Let's get #28!!!

winstonwolfe:

katiewashere:

joewebster:

I think I’m going to be sick. This is the cover of SI. Did Eddie Murray (.287) or George Brett (.305) get this? I don’t think they did and they were better players than Jeter (.270). For that matter, did Craig Biggio (.281), the most recent member of the 27 player 3,000 hit club? No? Why? Because he would have sold as many SI’s as Justin Beiber sold Vanity Fairs. If I had a subscription, I’d cancel it. Pathetic.

People still have SI subscriptions?

You know what makes, me sick?? It’s when a historical comparison in sports, especially baseball, is done inaccurately &, quite frankly, in such sloppy fashion. Defending Derek Jeter & S.I. is no walk in the park either, trust me, but what the hell, here goes nothing. First of all, if there is only one thing more antiquated than ranting over a sports magazine cover, it might just be the measuring of a player’s legacy by using only their batting average. What is this? Mike & the Mad Dog, circa 1996? Actually, you know what? It’s a Friday night. Fuckin’ A, let’s get crazy with this premise. For starters, let’s try and be accurate with the referenced stats. Surprisingly enough, it’s really not all that hard to do that with this stuff in 2011, despite what you may have heard. There’s this thing called the internet. You can use it to quickly look up the stats for the players mentioned. Guess what? Jeter is not a career .270 hitter. Uh-oh, the original argument has a big, gaping hole. You see, when you use his average for just this year, and then use the other player’s career numbers, you are not only being disingenuous, you also lose some credibility. The Yankee captain is actually a .313 lifetime hitter(far cry from .270) with an On Base % of .383. Not too shabby, amirite? By the by, for future reference, OBP is a bit better measuring stick than just using a guy’s average as an offensive barometer. Now, let’s compare the other three players cited, using their batting average & OBP: Murray—.287/.359 Brett—.305/.369 Biggio—.281/.363 You see what I did there? I used the correct numbers, rather than pulling some that would just make my argument seem legit. Jeter does not have the same power numbers as those other 3,000 hit club members. No denying that. Yet, at the very least, he is certainly their equal as a pure hitter. Probably a bit more fair to say that he is superior to them at obtaining positive results with the stick in his hands. I have a really hard time admitting it because I’m a Red Sox fan.
Now, with the truth out of the way, let’s get to brass tacks. As any regular reader of this blog knows, and as I just mentioned, I’m a huge Sox fan. I will absolutely take any chance I can to make a joke at Jeter’s expense, but c’mon, not worthy of the S.I. cover? Really? He plays for the franchise of Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, & Mantle, and yet he’s the first Yankee to reach the 3,000 hit milestone. It’s the middle of July. Half of the major sports in North America are locked out & silent. What should S.I. have put on the cover? If you can think of anything, anything at all, then ask yourself if they couldn’t put whatever person/team/topic you came up with on the following week’s cover? Yes, that includes the U.S. Women’s thrilling pursuit of the World Cup. Goddamnit, can’t believe I’m defending Jeter & the magazine that employs Peter King. I feel empty inside.
Okay, silver lining time. No matter what has been written, let us not overlook the fact that Jeter is now susceptible to the ever dependable S.I. cover jinx.

Yeah, that’s Winston Wolfe just showing everyone what a TRUE baseball fan looks like. Tip of the cap sir.