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Saying Goodbye to Jorge Posada
Posted By Chasing800 on January 12, 2012
The pain has not yet gone away from the Yankees’ early exit in the American League Division Series. As the Detroit Tigers moved on to play the Texas Rangers, a team the Yankees dominated all year, the “what ifs” continue to be asked. The future of the team will be debated, and concern arises over the lengthy contracts of players who have failed to produce in October. But one man who did not fail to produce this October has all but likely ended his tenure in pinstripes, and it has been magical. Jorge Posada, who we first saw on the big stage pinch running in the 1995 Division Series against Seattle, will not be back with the Yankees next season. This is the second member of the Core Four who will leave the team. Whether or not he returns to baseball is a mystery, but it’s hard to imagine Jorge putting on a uniform other than the Yankee pinstripes.
Photo: Off The Record
Derek Jeter is the captain of the Yankees, but Jorge Posada has always been a leader. A five time All Star and Silver Slugger winner, he probably will not be enshrined in Cooperstown one day. But you can’t argue with the statistics. In 2003, he blasted 30 homers and drove in 101 RBI’s, becoming the first Yankees’ catcher to do so since Yogi Berra. In 2007, before his final contract was signed, Jorge hit a career-best .338 in 144 games. The Yankees may have a better catcher in the future in Jesus Montero, if he’s able to play the position. But rarely, very rarely, do you see a franchise in the 21st century with one man behind the plate for 15 seasons, not to mention 17 seasons with the team overall.
It is pretty easy, I think, to go through the best moments of Jorge’s career. Manager Joe Girardi continues to point out how proud he was of his then-teammate in 1998 when Jorge was behind the plate for David Wells’ perfect game against the Minnesota Twins. But there was one that rocked Yankee Stadium. In the 2003 ALCS, the animosity between Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez and Posada was easily felt in Game Three. During one of their two bench-clearing incidents, Martinez pointed to his head, as if to say he would drill Posada the next time he came up. Jorge, in full catcher’s gear, walked to the field and invited Martinez to drill him. In Game Seven, with revenge on his mind, Posada dumped a game-tying, two run double into center field in the bottom of the eighth, knocking Pedro out of the game and costing Grady Little his job. Oh yeah, someone named Aaron Boone hit a pretty big homer three innings later.
This year, things got ugly. Joe Girardi elected to bat Posada ninth against the Red Sox in mid-May. Jorge was hitting under the Mendoza Line, and it seriously looked like he was going to retire in the middle of his final season. But it got better. The crowd fell in love with him. Girardi correctly realized that Posada could only play against right-handed pitching, and Jorge seemed willing to accept that role. And then October came around. I wanted the Yankees to play Texas, but they matched up with the Tigers. That meant nothing but right handed pitching, and that Jorge was going to play every game. All he did was bat .429, including a triple at Yankee Stadium in Game Two. He didn’t drive in runs, but that’s because the bases were always empty for him. He went out like a true champion, even if the team didn’t.
Photo: ESPN - Fit Home Team
I will remember Jorge’s leadership, his intensity, and how much pride he had in putting on the pinstripes every day. I’ll admire the courage he showed during all of his son’s operations, and how his family always came first. I’ll remember how in 1996, he didn’t play in the post-season, but he was the first guy out of the dugout to congratulate teammates every time a run was scored. He was everything the New York Yankees have stood for over the last seventeen years. He will be truly missed, until he is welcomed back for future Old Timers’ Days, and Jorge Posada Day, when number 20 will rightfully be added to Monument Park.
Thank you, Jorge.
-Eric Kopp
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