Now Batting: #2

Forever young

Q: Where were you on April 2, 1996?

It was the start of a good season for the Yankees and the opening act of a player whose career will remain unparalleled. Today, on the occasion of his final game at Yankee Stadium, I’d like to pause — to raise my hand in the direction of the umpire and request time. A moment to dig my cleats in the dirt.

Derek Jeter’s long goodbye has been chronicled by media outlets far and wide. And in many respects justifiably so: here’s a player who transcends the hard business of baseball and speaks to the boy inside the man, the kid and the competitor within those who aspire to anything. Like ourselves, he’s not perfect. But he has been oh-so-clutch, so smooth in the field and quick with the bat, such a winner for so long. If we can’t pause today, sports fans, then when?

The game will go on and in this there’s beauty and optimism. Spring will return. At this particular moment there’s also a sense of transition. It’s the sentimentality of these concluding at-bats, the human reflex to take stock of our own journey over the same time frame, to give thanks for the sunshine. Sure it’s forced. But just this once it’s entirely OK.

Last night, my son mentioned he’s sad the baseball season is drawing to a close. Tell me about it: I’ve been working since The Captain has been in pinstripes. That’s thousands of air miles and late nights. That’s five cities, seven jobs, three kids, and thirteen years of marriage. Nineteen seasons’ worth of material. A lot of living.

We’ll tune in, my kids and I. We’ll catch the game via mlb.tv. (Who could have considered such miracles in 1996?) And someday farther down the line we’ll talk about a shortstop who just might have what it takes to be great. And we’ll have in the back of our minds another player and another time, a reference point in a sports story without end.

Onward to the postseason. Been quite a run.

A: I was living and working in New York, an experience that has defined everything since.

*Note: Jeter’s first Major League hit was on May 30, 1995. He played just 15 games with the Yankees that season, had 51 plate appearances, and batted .250. His first full season as the Yankees starting shortstop began on April 2, 1996.

Image: New York Yankees vs. Seattle Mariners; Seattle, WA; June 10, 2014.