True Yankee

In the very poignant film "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy," one of the final scene pits Anchorman Ron Burgundy in a bear pit, and a rival anchor Wes Mantooth (played by Vince Vaughn) holding the ladder to let Burgundy out. With the opportunity to crush his opponent, Mantooth says one of the great quotes in movie history:


"Burgundy, I hate your guts...But goddammit, I respect you."



Now this quote didn't lead to an Academy Award, but it typifies my feelings on Derek Jeter. I know, there are Red Sox diehards out there who will scream traitor, but that's ridiculous. I'm not saying I want to get in Jeter's jock. I'm just saying you have to give credit where credit is due.


Look at how the guy started his career: Rookie of the Year in 1996. World Series Championships in '96, '98, '99, and in 2000, where he became the only player to win the All Star and World Series MVP in the same season. Now, he has what might be his most amazing accolade to date: He has the most hits in Yankees history with 2,723 hits, and counting.



Just take a second to take that all in. Berra.Mantle. DiMaggio. Ruth. Gehrig. With that hard grounder down the first base line in the Bronx Friday night, he not only cemented his legacy as an all time great Yankee. He put himself in the argument as the greatest Yankee of all time.



But the real reason I respect Jeter so much is the fact that you don't get any BS with him. In sports these days sometimes it seems like you're watching soap opera or reality show. The Brett Favre saga over the past 2 seasons, Big Papi testing positive for PEDs, and well, just the TO Show seem to overshadow what what happens on the playing field.



Look in his own clubhouse. A-rod spends more time in US weekly and Star now than he does in Sports Illustrated because he "dates" high profile celebrities. It must be New York right? Well then how does Jeter have previous ties to Mariah Carey, Scarlett Johansson, and a former Miss Universe, and not half the scandal? It's in the way he carries himself.


And that goes for his demeanor on the field and in the locker room. Look, I love Jonathan Papelbon. In my opinion, his stat line for the 2007 postseason should have earned him MVP of the World Series. But Pap falls into the "love 'em if you got 'em, hate 'em if you don't" category. After a big out, hes going to celebrate like crazy. He's going to talk trash to opposing teams because he has no filter. Jeter, on the other hand, just goes about his business. Forget John Sterling and his "THeeeeeeee Yankees win!" after Bombers victory. Just look to the Yankees short stop and if his right fist is pumping, ball game.



It's funny to me that Jeter would pass Lou Gehrig on the night Michael Jordan was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Unlike most 90's kids, I grew up hating Michael Jordan. He won too much, hit all the big shots, and I despised that. I actually remember going to bed fuming the night he hit his last game winner in a Bulls' uniform. I didn't appreciate the greatness I witnessed. Fast forward 10 years, I know the Yankees have one of the greatest of all time in their dugout. I won't ever cheer for him, but goddammit, I'll respect him.

The Anti-Manny

As has been the case for most of the decade, a Red Sox player started in left field for the American League All-Stars last night. But unlike years past, his play spoke for itself. It wasn't about the lame excuse he gave as to why he couldn't play in the game. Such are the differences between Manny Ramirez and Jason Bay.

I've said it a million times, but my relationship with Manny in the last year has been like a break up with a long time girlfriend. I could deal with his BS, like peeing in the wall and or high fiving fans while making a catch. When the Sox traded him at the deadline last year I was crushed. I said that day that there was no way we could win the World Series without him. I don't remember for sure, but I probably put on some Simple Plan and cried in my room for three hours too.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think that we could get anything as good as Jason Bay back in return. To be honest, my AL East bias told me that Bay was a good player on a bad team. Like Julio Lugo and Edger Renteria before him, I thought he wouldn't be able to handle to the heat from Boston fans and the media.

I could not have been more wrong. Yes his average has dipped quite a bit over the last month, but he still is top ten in the AL in home runs, and leads the league in RBIs. He also scored the game winning run against the Angels in game 4 last year to send Boston to the ALCS. Maybe most importantly, he already has a big hit against the Yankees this season to his credit.

Perhaps even better than his play, is Bay's demeanor. With Manny, you always had to be be prepared that he was going to do something stupid on or off the field. Fans, the media, and even the Red Sox management chalked this up to Manny being Manny. Thankfully, there is none of this nonsense with Jason Bay. The guy just goes out and plays the game. Bay has been a very model citizen while playing in a Sox uniform this year. In fact, his biggest off the field story was the fact that he became an American citizen.

The only question that remains now with Jay Bay is how long he'll be taking the field at 4 Yawkey Way. He is making close to $8 million this year, and he will certainly cash in this off season. In a perfect world, something would get done before the end of this season, so I wouldn't have to suffer another coronary about the Red Sox left field spot. But with Johnny Damon coming up as a free agent this off season too, there's a chance Jason Bay could break my heart worse than Manny by heading to the Skankees, I mean Yankees.

Panic Button? Not this Red Sox Fan

Technology today is pretty crazy. I planned on getting on my Blog Box and explaining why there is no reason for Red Sox fans to be freaking out about the poor start thus far. However, just got a text update from WEEI Daisuke Matsuzaka will be placed on the DL because of shoulder fatigue, and Hunter Jones is being called up. Certainly not good news, but let's try and look at the big picture on this one.

Yes, the Red Sox are 2-6. Yes, they are off to their worst start since 1996. Yes, Jason Bay isn't Manny. Yes, the 2 time WBC MVP looks terrible in a Red Sox uniform, and now may be hurt. And yes, I am still very confident that this team will make it to the playoffs as either a division winner or wild card winner.

I can only speak for myself, but I feel that many Sox have a different outlook on Boston sports since the "Tuck Rule Game." Since then, I am no longer turning away during a big spot one of my teams' games. In fact, I feel confident that they will thrive in it.

First of all, this is a tough stretch for the team. They started against the defending AL champs, and then headed out west to play the AL West favorite, and an A's team with solid pitching and nice line-up top to bottom. And for whatever reason, the Red Sox always struggle out west.
It is bad that they are getting off to such a poor start, but that's all it is: the start of the season. 8 down, 154 to go. No team has ever lost the pennant on Tax Day, and I don't think this year's Sox team will be the exception.

However, I will admit their is some cause for concern. Lester and Dice-K have looked pretty bad on this road trip. With the exception of Youkilis and Bay, the rest of lineup is really struggling. Maybe the biggest concern: that I'm looking to Julio Lugo to be the spark to get this team going.

But like I said, I'm staying optimistic. The Yanks will struggle at some point, the Rays will struggle, and the Red Sox will get out. That's baseball. And in the end, one of these three very good teams will be left on the outside looking in at the post season. And in my opinion, that team won't be the Boston Red Sox.