There it was, the image of Jazz Chisholm - barely a month out of rehab for a strained oblique - lunging desperately at pitches, doddering like a George Romero zombie, with a Flash Flood Alert issued for his forehead, in the apex predator of Junk Sporting Events: Battle of the Network Stars Celebrity Boxing the MLB Home Run Derby. Shades of 2017, when Aaron Judge's torturous appearance tweaked his cabbage patch and nearly ruined his rookie season.
What was Jazz thinking, competing in a contest for leviathans? Was it hubris? Overconfidence? Magic mushrooms? Doesn't matter. The first round HR totals tell everything:
Junior Camiero 21Oneil Cruz 21
Bryon Buxton 20
Brett Rooker 17
Cal Raleigh 17
James Wood 16
Matt Olson 15
Jazz Chisholm 3
That's no typo. That's a three. Chisholm - a petite 5'11" and (supposedly) 180 - entered the contest on behalf of all who do their adult shopping at Gap For Kids. He exited - not quickly enough - as a future Derby punch line. Most noticeably, at the end of his godforsaken round, he took several pitches, square down the middle. Was he gassed? Was he drained? Or was he feeling something?
Maybe it's me. But I saw a professional athlete gasping for breath, and - considering the absurdity of his being there - not wanting to acknowledge an injury. Again, maybe I'm just being a sissy, but Chisholm - as his round came to an end - was clearly glad it was over. He seemed to be channeling Roberto "No Mass" Duran in his fight with Sugar Ray Leonard.
We won't hear anything for days. And if it turns out that he tweaked something, we'll probably read Epstein's diaries before the Yankees come clean about what happened.
Still, you gotta worry. If Chisholm goes down, dear God, the Yankees would go down with him. He is Aaron Judge's best protection, and he is the key to our infield defense. And today, we have to wonder: WTF was he thinking?
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12 comments:
I didn’t watch the damn thing, as I won’t watch the faux game tonight. Apparently, he embarrassed himself and the franchise, no doubt exacerbated his injury, and for what? Duque hit it on the head when he said the team will lie through its teeth about the whole affair. After all, lying is what they do best, certainly better at it than baseball. Fucking 🤡 show.
Not the sharpest pencil-thin player in the box . . . that fella . . . sorta reminds me of our current second baseman and . . . WAIT A SECOND !
nevermind
It's not so much what HE was thinking. He has delusions of grandeur. It's more what the fuck were the Yankees thinking to allow it.
Aaron Judge stated who he thought was his best protection:
"The bat New York Yankees star Aaron Judge will use in the MLB All-Star Game was showcased on social media on Monday as he prepared for the game at Truist Park. Judge’s bat featured a reference to a passage from the Bible — 2 Corinthians 5:7. The verse read, 'For we live by faith, not by sight.' "
"It’s one of my favorite Bible verses," he said, via the Daily Citizen. "[I] try to live my life by it, and always trust the Man above and what He’s got in store for us. We never know what’s around the corner, but if we have faith in Him, He will lead us in the right direction."
That bat could be banned by the mlb…..
@ Doug K
The MLB collective bargaining agreement (CBA) doesn't explicitly state that teams can prevent players from participating in the Home Run Derby. However, there are nuances that play into player participation and team control:
Player choice and team consideration: While the Home Run Derby is an individually elected or selected event, players can decline the invitation for reasons like injury or wanting rest. Teams might influence these decisions if they believe participation poses an injury risk or could negatively impact a player's second-half performance. For example, the Braves informed MLB that Ronald Acuña Jr. would not participate in the 2025 Home Run Derby due to a sore back.
Injury replacements: In the event a player drops out of the Home Run Derby before it starts, a replacement player is named by MLB. This highlights that player participation is not an absolute obligation and can be affected by factors like injuries.
In essence, while the CBA outlines benefits and terms for Home Run Derby participants, it doesn't give teams an outright veto power over a player's participation. However, practical considerations, such as a player's health or potential impact on their performance, can lead to players declining or teams influencing these decisions in consultation with the players.
Trump wouldn't allow it.
I'll modify -- What the fuck were the Yankees thinking to not do everything in their limited powers to dissuade Jazz from participating especially in the light of his health concerns that were so apparent as early as last week that it was used as the motivation to move Jazz to second base.
As Doug K. noted above, " He has delusions of grandeur". I personally think that his delusions are very much in the "clinical sense". He seems to my untrained mind to either be a "switch on" or "switch off" type of person. And yes, I understand that I'm not around him, only going by my impressions of what gets written about him. Helluva talent though...
Doubtless Yankee management was thinking that this would be good public relations and product advertising. It's got nothing to do with winning. As Hoss and I have been sayin' for a while now, it's about kicking the can further down the street to the bank. Not rocking the boat. The ship be sinkin', yes, but for now the Yankee Titanic still brings in lots of moolah, and they've found a very nice sweet spot where it doesn't take on too much water at once. HAL will milk it as long as he can, doesn't want to do anything to make it sink too soon.
Player’s asses must be kissed at all times no matter what!
Yeah, Kev, Jazz is definitely bat shit crazy. If he was any more so, the guys in the white coats would drive up and wisk him away. He probably tore up all the stitches holding his obliques together in that stupid home run derby. His swing will be fucked up for a month at least. Might even be out of action until the end of the year.
Duque, "best protection for Judge"? I don't know about that. He's never healthy for more than six weeks at a time, so that makes it hard to protect anybody.
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