Jeter about where they were when this tragic event happened. The Yankees are playing for something more important than baseball, and that’s for their country. The Yankees lifted and brought some happiness to the fans.

The 2001 Yankees were aging, and you knew that some players would not return for the following season. Therefore, this season was more like “The Last Dance” for the Yankee dynasty team. After defeating Oakland and Seattle, they faced a tough Arizona Diamondbacks team with Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson. Games 4-5 and 7 are the best games of that series. It is one of the most outstanding World Series of all time. Diamondbacks dethroned the Yankees and became the fastest expansion team to win the World Series.

Jeter was furious that they lost this series. Mariano felt horrible for blowing the save, but Jeter was not pleased. He’s never satisfied with success. Guys like Jeter, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Tiger Woods have that in common: obsession with winning all the time. That’s the greatness of a champion. Champions don’t want to be on the losing side. 

After the 2001 season, Paul O’Neill retired, Scott Brosius retired, and Tino Martinez joined the Saint Louis Cardinals. Jeter is now one of the veterans on the team. After failing to win in 2002 and 2003, the Yankees decided to bring A-Rod to their team. However, George Steinbrenner needed to ensure this would be okay with Derek Jeter. Therefore, he called Derek and confirmed with him if it would be okay to play alongside him. Derek welcomed Alex with open arms. What you have to respect about Alex is that he decided to play third base for the Yankees because he respects the shortstop position and respects Derek Jeter.

Jeter said that he would’ve not switched positions if he had been in Alex’s shoes because Alex has always played the shortstop position in his career. But Derek admired and respected Alex for making that kind of sacrifice in his career. 

Fascinating Moment of the Episode:

– Game 3 of the 2003 ALCS between the Yankees and Red Sox. I love the addition of the song “What We Do” by Freeway during the fight between the Yankees and Red Sox. I thought that was random, but I loved it. 

– Jorge Posada doesn’t like Pedro Martinez. Posada never succeeded against Martinez until Game 7, when he tied the game with a 2-run double to make it 5-5. 

Review:

4.6 out of 5 stars

“I Don’t Have to be Your Best Friend” – Ep. 3 Reaction

Episode three of “The Captain” documentary series, the episode is called “I don’t have to be your best friend.” It’s one of the best series episodes because it dives into Derek Jeter’s trust issues and keeps a tiny right group of people in his circle. It also goes into detail about his once-close friendship with Alex Rodriguez.

The footage of the 1999 brawl between the Yankees and Mariners was great because you saw Jeter and A-Rod chatting away from the brawl. It didn’t sit too well with Chad Curtis, and he and Jeter had an exchange privately. Curtis had issues with his teammates. His problems with whatever he had with Jeter became the beginning of the end during his tenure with the Yankees. Curtis spent three seasons with the Yankees (1997-1999)

In September 2000, the Yankees were struggling. The final week of the regular season was a disaster. When they clinched the division, they didn’t celebrate with champagne. That’s a great attitude to have. In Game 5 of the American League Division Series, third baseman Eric Chavez made a wrong decision to talk about how it’s time for someone else to win because the Yankees have won 4 titles in the last five years. Yankees heard those comments loud and clear, and they made the A’s pay the price. Yankees closed out the series on their home turf, and Chavez recorded the final out of the game with a pop-out fly to Tino Martinez. Chavez should’ve known better not to talk too soon. 

The 2000 World Series brings back many memories because there was a lot of pressure on the Yankees to win the series. They needed to defend New York, and they did. The Yankees beat the Mets in 5 games. Derek Jeter set the tone and put the lid on the series after he hit a leadoff home run in the first inning of Game 4. 

Jeter and A-Rod Scene:

Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez had a true brotherhood in their early 20s. The two were close in the ’90s and even crashed at each other’s apartments while Derek was coming up on the Yankees and A-Rod was playing for the Seattle Mariners. There was great respect and admiration for each other. Rodriguez ruined that friendship with two interviews. His interview with writer Scott Raab was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and the one with Dan Patrick. But here’s what he said during the interview with Scott Raab that caught the attention from everyone: 

“Jeter’s been blessed with great talent around him,” he added of Jeter’s Yankees teammates. “So he’s never had to lead. He doesn’t have to; he can go and play and have fun and hit second. I mean, you know, hitting second is different than hitting third or fourth in a lineup because you go into New York trying to stop Bernie [Williams] and [Paul] O’Neill and everybody. You never say, ‘Don’t let Derek beat you.’ That’s never your concern.”

Rodriguez eventually met up with Jeter and apologized for how the comments came out. Jeter was bothered because he was a loyal person, and he would never do that to a friend. 

Jeter and A-Rod seem to be cool nowadays. No issues between them. They won a Championship together in 2009. They also did an interview together in 2022. After Jeter lost one of his closest friends, Gerald Williams, to cancer, he’s been a “not hold any grudges” type of guy.

Review:

4.7 out of 5 stars 

“Loyalty One Way” – Ep. 2 Reaction

The saga continues to talk about Derek Jeter’s “The Captain” documentary series. Episode two of the series is called “Loyalty One Way.” Derek Jeter has said on the “Drink Champs” podcast and in this episode that he’s a very loyal person. He believes in loyalty. 

During this episode, we see the emergence of Derek Jeter’s 1996 season. Derek was fortunate to have Joe Torre come in as a first-year manager because he let Jeter be Jeter. It might not have happened if Buck Showalter had stayed as the manager. Jeter said this with all due respect to Buck. Joe Torre is the manager he needed at that particular moment in his career. Jeter was also fortunate that he didn’t get sent to Triple-A because Tony Fernandez broke his arm. So the front office had no choice but to stick with a young 21-year-old, Derek Jeter.

Joe Torre was nervous on Opening Day against the Cleveland Indians, but then he exhaled when Jeter hit his first career home run and made some impressive defensive plays. Jeter is one of the reasons why the Yankees succeeded in 1996. He won the American League Rookie of the Year. 

When discussing Game 1 of the ALCS between the Yankees and Orioles, you can tell by the players’ reactions from Darryl Strawberry, David Cone, and Derek Jeter that they still get annoyed when people tell them that they got lucky because of that kid who interfered in right field. Cone and Jeter believed they still would’ve won the series because they’d dominated the Orioles all season long. Strawberry and Jeter think Tony Tarasco should’ve leaped to catch the ball. The city of Baltimore and everyone in that organization believes that they should’ve gone back to Baltimore, being up 2-0 in the series. 

Fair or no fair, Jeter’s game-tying home run in the 8th inning became the microscope of the series. The Yankees proved they were the better team by winning all three games on the road in Baltimore. After the Yankees won the World Series against Atlanta Braves, Jeter’s world changed because he was getting more notoriety: appearing in Talk shows, commercials, etc. As a 22-year-old, he was lucky that there wasn’t social media, or smartphones and that he surrounded himself with the right people. In New York, you can easily fall into the wrong crowd and land on the front cover of the newspapers for the wrong reasons. 

Strawberry and Jeter had a good relationship as teammates. Strawberry giving Jeter advice about playing in New York and staying away from bad habits is one of the best moments of this episode. Strawberry cares about Jeter, and it is in his best interest because Strawberry had many screw-ups throughout his career. So he didn’t want that for Jeter. 

The scenes with Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter were also great. Two young and talented shortstops were once great friends. A-Rod is the better shortstop, but you can tell that he was jealous of Jeter because he didn’t have the love and admiration of the fans and the media compared to A-Rod. Although A-Rod might deny some or most things, the front cover magazine of Him being underneath Jeter while Jeter has his arms around him bothered A-Rod. Why? Because, in his mind, he’s the better shortstop, which he is. However, Jeter is the one with more success by winning championships. Rodriguez, Jeter, and Nomar Garciaparra were the young and hottest shortstops in the late 90s. It was a fun competition between those three, but Jeter had the most success and was the most beloved player out of the three of them. 

During the 1998 season, the Yankees had arguably the best team ever. Everything clicked for them. They were loaded. They fought for each other. As a 24-year-old, Jeter handled the situation he dealt with veteran pitcher David Wells. He didn’t want the media to make a big deal out of it. He didn’t allow a story to cause a distraction to the team. The press tried to make a big deal about him confronting David Wells after Wells made some gesture after a failed popup fly in which the ball landed between Jeter, Chad Curtis, and Tim Raines. Jeter didn’t like how Wells expressed himself with his facial expression, and he demonstrated his leadership right away. His handling of the situation made me respect Jeter a thousand times more as a player. 

The episode ends with the contract dispute between Jeter and the front office after the 1998 season. It began a not-so-good personal relationship between him and the front office. Jeter is very competitive and will do whatever it takes to prove people wrong, and he will never forget the things said about him. 

Crucial Scene in the Episode:

– Jeter almost became involved during the nightclub shooting in 1999 which Puffy, J. Lo, and Shyne’s names were all mentioned. It would’ve been a “wrong place at the wrong time” moment for him. It came very close. 

Review:

4.8 out of 5 stars 

The Captain: No Blueprint for Success – Reaction

“The Captain” sports documentary is about Derek Jeter’s life and career. It is one of the most highly anticipated documentaries of 2022. Jeter is one of the most beloved and respected athletes in the history of New York Sports. He wasn’t the greatest shortstop ever, but what made him people gravitate to him was his personality, the way he carried himself on and off the field, and his willingness to win at all costs. Jeter has an incredible work ethic. There’s a reason why he won five championships with the Yankees and should’ve had more. 

Episode One of the documentary series is called “No Blueprint for Success,” It focuses on his humble beginnings, how his parents met, how the kids were raised, and where they were raised. Jeter’s parents endured racism because his mother was white and his dad was African American. Interestingly, Jeter’s mom said that in Europe (Germany), where she met Derek’s dad, it wasn’t a big deal about interracial couples, but in the United States, it is a huge deal, and it was tough what they had to go through. Jeter’s parents instilled in both of their kids that they would go through trials and tribulations because of their skin color and to continuously work hard in anything they set out to do. 

Derek Jeter said during the episode that his father taught him a lot about being a fierce competitor. He didn’t allow Derek to win at anything. It’s a valuable lesson that nothing comes easy and quickly in life. You have to go out there and work for it. You have to earn it. That’s an excellent parenting skill. Another great example of parenting skills and why a father’s presence in their kids’ life is vital is when Jeter was feeling homesick and wanted to go back home because he was struggling in his first year in the minors.

The Yankees drafted Jeter as the 6th overall pick in the 1992 Draft. Jeter was discouraged that he didn’t go into the Too five pick of the draft, but it all worked out. He’s playing for the team he always wanted to play for New York Yankees. Houston and Cincinnati had a chance to draft him, but they dropped the ball. It’s great footage to see of Jeter and his family celebrate when they called him name in the Draft. 

Tony Fernandez getting injured during the 1995 season was a blessing in disguise for Jeter. He got called up and made his debut in Seattle. It’s the same city where he collected his first hit. 

1995 was the beginning of many great things to come. Yankees took advantage and won the first American League Wild Card. They made the playoffs for the first time since 1981. Although Jeter wasn’t on the playoff roster, he got to get a taste of the playoff atmosphere in the Bronx by watching it from the dugout. The Yankees squandered a 2-0 series lead to the Mariners. Jeter was upset because he wanted to win and he wants to contribute. At the time, little did we all know that it would be the beginning of a dynasty. 

Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars

Important Notes and Observations:

– Great way to use Nas’s “The World is Yours” music while showing highlights of the 1994 Yankees season. They were in the first place before the strike happened. The fact that they used a song like that one was surprising but enjoyable. 1994 was an unforgettable year for New York sports because of the success of the New York Knicks and New York Rangers.

– Gene Michael is the one who built that dynasty team. He was responsible for drafting guys like Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter, and the rest of the Core Four members (Posada, Mariano, and Pettitte). God knew what he was doing when George Steinbrenner was gone as the owner for two years. Thank the good lord for Gene Michael. May god rest his soul.