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Sunday, February 12, 2012

Ageless Jeter first in camp — again — lending his guidance as he preps for stellar 2012

Past an Interstellar Overdiving Jeter! (Long Player ~ No, Denbo player)

The youngest Yankees are spread over the four fields at the team’s minor league complex for pre-spring training workouts. Derek Jeter, the Yankees’ oldest position player, is here, too, just like every other early February for the past 20 years.

It’s the Old Man and the Sea of Prospects.

When Jeter first started coming to spring training early in 1993, there wasn’t even a roof over the batting tunnels. The facility has changed, players have changed, the House of Steinbrenner has changed. But Jeter’s work ethic hasn’t, and that’s what makes him so special. He will turn 38 in June, but once again he is the first player in camp.

Position players officially report Feb. 25, but Jeter doesn’t have time to waste. His baseball clock has started.

“You see all these kids out here now,’’ Jeter told the Post as he looked out over the perfectly manicured fields, where prospects such as outfielders Dante Bichette (19) and Mason Williams (20) were working. “When I first came down here, it was just me. They didn’t do this when I started. I came on my own and I dragged my roommate down with me, R.D. Long. The only people down here were rehabbers. Then they started bringing people down and now they have this.’’

Repoz Posted: February 12, 2012 at 09:41 AM | 48 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
Tags: history, yankees

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1. hardrain Posted: February 12, 2012 at 09:54 AM (#4059212)

Do the prospects get gift baskets?

2. Pasta-diving Jeter (jmac66) Posted: February 12, 2012 at 10:00 AM (#4059213)

Hey Kernan--move a little to the left--I can feel your teeth

3. Misirlou's got a busy day, he's wearing a vest Posted: February 12, 2012 at 10:09 AM (#4059216)

When Jeter first started coming to spring training early in 1993, there wasn’t even a roof over the batting tunnels.

Wow, did they have electricity back then? I'll be gas cost a nickle, and only that much because of King George's taxes.

4. Jay Z Posted: February 12, 2012 at 10:41 AM (#4059223)

I kinda doubt he was actually the first person in camp. Does he have his own big ring of keys so he can open everything up?

5. The cushions are crowded for Edmundo

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 11:36 AM (#4059236)

C'mon, Jay Z, he's Jeter! He walks up to the gate, sez "Open, Sesame" and presto, the gate opens, the lights come on, the whirlpool starts whiling and the peanuts start roasting.

6. Blastin Posted: February 12, 2012 at 11:46 AM (#4059241)

This apotheosis is dumb, but, hey, I'm glad he's putting the work in.

7. Cowboy Popup Posted: February 12, 2012 at 11:53 AM (#4059244)

I'll be gas cost a nickle

Gas cost $1.07 back in 93. Not quite a nickel, but still a sign of a different era.

8. Brian

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 12:02 PM (#4059247)

Snark aside (Is that possible where DJ is involved) this can't hurt.

9. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Moral Idiot

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 12:09 PM (#4059249)

Gas cost $1.07 back in 93. Not quite a nickel, but still a sign of a different era.

More like about $1.30, which in 2011 dollars is a little over two bucks, which in turn is more than it was as recently as 2008. Those answers.com answers aren't always the most reliable things out there.

And BTW when you adjust for inflation, we're paying about as much for gas today as we were in 1980. Not a different era at all.

10. Misirlou's got a busy day, he's wearing a vest Posted: February 12, 2012 at 12:16 PM (#4059258)

More like about $1.30, which in 2011 dollars is a little over two bucks, which in turn is more than it was as recently as 2008. Those answers.com answers aren't always the most reliable things out there.

I remember paying 89 cents in Georgia in 1999. And I'm positive it's true because I wrote it down in my trip log.

11. Justin 'The Cespedobear' T Posted: February 12, 2012 at 12:35 PM (#4059267)

You were trippin', that's true.

12. JE

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 01:13 PM (#4059279)

FTA:

The Core Four is down to the Core Two: Jeter and Mariano Rivera. It won’t be long before Jeter is the last one standing.

Does Mo have a say in this?

13. Hack Wilson Posted: February 12, 2012 at 01:20 PM (#4059281)

I remember paying .25/gallon in Kansas. I think they raised the price because of the incoming tornados.

14. JE

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 01:45 PM (#4059294)

Does anyone remember when a Twix bar cost a nickel?

15. akrasian Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:00 PM (#4059302)

And BTW when you adjust for inflation, we're paying about as much for gas today as we were in 1980

Thanks to the Iran crisis. For most of the '80s real gas prices (i.e. adjusted for inflation) were about half of what they are now.

16. cercopithecus aethiops Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:03 PM (#4059304)

I remember this one time when my dad asked the attendant to put two dollars worth of 'high test' in the old Pontiac Superchief, and the kid came back to say it only took $1.75 to fill it.

Yes, we were all wearing onions on our belts as was the custom at the time.

17. asinwreck Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:10 PM (#4059309)

Past an Interstellar Overdiving Jeter! (Long Player ~ No, Denbo player)

Given his range, I would have thought the reference would be "The Scarecrow."

18. Yclept Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:27 PM (#4059321)

I'll be[t] gas cost a nickle, and only that much because of King George's taxes

19. Tripon Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:28 PM (#4059322)

Thanks to the Iran crisis. For most of the '80s real gas prices (i.e. adjusted for inflation) were about half of what they are now.

The current crisis that is making oil prices high is whatever can justify high oil prices.

20. Howie Menckel Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:42 PM (#4059328)

I recall (perhaps even accurately) that gas was about 37-38 cents a gallon in the mid-1970s. We looked disdainfully at any station that had the nerve to charge 40 cents.

Do people under 40 even know about the gas rationing phase of that era, where you bought gas on alternating days, depending if your license plate number was "even" or "odd" ?

I imagine younger people might think that only happened during WW II or something...

21. Chip Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:44 PM (#4059329)

But is Jeter in the best shape of his life?

22. Something Other Posted: February 12, 2012 at 02:57 PM (#4059334)

I enjoy mocking Jeter as much as anyone alive does, but if I were in his shoes I'd be awfully tempted to spend the extra days rustling up runner up beauty queens down by the beach, not taking ground balls in Tampa.

On the other hand, it's asskissers like Jeter who no doubt believe that "looking busy" is meaningful activity, and spoils productive loafing for the rest of us.

23. Shock Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:03 PM (#4059336)

And BTW when you adjust for inflation, we're paying about as much for gas today as we were in 1980. Not a different era at all.

And less than 90% of the rest of the world. Last I checked most of your gas prices still worked out to less than $1/L, something I haven't seen in a decade.

24. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Moral Idiot

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:05 PM (#4059337)

Here's one that'll get me drummed out of the Plausibility Club:

Back in 1954 when we were driving between California and Arkansas, we went through a small town where, evidently, the owners of the two gas stations had lost their minds. On one side of the road was a sign that read "Regular, 4 cents a gallon." On the other side of the road a guy was standing at his own sign, crossing out "4 cents" and replacing it with "3 cents."

I can well believe it, since gas price wars were fairly commonplace back then. I remember driving across Texas in the late Summer of 1969 and finding gas for 21 cents a gallon, and the late 50's, the price wars in the East would often get it down to about 15 cents. In the DC area, up until the first oil crisis of 1973-74 you could always find stations scattered throughout the area, including downtown, where the price was between about 27 and 31 cents, which is about $1.60 to $1.80 today.

And the 74.9 cents I paid in the Northern Neck part of Virginia in early 1999 was the equivalent of 14 cents a gallon in 1965 dollars, or less than half of the average PPG back when I first started driving that year. Adjusted for inflation, I'm pretty sure that that 1999 price was the cheapest it's ever been at almost any point in history.

25. Red Menace Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:44 PM (#4059349)

where prospects such as outfielders Dante Bichette (19)

Is that really a Yankees prospect's name? If so he has to change it because that's confusing.

26. zachtoma Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:51 PM (#4059352)

I saw 99 cents as late as 2001. It might even have been 2002.

27. Tripon Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:55 PM (#4059354)

And less than 90% of the rest of the world. Last I checked most of your gas prices still worked out to less than $1/L, something I haven't seen in a decade.

That's probably because we don't add VAT taxes.

28. AROM Posted: February 12, 2012 at 03:57 PM (#4059357)

"where prospects such as outfielders Dante Bichette (19)

Is that really a Yankees prospect's name? If so he has to change it because that's confusing."

Not confusing as long as you know the Blake Street Bomber was Dante Bichette the 18th.

29. Dock Ellis on Acid

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:05 PM (#4059360)

Nah, they just need to add the "Jr" to his name. The son of the former Rockies slugger was the Yankee's first pick last year.

30. Swedish Chef Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:07 PM (#4059361)

I have a little calculation program running here that over the last few days have used 600 trillion CPU cycles, anybody want to take a stab at guessing what that would have cost to do in the seventies?

31. Pasta-diving Jeter (jmac66) Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:16 PM (#4059363)

where prospects such as outfielders Dante Bichette (19) and Mason Williams (20)

you left out the second name. Well??? Is that HIS son? That would classically be a gas.

32. Pasta-diving Jeter (jmac66) Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:19 PM (#4059364)

I looked it up:

"Williams, the son of former New England Patriot Derwin Williams, is an outstanding athlete..."

Who?

33. Sleepy supports unauthorized rambling Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:37 PM (#4059368)

Back in 1954 when we were driving between California and Arkansas, we went through a small town where, evidently, the owners of the two gas stations had lost their minds.

One of my favorite acts of insanity by a gas station owner was dropping prices down to 62 cents/gallon the day after McGwire hit #62, in 1998. Station was packed, with a line around the block, and I'm sure the owner lost some money, but it was awesome advertising.

34. Lassus Posted: February 12, 2012 at 04:46 PM (#4059373)

I was hoping the entire thread would be like the first six posts.

I am disappoint.

35. Red Menace Posted: February 12, 2012 at 05:11 PM (#4059386)

I did not know Bichette had a son. I look forward to the Reds acquiring him in 15 years.

36. Jim Wisinski

Posted: February 12, 2012 at 05:54 PM (#4059398)

"Ageless" is a strange choice of words considering that he had an OPS+ below 100 for the second straight year (the only seasons outside of his cup of coffee that he was below the league average) and for the first time ever was a negative in baserunning (by both Fangraphs and B-R). Both sites had him with his lowest WAR ever as well. He didn't have the sudden crash that some worried he would but all evidence shows that his performance continues to fade and the only reason he remains a productive player is that he had such a high level to decline from. He's aging quite normally.

37. Fancy Pants is braggadocious about his Handle Posted: February 12, 2012 at 07:03 PM (#4059429)

I have a little calculation program running here that over the last few days have used 600 trillion CPU cycles, anybody want to take a stab at guessing what that would have cost to do in the seventies?

Well, IBM assured me that the world only needs 5 computers total... so you wouldn't be able to do it at all anyway.

38. Fancy Pants is braggadocious about his Handle Posted: February 12, 2012 at 07:05 PM (#4059432)

Does anyone remember when a Twix bar cost a nickel?

I can remember when Twix was called Raider.

39. Baseball-Birthdays.com Posted: February 12, 2012 at 08:23 PM (#4059465)

I can well believe it, since gas price wars were fairly commonplace back then. I remember driving across Texas in the late Summer of 1969 and finding gas for 21 cents a gallon, and the late 50's, the price wars in the East would often get it down to about 15 cents. In the DC area, up until the first oil crisis of 1973-74 you could always find stations scattered throughout the area, including downtown, where the price was between about 27 and 31 cents, which is about $1.60 to $1.80 today.

There were two off-brand stations - Red Head and Scot - directly across University Blvd from one another in Adelphi, just west of the old Ledo restaurant, that got into a price war when I was maybe 18 (1971 or thereabouts)... I remember them getting as low as 17.9¢/gallon PLUS you got a free hot dog or coffee mug (depending on the station) with a fill-up.

Gas in Cleveland was below 90¢/gallon in late 2001 and early '02.

40. Bhaakon Posted: February 12, 2012 at 08:32 PM (#4059472)

That's probably because we don't add VAT taxes.

That, and in a lot of the world regular gas has an octane rating equal to or higher than most premium gas here. Regular gas in the US is swill that the rest of the world wouldn't put in its lawn mower.

41. Swedish Chef Posted: February 12, 2012 at 08:45 PM (#4059476)

VAT has nothing on special petrol taxes, which are ubiquitous in Europe. It's a very nice source of income for the state, dependable and almost impossible to dodge. Though I thought that they went a bit too far here when they started to extract VAT on top of the gas tax, that is: you pay tax on the tax. With the rise in the price of oil, the part of the price that is tax as fallen from 75% or so to something around half.

42. AROM Posted: February 12, 2012 at 08:49 PM (#4059479)

He's aging quite normally.

Yeah. Try and extrapolate the aging of the of the two remaining 1996 champs, based on their degree of decline so far. The result would be something like Jeter becoming a part timer in 2014, the last year of his contract, and Mariano River will still be closing games in the year 9725. And beyond.

43. Shock Posted: February 12, 2012 at 08:55 PM (#4059481)

That's probably because we don't add VAT taxes.

I don't quite understand. Are you saying the posted prices aren't including taxes, or that states in the US don't charge sales tax on fuel?

44. SteveF Posted: February 12, 2012 at 09:05 PM (#4059486)

Are you saying the posted prices aren't including taxes, or that states in the US don't charge sales tax on fuel?

He's saying neither. There are fuel taxes, these taxes are included in the posted prices, but the US doesn't use a VAT and our fuel taxes are overall much lower than in Europe. Given the relative size of the US and how spread out it is compared to a country in Western Europe, you can understand why the US might be more reluctant to heavily tax fuel consumption.

45. Misirlou's got a busy day, he's wearing a vest Posted: February 12, 2012 at 09:19 PM (#4059491)

Speaking of a tax on a tax, my wife gets small quarterly bonuses. We choose to put it directly into her 401K. However, not the entire amount goes into the 401K. 401K contributions are sheltered from federal income tax, but not payroll tax. So some small amount is deducted to pay those taxes. But that amount is no longer sheltered from income tax as it is not going directly into the 401K. So some more must come out to pay income tax on the money used to pay the payroll tax.

46. Bob Evans Posted: February 12, 2012 at 10:09 PM (#4059512)

Do people under 40 even know about the gas rationing phase of that era, where you bought gas on alternating days, depending if your license plate number was "even" or "odd" ?

I don't recall if that happened in my area, but I recall car commercials where in addition to the gas mileage, also advertised was the "cruising distance," which was defined as the distance you could travel on a tank of gas, WHICH was important if you thought there would be gas stations without gas (a realistic possibility) between points A and B.

47. Shock Posted: February 12, 2012 at 10:48 PM (#4059527)

He's saying neither. There are fuel taxes, these taxes are included in the posted prices

So what difference does it make? It's what you pay. I am confused.

The posted price, the price you pay, where I live (in Canada) is around $1.20/L right now. That's pretty cheap considering it will be much higher in the summer and it's much higher in other parts of the country and the world. Listening to Americans living just 200 miles away ##### and moan about the equivalent of $0.89/L is nauseating. The last time we saw gas prices that low I wasn't old enough to drive.

48. SteveF Posted: February 13, 2012 at 03:41 AM (#4059595)

Listening to Americans living just 200 miles away ##### and moan about the equivalent of $0.89/L is nauseating.

I'm sure he's of the opinion that gas prices are unjustifiably high for everyone, Canadians included.

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Sunday, February 12, 2012

Ageless Jeter first in camp — again — lending his guidance as he preps for stellar 2012

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