Kuzul

As it pertains to J-E-T-E-R

I really hate this kind of stuff. Both the Yankees and Derek Jeter seem to be bordering on the unreasonable as they dicker over a new contract.

The Yankees’ corner claims that it’s all business, that Jeter isn’t getting any younger, that he shouldn’t be unduly rewarded for past performance, and that their offer is fair. The Jeter camp believes the living legend is being disrespected (see Latrell Sprewell, who turned down a three-year $21 million extension from the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2004) and should get what he’s seeking, both in terms of years and salary.

Casey Close, Jeter’s agent, compared his client with another Yankee icon, Babe Ruth. But doesn’t he remember how the team treated the Bambino when he outlived his usefulness (Ruth leaves Yankees; NY Times original story, opens as a PDF)? (The Boston Braves treated him even worse, but he didn’t have the same history with them as with the Bronx Bombers.)

Harvey Araton considered the situation in his recent NY Times column, associating Jeter more closely to the quiet Lou Gehrig than the “bombastic” Babe.

Personally, I think everyone is wrong. Except me, of course.

As good a player is, and as much as he’s contributed to the Yankees’ canon, Jeter could never have the overall impact of a Ruth, who came along at a time when baseball was in dire straits in the wake of the 1919 Black Sox scandal. He helped restore baseball to its place as the national pastime, and his larger-than-life persona was the prefect representation of a post-WWI America and his home runs revolutionized the game. Dozens of books and papers have been written about him (increasing in candor over the years; Ruth was no choirboy). During World War II, Japanese soldiers thought there was no greater insult to their American counterparts than cursing the name of the Babe.

Does anyone really think Jeter has the same relevance or historical impact?

“Pride goeth before the fall.”

I think both sides should compromise: Jeter should come down in his demands and be more realistic about his ability to play into his 40s, but at the same time, the Yankees shouldn’t turn around and play the “What have you done for me lately” card.

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While writing up the previous entry and reading the Forbes’ review of Ken Burns’ addenda, I was reminded that I wanted to add my two cents.

The Forbes‘ writer thought there was too much information crammed into too little time. In one sense, I agree, but perhaps if less time had been allotted for certain segments, there would have been enough to go around.

But overall, it seemed to me there wasn’t enough material to sustain the four hours for the two episodes.

I thought too much time was spent on Barry Bonds, both in his pursuit of the single season and career home run records and his PED usage and not enough of the ramifications of steroids, etc. on the game (Many reviews played up the steroids angle to such a degree, you would think it was the sole focus.).

Sure, they covered the big boys—McGwire, Sosa, Palmiero, Bonds—but I would have learned more had there been discussion of the psychological decision-making process of the lower-echelon players, who felt they needed all the help they could get.

Some critics felt too much time was spent with the “talking heads” from the first go-around: George Will, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Daniel Okrent, John Thorn and others. They may have resonated with viewers who remembered them from the original and were comforted by their return, but new viewers might not hold them in the same esteem.

The loss of younger fans has long been a concern of MLB. One would have thought more contemporary speakers and fresh faces such as Howard Bryant, author of the new Hank Aaron biography, to have been in order.

Other too-long segments featured the continuing success of the New York Yankees, certain to alienate a good chunk of the non-Bronx Bomber fans out there.

I would have welcomed more on baseball’s return following Sept. 11, from a non-NY point of view. Remember: While New York took the brunt of the tragedy, it affected the nation as a whole.

I also would have been interested in a report on the escalation of salaries, the role of the Internet and blogosphere on the reporting and presentation of the game and more coverage of international players who brought their game to the Major Leagues—Ichiro may have been the best and longest-lived, but he wasn’t the only one.

I don’t know the backstory of The Tenth Inning—why the producers felt the need for four hours instead of two or three, why they to slavishly followed the same format or why there weren’t more players interviewed (just Pedro Martinez and Ichiro). I’m guessing much of it had to do with economics/sponsorship.

When the original series was broadcast in 1994, there had basically been just one such documentary—Burns’ own Civil War opus—that had been so ambitious.

Since then, the “Burnsian style”—the talking heads, the music (enough with the sentimental piano already), the panning across photographs and newspapers, and the video—has become commonplace. 

The Tenth Inning comes at a time when any consumer of ESPN and the like have become so accustomed to video highlights and replays that it doesn’t have the same impact—or hold the same interest—as those old grainy black and white films from generations past.

All that said, I still chose to savor Burns’ latest offering. I don’t think we’ll have another helping.

Related articles

• Video: Ken Burns Talks About His Newest Hit ? Baseball: The Tenth Inning (blogs.forbes.com)
• Ken Burns On Business, His New Film “The Tenth Inning” And Future Projects (blogs.forbes.com)

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As mentioned earlier this week, I belong to the Baseball Bloggers Alliance where I serve as president of the category of the BBA that defies definition. While most of the 230 or so blogs in the Alliance are team-centric, this “miscellaneous” merry band of men and women (we’re working on a better designation) take a wider look at the national pastime.

The previous post announced Dusty Baker as our choice for the Connie Mack (manager of the year) Award. This time we selected the top National league rookie for 2010 season, the Willie Mays Award.

Using a 5-3-1 system for the top three choices, here’s the breakdown:

Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants, 27 points (4-2-1)
Jason Hayward, Atlanta Braves, 25 (2-5-0)
Ike Davis, New York Mets, 5 (1-0-0)
Jaime Garcia, St. Louis Cardinals 2 (0-0-2)
Chris Johnson (Houston Astros),  Stephen Strasburg (Washington Nationals), Starlin Castro (Chicago Cubs) received one point each.

So, congratulations to Posey, who played 108 games for the Giants, batting a team-leading .305 with 18 home runs and 67 RBIs to help them into the postseason.

Related articles

• MLB Playoff Prediction: 10 Reasons Buster Posey Will Be the NLCS MVP (bleacherreport.com)
• Giants: Dissecting rise of rookie Buster Posey (sfgate.com)
• MLB Rookie of The Year Power Rankings: Has Buster Posey Locked It Up? (bleacherreport.com)
• Posey not a cinch for Rookie of the Year (sfgate.com)

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“Cro” was once considered a part of the best outfields in the game as a member of the Montreal Expos in the early 1980s.

Then Warren Cromartie made a name for himself—as well as a book—when he took his game to Japan.

He turns 57 today.

Slugging It Out in Japan: An American Major Leaguer in the Tokyo Outfield (with Robert Whiting).

Cromartie was also the subject of Season of the Samurai, a documentary about the first all-foreign team to play in an American professional sports league. He served as manager for the Samurai Bears.

Bonus Nickname of the Day birthday: Hunky Shaw, born this date in 1884. His first ML game was his only ML game.

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Haven’t seen too many of ESPN’s 30 for 30 documentary series, but came upon this one while flipping through the dial.

Jordan Rides the Bus is a nifty piece by Ron (Bull Durham) Shelton that takes a studied look at Michael’s days as member of the Birmingham Barons, a minor team in the Chicago White Sox system.

Throughout the program, thanks to the miracle of editing, Jordan always seems to be pounding the ball, running the bases like a deer, or making a great defensive play, and you hear comments along the lines of “He could have been a good/great/serviceable player if he’d stuck with it.”

One of my old bosses shocked us at a meeting once after a co-worker had made some excuse about being able to do a job better if he had more resources. The boss replied, “and if my mother had wheels, she’d be a bus.” The incongruity of the comment with the situation has never left me, and whenever I hear “if” now, I’m temporarily immobile while I recall that moment.

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