Latest news with #SilverSlugger
New York Post
19 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Derek Jeter is ‘elitist' for skipping Yankees Old-Timers' Day: Boomer Esiason
The Yankees will be commemorating the 2000 World Series team at Old-Timers' Day in August, but a rather crucial member of that team won't be in attendance. Derek Jeter isn't showing up, which has gotten WFAN hosts Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti a bit riled up. 'It's a little bit insulting … I think he should be there, he should be a part of it,' Esiason said on 'Boomer and Gio' on Tuesday. 'It seems elitist to me.' 5 Boomer Esiason finds Derek Jeter to be acting 'elitist' for not attending the Yankees' Old-Timers' Day. Getty Images There are more than 30 former Yankees participating, but 'The Captain' isn't one of them. 'Derek Jeter said that he doesn't want the fans to see him hit again at this age,' Esiason's co-host Giannotti said of Jeter's reasoning. 5 Derek Jeter (right) was at Old-Timers' Day in 2024 alongside Mariano Rivera — Rivera will be in attendance in 2025. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST But all of the players in the game have gotten older since retiring, and the game has been being played for nearly 80 years in some form. 'Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio played in an Old-Timers' game together,' Esiason said. 'If those guys put a uniform back on then [Jeter] certainly can.' 5 Derek Jeter recently appeared at Fanatics Fanfest. Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock Jeter, 51, last played in 2014. The Hall of Famer was a 14-time All-Star, five-time World Series champ, five-time Silver Slugger and five-time Gold Glove winner. Of course, he's not in the same condition as he was during his playing career, but Giannotti thinks that other players have to worry about that more than Jeter does. 5 Derek Jeter at Yankee Stadium in 2014. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post 'Derek Jeter's not gonna embarrass himself. I think he would put the uniform back on and look just like Derek Jeter when we last saw him,' Giannotti said, challenging Jeter's possible reasoning for not playing. 'He's in great shape, some of these other guys showing up are not — he is.' And it's not only that Jeter isn't playing in the game, it's the fact that he's not attending whatsoever. 'Just show up, you don't have to put the uniform on if you don't want to,' Giannotti continued. While Giannotti attempted to reason with Jeter's wishes, Esiason had one theme that kept returning to his mind with Jeter's attitude for the game. 5 Boomer Esiason (left) and Gregg Giannotti spoke on 'Boomer and Gio' and expressed some disapproval of Jeter skipping Old-Timers' Day. Patrick McMullan via Getty Image 'I just think, to me, he's the captain, he was the guy that was embraced by the fans and loved by the fans and still is to this very day,' he said. 'It just feels a little bit elitist, that's all.' The WFAN hosts did note that if Jeter has something going on in his life that makes him unable to attend, that, of course, makes sense — but Esiason especially is not buying the rest of the act.
Newsweek
5 days ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Phillies Urged To Move For Struggling White Sox Star With Deadline Looming
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Philadelphia Phillies overtook the New York Mets for first place in the National League East before the All-Star break and have a glaring hole in centerfield entering the heat of trade season. Although he has struggled, new developments in the Chicago White Sox's effort to trade Luis Robert Jr. have Jake Elman of Fansided thinking that the Phillies can't pass on it. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 09: Luis Robert Jr. #88 of the Chicago White Sox at bat against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rate Field on July 09, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 09: Luis Robert Jr. #88 of the Chicago White Sox at bat against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rate Field on July 09, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. Photo byMuch like Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara, Robert was tagged as the biggest trade chip entering the season and has not performed to the level that was needed to certainly guarantee that he would be traded at the July 31 deadline. Robert exited the All-Star break with a .190 average and just nine home runs. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that the White Sox are willing to eat some of Robert's salary if they can find a trade partner. This would lower the risk for the Phillies if they were to go through with a deal to bring the former Silver Slugger to the City of Brotherly Love. The Phillies would be rolling the dice by acquiring the former All-Star after his disastrous season. Robert is a free agent at the end of the season, but does have a team option on his contract if his production were to increase down the final stretch of the season. The Phillies are going to be active in the market this trade season as the Mets are hot on their tail for the division lead. Robert may have been the hottest candidate at the beginning of the season, but now it could be a smaller move with major upside. More MLB: Orioles Listening To Offers On All-Star Closer, According To MLB Insider
New York Post
7 days ago
- Sport
- New York Post
Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg gives health update during ‘challenging' cancer fight
Cubs legend and Baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg is still battling cancer. More than a year and a half after his initial diagnosis, Sandberg posted an update about his 'challenging' fight with prostate cancer to his Instagram on Wednesday. 'It's been a challenging few months as I have been going through treatment on a regular basis,' the 65-year-old wrote. 'While I am continuing to fight, I'm looking forward to making the most of every day with my loving family and friends.' 3 Ryne Sandberg threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Cubs at their home opener this season. MLB Photos via Getty Images Sandberg revealed his diagnosis in January 2024 before announcing that he was cancer-free several months later in August. But by December 2024, the cancer had not only returned, but had spread to other organs. 'This means that I'm back to more intensive treatment,' the former infielder said in December. 'We will continue to be positive, strong, and fight to beat this. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers for me and my family.' While the battle has continued, Sandberg made an appearance at Wrigley Field in April when he threw out the first pitch for the Cubs' home opener. 3 Sandberg in 2022 before the Cubs and Reds squared off at the Field of Dreams. Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports The Cubs have kept Sandberg entertained in the meantime, as the team boasts a 57-39 record, leading the National League Central and only trailing the 58-39 Dodgers for the best record in the NL. 'I haven't been to Wrigley Field as much as I hoped in the first half but I'm watching every game and am excited for the second half and to see Wrigley rocking like 1984!' Sandberg wrote in his post on Wednesday. Aside from 13 games with the Phillies in his rookie season, Sandberg played his entire 16-year career with the Cubs. 3 Ryne Sandberg of the Chicago Cubs bats during an MLB game at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois during the 1986 season. Getty Images In 1984, the second baseman won the NL MVP award with his .314 batting average, 19 home runs and 84 RBIs. He also led MLB in triples (19) and runs scored (19) and was tops in the NL in WAR (8.5). Sandberg was a 10-time All-Star, nine-time Gold Glove recipient and seven-time Silver Slugger. The legend was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005. 'Thank you for all the messages of support,' Sandberg concluded in his Instagram post. 'Go Cubs!'
USA Today
15-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Best friends, All-Stars for life: Alejandro Kirk, Jonathan Aranda put on for Mexico
ATLANTA – In the lifelong friendship between Jonathan Aranda and Alejandro Kirk, it is Aranda who's theoretically the big brother. Born on May 23, 1998, Aranda came into this world nearly six months before Kirk followed. And they've been besties since Aranda, he says, 'knew how to speak,' while growing up in Tijuana. Yet in the winding path from the hardball fields of Mexico to Major League Baseball, it was Kirk who arrived first in the big leagues, Kirk who stuck as a regular, won a Silver Slugger, made the All-Star team. So it was no small thing when Kirk and Alejandro reported to Truist Park as teammates, two dreamers who all at once could claim the same honor: American League All-Star. They are putting on for their ballclubs, their families and perhaps most notably for Mexico, a land that gets overlooked when the Dominican Republic and Venezuela are so prolific at sending their sons onward to the big leagues. In this Midsummer Classic, though, there are four Mexican natives on the rosters: Aranda and Kirk, along with injured Houston Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes and Seattle Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz. Additionally, Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena earned Mexican citizenship in 2022, seven years after defecting from Cuba. It is no small thing, says Kirk. 'Mucho. Mucho para el pais, para Mexico,' he says, confirming how important it is for the country. And yet no two connections in this game come close to Kirk and Aranda, whose families have converged on Atlanta for the game. 'I'm very happy to be here with him, my family, his family,' says Kirk via Blue Jays translator Hector Lebron. 'The year he's having right now is very special. I'm very happy for him.' It's a nice bit of timing that both are peaking for clubs in the throes of the American League East race. Kirk, a catcher, was an All-Star in 2022, when he batted .285 with a .372 OBP and was worth 4.0 WAR, yet tailed off the next two seasons. In the meantime, Aranda failed in his first three bids to stick with Tampa Bay, never playing in more than 34 games before this season. Yet at 27, it has all clicked. Aranda has posted a .324/.399/.492 line, his .892 OPS good for a 151 adjusted OPS. He has 31 extra-base hits. Despite his modest 11 home runs, he's the best-performing first baseman in the AL. And it's even better joining a pal in the festivities. 'It means a lot. He's my best friend since I was a kid,' says Aranda through Rays translator Eddie Rodriguez. 'It is something really amazing to share the diamond and playing with him here. 'He was a great example. I know and I saw from up close, his path to make it to the major leagues.' Aranda's journey has similarly inspired the Rays, whose plug-and-play ethos sometimes doesn't breed everyday players but rather platoon-oriented parts to a bigger machine. But Aranda has seized his role, his 358 plate appearances trailing only fellow All-Star Junior Caminero and veteran DH Yandy Diaz. His 2.9 WAR leads a team now 50-47 and 1 ½ games out of a wild card berth. 'It's all the recognition that he deserves. He's finally up there on the national stage for what he's able to do,' says Rays All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe. 'As consistent as he's been all year, it's fantastic to really kind of show him off a bit – this is our guy.' And for the more veteran Rays, Aranda's capabilities were probably more evident than the guy trying to stick for good. 'Just the confidence in himself, man,' says Lowe. 'We all knew what he had; we've all seen it before. The big leagues is harder than the minors, believe it or not. It just took him a little bit to get going. 'The biggest thing is him understanding and not faltering and stuck to who he was.' He'll reap the benefits this week. Aranda will be joined in Atlanta by his parents, sisters, brother, brother-in-law and nieces. And above all, will represent his country. Aranda says it will be something 'really good and amazing' to know he and Kirk's exploits will be beamed back home for a new generation. His buddy agrees. 'First of all, you've got to be proud,' says Kirk. 'Proud to represent my country, Mexico, and a bunch of Mexican players in the All-Star Game. 'We should all be proud of that.' The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.
San Francisco Chronicle
13-07-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
For A's Jacob Wilson, a rookie and All-Star Game starter, the swing is the thing
ATLANTA — Jacob Wilson already is in some heady company as first the A's shortstop to start the All-Star Game since Campy Campaneris in 1974. Coach Bobby Crosby, himself the AL Rookie of the Year as Oakland's shortstop in 2004, thinks of another great shortstop, though, when Wilson's name comes up. 'I think his hitting is more comparable to Derek Jeter than anything,' Crosby said. 'I know that's a crazy name to drop on a guy who's in his rookie year, but playing against Jeter was like, 'OK, well, he's just going to use the right side and keep using it until you hang a breaker and then he's going to hit it out to left.' Jeter was so good at staying inside the ball, and that's what Jacob does. His swing path allows him to hit it wherever he wants.' Wilson, the lone rookie starter in Tuesday's game at Truist Park, was hitting over .370 in June before falling back to the .334 mark he took into Sunday's game, still good for second place in the league behind Yankees superstar Aaron Judge. 'Jacob showed up fully formed,' A's hitting coach Mike Aldrete said. 'The coaches don't really have to do much. When a guy shows up and hits .370, your best coaching is to leave him alone.' What about that comparison with Jeter, the Yankees Hall of Famer? The answer may surprise you: 'The one thing about Jeter was his swing wasn't really that good,' Aldrete said. 'Jacob's is really, really good. Jeter had a kind of a funky swing, but he made it work. And Jacob's got a great swing, period.' Wilson benefited from having a big-league father, Jack Wilson, who was an All-Star and won a Silver Slugger award in 2001 with the Pirates. (They're the first father-son All-Star shortstop duo.) Jack Wilson had a good 12-year big-league career with Pittsburgh, Seattle and Atlanta, and when he was teaching his son to hit, he had him watch videos of some of the greats: Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols and Mike Trout. The younger Wilson, though, added a twist of his own, his rocking, twitching set-up that goes still as the ball's delivered and he draws the bat back to start his short, quick stroke. (His long, wavy hair is modeled on his own favorite player, non-dad division, Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson.) Wilson hits to all fields, and he's hitting .320 on breaking balls, .328 on fastballs and .407 on offspeed pitches. It's tough to find a weakness; he bats .407 on sliders, for goodness sake, the best mark in the majors; Shohei Ohtani is second, at .370. 'He's an anomaly in a lot of ways,' said A's DH-outfielder Brent Rooker, a fellow All-Star. 'It's not something that I can relate to at all, because his gifts are things that I don't do well and I don't really understand how he does what he does. 'That's what makes him so special and so fun to watch — it's just elite bat-to-ball skills, elite hand-eye coordination, he controls the strike zone — and even when he doesn't, he's able to make contact with some pretty special skill.' The short swing is the key, as far as Aldrete is concerned. 'Guys with longer swings have got to start earlier,' he said. 'They have to get the swing going and then hope it's in the right place. Jacob gets to wait, wait, wait, and then just say 'Yeah, that's it,' and that's huge.' The 23-year-old first knew he might enjoy success in the big leagues when he smacked a walkoff single in the A's 5-4 win over Texas in the final series the A's played at the Coliseum last September. That helped to send Wilson into the winter with a wave of confidence. 'It was my first kind of hype moment,' Wilson said. 'Getting that hit, winning the game for my team — that was really the first moment where I felt like I belonged. I just tried to build off that in the offseason, putting the work in to come back this season the best player I can be.' That hit also established something of a calling card for Wilson, who has a distinct flair for the walkoff, with two more this season. Of course, when you've piled up 112 hits before the break and have the best average in the league with runners on base (.377), that's a good blueprint for late-game heroics. Wilson, who beat out the Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. for the All-Star start, is the first rookie shortstop in an All-Star Game lineup since Baltimore's Ron Hansen in 1960, and he's the A's first starter since third baseman Josh Donaldson in 2014. He's the first A's rookie ever to start an All-Star Game, and the franchise's youngest player in the event since 21-year-old Vida Blue in 1971. But Wilson's All-Star appearance was up in the air for a few days after he was hit by a pitch in a game against the Braves last Tuesday; he was back in Sacramento's lineup Saturday. In the past 11 days, Wilson has cooled off some, batting .200. 'That's where the coaching will come in,' Aldrete said. 'There have been a couple of times he's been frustrated, and the one thing I tell him is 'Your hands are really good. Let's get back to that.'' Right before the mini-funk started, Wilson had pulled a homer against the Astros; that's typically when he tends to get a little off his game. 'We were just talking about that, how as soon as he pulls a homer, he doesn't get a hit for a few days,' Aldrete said. 'I was kind of the same way, if I pulled a homer, I'd have it in the back of my mind and go in the tank. I told him, 'Every single time you pull a homer, your next at-bat, hit a ball to right.' Because what happens is you hit a home run, you feel really good and you forget what you're really, really good at.' As advanced a hitter as he is, Wilson is still learning at shortstop. He and Crosby have worked a lot on improving his first step and he's seeing good results. 'Last year when Willy came up, his first step wasn't that great and he isn't as fast as some other shortstops, but you can make up for that by understanding the hitters and what our pitchers are doing and where you need to be,' Crosby said. 'I've had talks with him about, 'This is what you need to think and this is what you need to do.'' 'Bobby is the guy I talk to the most,' Wilson said. 'Bobby was a taller shortstop, like I am, and we've talked a lot about preparation and that first step. I just try my best to catch everything I can and work with the infielders around me.' If he stays healthy and consistent, Wilson could set some franchise rookie records by the end of the season. Philadelphia's Socks Seybold holds the mark for top batting average (.334 in 1901) and Hall of Famer Al Simmons the most hits (183 in 1924). 'To be able to do the type of things that he does at such a young age is super impressive,' Rooker said, 'and it bodes well for him to have a very, very long and successful career.'
