You're at Citi Field When Jeter Makes History Better

[Guest Edgy DC]

Because we need to literally worship the ground on which he walks.

http://i1.nyt.com/images/misc/nytlogo379x64.gif After 3,000, Even Dirt Will Sell By RICHARD SANDOMIR Published: June 21, 2011 Derek Jeter�s 3,000th hit will be a cause for celebration, marketing and � not least of all � digging up dirt. After the game, a groundskeeper will tote a shovel and bucket onto the field to scoop five gallons of dirt from the batter�s box and shortstop�s patch. In baseball�s version of preserving the chain of evidence, the bucket will be sealed with tape and verified as the dirt beneath Jeter�s feet with tamper-proof holograms. �It will be scooped in our presence,� said Cosmo Lubrano, an authenticator for Major League Baseball who would prove the dirt�s veracity if the 3,000th hit occurs at Yankee Stadium as he follows a bucket-carrying groundskeeper, probably Dan Cunningham. �We�re there as a witness.� The dirt � from Yankee Stadium if all goes perfectly, but from some ballpark, perhaps Citi Field July 1 to 3 � will find its way into a vast and lucrative universe of celebrity memorabilia and collectibles, much of it orchestrated by a company named Steiner Sports. Tablespoonfuls of the dirt will be poured into capsules to dangle on key chains; ladled into disks to be framed with photographs of the hit (in what is called a dirt collage); and glued into the interlocking NY carved into commemorative bats. �That bucket of dirt will go a long way,� said Brandon Steiner, the chairman of Steiner Sports, who has a memorabilia partnership with the Yankees and a marketing deal with Jeter. The selling of Jeter�s historic hit � he is six short of 3,000 as he waits to heal from a calf strain � actually has its own campaign name: �DJ 3K,� and a logo that will appear on much of the merchandise capitalizing on his achievement. It is quite a list: T-shirts, caps, jerseys, bobbleheads, decals, cellphone skins, wall murals, patches, bats, balls, license plates and necklaces made by two dozen M.L.B. licensees. Modell�s, the venerable New York sports goods chain, is not going to miss out. The chain�s Times Square location will stay open past its midnight or 1 a.m. closing time as long as fans keep shopping on the day or night of the accomplishment. �We�re locked and loaded,� said Mitchell Modell, the chief executive of Modell�s. The ingenious and sometimes crass rush to cash in on sports achievements is hardly new, whether it focuses on championship teams or great players. Each new chapter, however, adds some new flourish in the grab for nostalgia dollars, whether in the form of a new product or a different commercial approach. The so-called �hot market� for Jeter�s 3,000th hit � the player�s equivalent of a World Series championship � will test his sky-high popularity during a season in which he is batting .260. �I�ve been here for 13 years,� said Howard Smith, the senior vice president for licensing of Major League Baseball. �And other than the home run race in 1998, this is the most significant business we�ve done for a hot market for a player.� Warehouses of some of the biggest licensees, like Majestic and New Era, which are accustomed to supplying stores with World Series merchandise, are ready to deliver their Jeter material to retailers. Modell�s distribution center in the Bronx is preparing to ship to its 94 New York and New Jersey stores. �Between the New York market and how revered Jeter is, it�s going to be a huge event,� said Michael Johnson, a spokesman for Majestic, which is producing an array of jerseys and T-shirts. And already, John Killen, the president of Wincraft, one of the 24 licensees, said he has booked substantial business for his Jeter flags, lanyards, pennants, travel mugs, pins and magnets. Historic Yankee dirt �Short of someone of Jeter�s caliber retiring, you won�t get an event bigger than this,� he said. And, Jeter will get a cut of some of it. For all the licensed products sold by the likes of Rawlings, Nike, Majestic, Louisville Slugger, Fathead and New Era, he will share royalties with M.L.B. and the players� union; he will also share in the sale of products sold under his deal with Steiner Sports. Already, he has designated proceeds from the sale of a silicone bracelet to benefit his Turn 2 Foundation. Everything Jeter touches or wears as he pursues his 3,000th hit carries value. So will the bases he steps on. In deciding what to provide for sale, Jeter controls his cleats, wristbands, bats and batting gloves. The Yankees control what they provide to him, like his uniform, warm-up jackets, and caps, as well as the dirt, the bases and the pitching rubber. And Steiner, through his deals with the Yankees and Jeter, can sell whatever he gets. Jeter will probably ask to keep things � perhaps the most valuable items like the 3,000th hit ball � for himself. �When the time comes,� said the Yankees� president, Randy Levine, �we�ll sit down with Derek and his representatives and reach a mutual accommodation that�s good for everybody.� Steiner said that he has already collected the jersey, batting gloves and cleats Jeter wore when he got his 2,994th hit on June 13; Steiner expects to get those items, and his cap, for every hit through 3,000. The dirt and bases (which could be switched every inning) will be added to the bounty only for hit No. 3,000. Jeter is not likely to provide an extra bonanza by changing into a new game-perspired jersey every inning. �That wouldn�t be Jeter-like,� Steiner said. �He�d never wear 10 jerseys in a game. Maybe two.� Steiner also plans to sell the official lineup card, and replicas of it, and package fans� ticket stubs into collectibles. He also hopes to develop photographs of the hit at Yankee Stadium to sell before fans leave. �This won�t be the circus coming to town,� Steiner said. Smith, the M.L.B. executive, said Jeter approached the marketing with some trepidation, fearing that it might seem all too much. Smith said that during a recent meeting with Jeter and his agent, Casey Close, �I explained how appropriate it was for us to market these products. And Derek is like, �I don�t want to take the limelight�; he felt weird about it. I said, �It�s appropriate to be recognized; you�re a generational athlete.� � Jeter�s return is scheduled for June 29, when the Yankees play the second game of a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers at home, followed by trips to Flushing and Cleveland, before returning home to play Tampa Bay ahead of the All-Star Game. �We have to be ready,� said Lubrano, the Yankee Stadium authenticator. �He could go 5 for 5.�

[metirish]

There's nothing that Steiner Sports won't sell , crooks.

[Guest Edgy DC]

And there's nothing that would redeem Fred Wilpon faster in some eyes than him saying "Get that fucking shovel off of my field."

[Ceetar]

Edgy DC wrote: And there's nothing that would redeem Fred Wilpon faster in some eyes than him saying "Get that fucking shovel off of my field."

He should file a suit for theft afterwards.

[Guest Edgy DC]

�That wouldn�t be Jeter-like,� Steiner said. �He�d never wear 10 jerseys in a game. Maybe two.�

This is what always gets me about the Jeter-touters. He's cynical in the same way as everybody else. I can deal with that. It's the way the world is. But I'm supposed to celebrate that he's the same but in moderation --- as measured out in some careful PR-calibrated moderation? "He'd never drown six kittens. Maybe one. One a week, in the privacy of his home. That's it. Unless there's a party or something."

[Guest metsguyinmichigan]

Alas, no deal with Charmin to put the logo on TP. I could get behind that!

[batmagadanleadoff]

Edgy DC wrote: And there's nothing that would redeem Fred Wilpon faster in some eyes than him saying "Get that fucking shovel off of my field."

Fred'll probably just ask for his cut of the dirt.

It's' not like he couldn't use the money.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Edgy DC wrote: And there's nothing that would redeem Fred Wilpon faster in some eyes than him saying "Get that fucking shovel off of my field." Fred'll probably just ask for his cut of the dirt. It's' not like he couldn't use the money.

This.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Well, yeah, it's not like I actually anticipate Jeter getting anything but a red carpet.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Derek Jeter is now not expected to play at CitiField. Yankee blogger acknowledges (1) the injury is a lie, and (2) "It's not hurting the Yankees."

"It's all good," he claims. He congratulates them on their savvy. Can you dig?

[Ceetar]

Coming back Monday..is he ducking the drama?

I heard Michael Kay driving home. They were debating the whole Jeter probably shouldn't be leading off thing. Michael Kay insisted that you can't do that to him, etc etc, no one knows how to win like he does, he always thinks he's the best player on the field. La Greca tried to counter with shouldn't he be a leader and do what's best for the team, if he's never going to accept he's _not_ the best won't this just cause drama for years?

I'm pretty sure Kay's just upset that with the injury being in Jeter's knee, he can't get down on them.

[Guest themetfairy]

They're marketing Captain Intangibles' rehab in Trenton to the max - selling tickets like hotcakes.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I'd rather have hotcakes.

[Ceetar]

Come watch The Great Derek Jeter ground out softly to shortstop against minor leaguers.

[metsmarathon]

Ceetar wrote: Coming back Monday..is he ducking the drama? I heard Michael Kay driving home. They were debating the whole Jeter probably shouldn't be leading off thing. Michael Kay insisted that you can't do that to him, etc etc, no one knows how to win like he does, he always thinks he's the best player on the field. La Greca tried to counter with shouldn't he be a leader and do what's best for the team, if he's never going to accept he's _not_ the best won't this just cause drama for years? I'm pretty sure Kay's just upset that with the injury being in Jeter's knee, he can't get down on them.

i was waiting for la greca to counter with the leader angle, but what he really should have said is that, if bumping derek jeter down to the 9-hole for the good of the team would negatively affect him in any way, then the derek jeter we've been led to believe in is a lie.

but we've known that for years, ever since they traded for arod.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Oh, I think we knew it before then.

The amount of drama over telling big shot highly paid ballplayers they have to play/bat where their relative performance suggests they belong just blows my mind. If that's the way it is for managers, that's the way it is, but I see no reason why fans and writers should endorse it. It's pathetic. Laughable.

When Derek Bell flipped out after being told that his performance in spring training had indicated he was no longer the Pirates' best option for right field, crying that nobody told him there would be a competition, somebody posted at the MOFo, "Derek, it's the Major Leagues."

I would suggest that the same truth holds for all men named Derek.

[Ceetar]

Francesa complained a a bunch too. Nunez's defense or something. I saw the throwing error yesterday. Jeter doesn't get to it and it goes into to CF. the guy's on first, maybe second, base anyway. But Jeter's way doesn't look bad, so let's give him a gold glove and rave about his sure hands.

I think the Derek Bell thing is a little more unfair, I know it's "The Major Leagues" but Spring Training doesn't exactly count, and guys do different things when they think they're guarenteed a job. But still


Posada flipped out too. Pettitte's a cheater that was always about himself/family more than the team, like when he left to play in Houston and last year when he left the Yankees hanging for months on his decision to retire or not. Rivera's probably the best guy of their 'core', and he probably cheated too.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Ceetar wrote: I think the Derek Bell thing is a little more unfair, I know it's "The Major Leagues" but Spring Training doesn't exactly count, and guys do different things when they think they're guarenteed a job. But still

Bell was coming off a season where he went .173 / .287 / .288 // .576. Should somebody really be obliged to tell him he's playing for his life?* It's just the way the world works.

*I have review this afternoon at four. Four o'clock on a Friday before a holiday weekend(!) You bet your ass I know my job's on the line.

[Ceetar]

Edgy DC wrote: Ceetar wrote: I think the Derek Bell thing is a little more unfair, I know it's "The Major Leagues" but Spring Training doesn't exactly count, and guys do different things when they think they're guarenteed a job. But still Bell was coming off a season where he went .173 / .287 / .288 // .576. Should somebody really be obliged to tell him he's playing for his life?* It's just the way the world works. *I have review this afternoon at four. Four o'clock on a Friday before a holiday weekend(!) You bet your ass I know my job's on the line.

ballplayers are dumb.

He should've seen it coming obviously. And he probably wouldn't have suddenly become good in Spring if he was 'trying' nor would it necessarily have prompted them to NOT make the decision they were probably set on making anyway.

But ballplayers also always seem to think the bad is a fluke and they're god's gift and all that. Probably wasn't even thinking 'i sucked last year, i should kick it in gear'. probably thought "I'm awesome, i'm the RFer, let's get in shape"

[Frayed Knot]

Yanx, btw, are doing fine (12-3) in Jeter's absence, just like they survived quite nicely as a team in the other time they went without his presence (they were 26-12 while he sat out with a busted up shoulder in 2003), and just as they were when they were essentially without his bat due to a month-long slump he had in April/May 2004 (Yanx were 17-13 while he was hitting .177). The only difference now is that people realize he's closer to the end than the beginning and so it's semi-OK to talk about it.

It's like after CBS fired Jimmy the Greek for basically being an idiot and then the media, who had been covering him for years while passing him off as not just a tout but some kind of seer, suddenly "discovered" that the accuracy of his picks were about the same as if you based them on whether your dog went for the blue or yellow water dish first. They all knew (or certainly should have known) that he had no such mystic powers in the first place but to say so while he was still on the top of the top rated football lead-in show was considered in bad taste (although I don't know why) and, perhaps more importantly, would have limited access and contacts to that entire show so best to simply gloss over it.
The Sunday NYTimes Magazine did a cover story on Jeter last week dealing with all these issues: declining production, facing icons, aging ballplayers, large contracts, etc., but had to do so without media access to Yanqui Stadium because the team refused to issue them credentials once they found out the topic of the story.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

I think I would be overcome with a wave of nausea which would cause me to grab the nearest Yankee hat so I could use it as a barf bag.