Hugh Latimer presenting the Bible to King Henry VIII, from ‘Old England’s Worthies’ by Lord Brougham
Opening Day at Yankee Stadium was a big day for Yankee fans regarding Derek Jeter.
I get it. It was emotional.
But a sneak preview of the monotony of the season showed up that day.
Mariano Rivera threw out the first pitch to a great ovation.
The biggest ovation since his final All Star Game appearance last July…
And the last Sunday of his career when he had a wonderful day in his honor…
And his final game at Yankee Stadium…
And the last game he was an active player in Houston…
And his appearance at Fenway Park during the World Series…
And in his native Panama this spring…
After a tour of all the ballparks in 2013…
It got to be a bit much. I mean we all respect the hell of out Mariano Rivera, but the celebration was one bow too many.
And now fans all across baseball, who hate the Yankees with a burning passion, are going to have ANOTHER Yankee do a 162 game victory lap. Now Jeter, another player, who for many people represented hopes crushed and winters of discontent, is expected to get a standing ovation.
The prom king who took your lunch and stole your girlfriend wants you to applaud him.
That may sound harsh, but trust me, for a lot of baseball fans this is going to be a tough pill to swallow, especially since Mariano-Palooza hasn’t seemed to end yet. (The announcing of the reliever reward as the Mariano Rivera Award just extended it by a few weeks.)
Jeter’s last regular season Weekend at Yankee Stadium is the weekend of September 19th. His final scheduled home game is Thursday September 24th. His final game is at Fenway Park on September 28th unless the Yankees make the playoffs.
So let me make a brief suggestion of what we should do about the whole honoring Jeter and the gifts from other teams.
No more big ceremonies on the road. Have it at the All Star Game.
Seriously, in a ceremony have Jeter, who will be invited to the game whether his stats warrant it or not, sitting on a big throne.
Announce each team’s representative and he will present a gift before Jeter’s feet. Only one gets to make a rocking chair. Show some creativity!
Yeah, it will be long, embarrassing and tough to swallow. But guess what? IT WILL BE OVER!
That’s right. One big long night turning into a Jeter love fest and then it is over.
Last year’s All Star Game was a wonderful send off for Rivera. But like the Indiana Jones movies, they just had too many.
Learn from last year’s overkill. Give Jeter one night where everyone can get it out of the way. Jeter doesn’t want all those celebrations and the teams don’t want to do it. So let’s get it out of the way.
Besides, in a few years, we will have to do this for A-Rod as well.
Sully Baseball 
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