Do you care about Derek Jeter getting 3,000 hits?

[Tengo Juego]

I cared only because he did it on a homer, and a 5-5 night where he drove in the winning run. I thought that was pretty awesome. What a way to do it.

 

[strahanfan92]

Also thought it was awesome.

 

[strahanfan92]

EW YORK -- Christian Lopez came to Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon hoping to see history.

He just didn't realize he'd become a part of it.

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• Yankees blog | ESPN New York
Lopez, a 23-year-old cellphone salesman from Highland Mills, N.Y., who was seated in Section 236, Row 1, Seat 19, scooped up New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter's 3,000th hit -- a third-inning solo home run into the left-field bleachers -- after it rolled onto a grass ledge right in front of him.

"I was taking a picture, and next thing you know I look in the air," Lopez said. "My dad dove and missed it, because he has awful hands. I saw it roll in front of me, so I jumped on it. It was just instinct. I thought 'Wow! This is it! This is my chance!'"

Perhaps even more amazing was the fact that Lopez just wanted Jeter to have the ball and asked for nothing in return, though the Yankees insisted on showering him with memorabilia and tickets.

Lopez's father, Raul, 55, thought for a moment that he'd be the one to snag Jeter's homer.

"I couldn't believe it," said Raul Lopez, who was sitting in Section 236, Row 1, Seat 1. "I was like, 'Holy Cow! It's coming right to me! I got it! I got it!' It hit me flush right on my palm and went right toward [Christian]."

Harkening back to his college football days as a defensive tackle for St. Lawrence University, Christian Lopez jumped all over the "fumble" and, with the protection of Raul, somehow managed to hold on to the ball.

"I kind of covered him because I knew it was gonna be crazy," Raul Lopez said. "I've seen the Barry Bonds homer before. It's crazy."

Raul Lopez and his son quickly headed toward the concourse, where they were surrounded by team security. Soon enough, they were escorted to a private room.

"I've been on the bottom of a (fumble) pile a couple times, so this wasn't anything different," Christian Lopez said. "I was just happy no one swung. That could've turned out brutal, but security was right here dragging me upstairs. It was surreal."

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Considering that Christian Lopez had just secured a priceless piece of Major League Baseball history, the Yankees had one question for him: What do you want?

Lopez barely thought about it before doing the unthinkable.

Instead of asking Jeter for millions of dollars or saying he was going to put the ball up for auction, Lopez decided he was just going to hand it over to one of his baseball heroes.

"Mr. Jeter deserved it. I'm not gonna take it away from him," Christian Lopez said. "Money's cool and all, but I'm 23 years old, I've got a lot of time to make that. It was never about the money, it was about the milestone."

Really?

"That's who he is," Raul Lopez said. "My son could get a million dollars and he'd shrug his shoulders. He'd see a dog get hit by a car and he'd shrug his shoulders. It's no big deal for him. He's very cool and calm about everything."

Christian Lopez said he received a text from his boss at the Verizon Wireless in Middletown, N.Y.

"She texted me asking me, 'You didn't keep the ball for me?! You're fired!'" Lopez joked. "I think she's gonna fire me (Sunday)."

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But for Christian Lopez, the opportunity to meet Jeter and get three autographed balls, bats, and two Jeter-signed jerseys was enough.

"I was starstruck," Lopez said. "And I met Reggie Jackson and Jay-Z. People that I'd never think of shaking their hand and saying 'Nice to meet you.' It's just weird. It's crazy."

The Yankees are also giving Christian Lopez four Champions suite season tickets to every home game for the rest of the season and through the playoffs.

And to think, it wouldn't have been made possible if Lopez's girlfriend, 22-year-old Tara Johnson, hadn't shelled out $325 for five $65 tickets on StubHub for Lopez's birthday.

"I had an opportunity to meet him just a little while ago," said Jeter, who wound up going 5-for-5 and driving in the game-winning run during the Yankees' 5-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. "He got his ticket from his girlfriend so he owes her something big after this one. So he's going to be paying her back for quite some time."

Phil Cohen, 59, of Northford, Conn., and his daughter, Laura Cohen, 20, were at the game with the trio.

"I used to work with Raul about 25 years ago in the pest control business and periodically we'd maintain contact," Phil Cohen said. "He called me up a couple months ago about going to a game. A couple of weeks ago he said we're going to get tickets to the Saturday game, so that's how we got tickets."

Cohen said he and Raul Lopez were talking Saturday morning about how they'd have a good shot to see history after Friday night's game was rained out.

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Little did they know Christian Lopez would be the proud owner of a ball that could've fetched thousands -- if not millions -- of dollars if sold on the open market.

"When we got here and we sat at these seats, we were saying wouldn't it be great if his 3,000th hit was a home run and it came to us?" Cohen said.

ESPNNewYork.com asked Raul Lopez if he was upset his son turned down the riches that could've come had he decided to sell it.

"No. He's his own man," Raul Lopez said. "I tried to influence him between the ages of 1 and 18."

Raul and Christian Lopez remained with security for approximately two innings.

They never made it back to their original seats.

"They let us watch from the the Steinbrenner box," Raul Lopez said. "We've been treated very nicely. It was surreal."

Christian Lopez just wanted to see Derek Jeter get two hits on Saturday afternoon and become the 28th player in major league history to reach the 3,000-hit club.

As it turns out, he got a whole lot more than he bargained for.

Because from now on, Christian Lopez's name is going to live on in Yankees fan lore forever.

Mike Mazzeo is a regular contributor to ESPNNewYork.com.

 

[Len B]

I've been primarily a Red Sox fan my entire life (casually watched baseball from 2006 through 2008 as the fans were just overbearing) and I can't help but respect Jeter.

He reminds me of Tom Brady. He plays the game the right way, plays hard every play and is exactly what a captain/leader should be. He also gets the same shit that Tom Brady got in his prime, with people calling him overrated because of his range.

Who cares if he's not Ozzie Smith? He brought stability to an important position at the top of the order as well as on the field and he helped his team win championships. Compare him to a guy like A-Rod and it makes Jeter look even better. Every other team could have used Jeter in the 2000's, because no other team had a shortstop for all ten years that was better.

I'm happy for him.

 

[Lanteri]

Lifelong Yankees fan. Of course I care.

As for the next, Pudge is 39 and has 25 hits this year. He's no longer an every day catcher, and will need at least 2 additional seasons to get there, unless someone wants a guy hitting .214 as their every day catcher.

Next is Omar Vizquel, who's 169 hits short as of yesterday and is 44 years old. No longer every day. No.

ARod is a year younger than Jeter, and the bum knee isn't doing much to his hit count (though, if he opts for surgery, which he should, he may miss July). He's not going anywhere, and should hit 3k potentially by the end of the 2012 season, but likely by early 2013.

Damon... could possibly get there. He's 37 and has over 100 hits once since 2006. He's ~340 hits short now, so he'd need over 3 seasons. It's probably more of a question if he can find someone to sign him.

Chipper's 435 hits short and is 39 with health problems. He's a HOFer, but I don't think he gets there.

Looking at the rest of the list (http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/H_active.shtml), I think it'll be Pujols after ARod.

Huh? Since '06 Damon is averaging 156 hits a year. He's on pace to reach 2725 or so this year. He'll only need 2 seasons at his current rate to reach the 3,000 hit plateau. Realistically, he's the most likely to be the next player to reach 3k.

 

[G-men]

"That's who he is," Raul Lopez said. "My son could get a million dollars and he'd shrug his shoulders. He'd see a dog get hit by a car and he'd shrug his shoulders. It's no big deal for him. He's very cool and calm about everything."

:ice:

 

[Pills]

Huh? Since '06 Damon is averaging 156 hits a year. He's on pace to reach 2725 or so this year. He'll only need 2 seasons at his current rate to reach the 3,000 hit plateau. Realistically, he's the most likely to be the next player to reach 3k.

Does help when I look at the right line in the stats.

So... here's a question, possibly for another thread. Is Damon a HOFer?

 

[EmpireWF]

Does help when I look at the right line in the stats.

So... here's a question, possibly for another thread. Is Damon a HOFer?

Without looking in depth at his stats, I'd say no way on Damon. When was he considered one of if not among the best OFers in the sport?

 

[Lanteri]

Does help when I look at the right line in the stats.

So... here's a question, possibly for another thread. Is Damon a HOFer?

Doubt it. Realistically, he shouldn't be as far as his career numbers are concerned, but the way the voters view milestones like 3,000 hits, 500 HRs, 300 wins, etc. will probably be enough to get him in if he gets there.

Honestly, I think what happens with Craig Biggio will play into Damon's fate. Both players are super borderline as far as hall of fame-caliber players are concerned, and both will have only reached the 3k hit mark as a result of longevity, but many many years of being average players, with a short span of elite level production mixed in.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Doubt it. Realistically, he shouldn't be as far as his career numbers are concerned, but the way the voters view milestones like 3,000 hits, 500 HRs, 300 wins, etc. will probably be enough to get him in if he gets there.

Honestly, I think what happens with Craig Biggio will play into Damon's fate. Both players are super borderline as far as hall of fame-caliber players are concerned, and both will have only reached the 3k hit mark as a result of longevity, but many many years of being average players, with a short span of elite level production mixed in.

You are selling Biggio very, very short.

During his peak, he was a guy who consistantly put up a .400 OBA, SLG .500 some years with minimal HR's, stole 30-50 bases, and never missed a game.

Craig Biggio was a far superior player to Johnny Damon, and one of the best players in the game during the 90's. He is a mortal lock HOF player.

 

[Irish]

Biggio had the best career at 2B compared to any other 2nd baseman in the 90s-00s, besides Alomar. EDIT: Maybe Jeff Kent.

He doesn't have the the stats that scream HOF lock, but the 3000 hits and the fact that he was one of the few consistent 2nd baseman during that time will probably push him in.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Biggio has almost 700 doubles, over 400 SB's, 3000 hits, and nearly 2000 runs. And a .800 OPS playing 2B.

Not sure what there is not to like about his numbers.

 

[Irish]

Biggio compared with Alomar on season averages. Biggio played 4 more seasons.

Biggio/Alomar
Hits: 174/185
Runs: 105/103
2B: 38/35
RBI: 67/77
BB: 66/70
SO: 100/78
BA: .281/.300
OBP: .363/.371
OPS: .796/.814

Biggio: 7 time allstar, 4 gold gloves
Alomar: 12 time allstar, 10 gold gloves

Considering Alomar was second ballot HOF, Biggio might take a little longer, but he will probably go in.

 

[NAHSTE]

W2B beat me to the Biggio comment. Damon is a nice player and certainly a borderline guy, but to compare him to Biggio is selling the latter a bit short. He should have no problems getting in.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Biggio compared with Alomar on season averages. Biggio played 4 more seasons.

Biggio/Alomar
Hits: 174/185
Runs: 105/103
2B: 38/35
RBI: 67/77
BB: 66/70
SO: 100/78
BA: .281/.300
OBP: .363/.371
OPS: .796/.814

Biggio: 7 time allstar, 4 gold gloves
Alomar: 12 time allstar, 10 gold gloves

Considering Alomar was second ballot HOF, Biggio might take a little longer, but he will probably go in.

Alomar should have never been a "second ballot" HOF'er, though. I must have missed all of those hits he got in between years one and two. Uppity writers sending messages need to go.

Alomar & Biggio are among the greatest 2B to ever play the game.

 

[Lanteri]

Biggio/Damon
Hits: 174/183
Runs: 105/110
2B: 38/34
RBI: 67/75
BB: 66/66
SO: 100/81
BA: .281/.287
OBP: .363/.354
OPS: .796/.790

:shifty:

I get that Biggio is among one of the better 2Bs to play the game, but I mean both guys were leadoff hitters for most of their career right? That's mainly the reason I chose to do that comparison. The numbers between the two are all super close to each other, with Biggio having a slight edge in OBP and OPS, while Damon leads in average, hits runs, RBI. So basically Biggio gets the nod in this case because he played 2nd base while Damon played center field?

 

[NAHSTE]

Biggio/Damon
Hits: 174/183
Runs: 105/110
2B: 38/34
RBI: 67/75
BB: 66/66
SO: 100/81
BA: .281/.287
OBP: .363/.354
OPS: .796/.790

:shifty:

More similar than I expected, but Biggio was also a much better fielder.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Damon never had an OBP of .400, or slugged .500, or had an OPS over .900. His career high OPS+ is 118.

Biggio topped Damon's career high OPS+ of 118 seven times, and topped out in the 140's. He had about 160 more doubles. Biggio led the league in an offensive category 11 times to Damon's 3. And that's not counting stuff like G's and PA's, which adds 8 more league leads.

Per year averages are a bit deceptive, because Damon hasn't had his "hanging around" late 30's/post 40 bad years yet. Biggio is helped in counting stats in that regard when you factor those years in. But Damon is unlikely to catch him in the important ones anyway.

And when you look at their career peaks, Biggio blows him out of the water. Damon was a nice player. Still is, actually. Biggio was a great player. Damon never was.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

For what it's worth, Bill James ranked Biggio the 35th greatest player of all time. I think that's a bit high, but that was also in 2001.

baseballreference.com fan EloRater has him at #62 (one spot ahead of Alomar, and one spot in the EloRater is like splitting the hair of a hair), and has Damon #181.

Biggio is 74th all time in WAR (62.2), Damon is out of the top 100 (50.5).

Biggio was 25th all time in Bill James' win share ratings as of 2001, which I suppose would probably put him somewhere near 40 today.

 

[G-men]

Biggio/Damon
Hits: 174/183
Runs: 105/110
2B: 38/34
RBI: 67/75
BB: 66/66
SO: 100/81
BA: .281/.287
OBP: .363/.354
OPS: .796/.790

:shifty:

I get that Biggio is among one of the better 2Bs to play the game, but I mean both guys were leadoff hitters for most of their career right? That's mainly the reason I chose to do that comparison. The numbers between the two are all super close to each other, with Biggio having a slight edge in OBP and OPS, while Damon leads in average, hits runs, RBI. So basically Biggio gets the nod in this case because he played 2nd base while Damon played center field?

It depends on how you look at it. Biggio was a great player in the 90's, one of the best at his position. Damon was just consistently good.

It's the same reason why W2B will never consider Curtis Martin as a HOFer. Sure, the numbers are there, but you never looked at Martin and considered him as one of the game's elite running backs because in his prime Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Terrell Davis, Jerome Bettis, and Marshall Faulk were all far better than him.

It's the same thing for Damon. Yeah, he put up solid stats, but there were always a bunch of outfielders that I would much rather of had than him.