Derek Jeter trolls David Ortiz with classic Yankees-Red Sox game
The best rivalry in baseball today reaches a boiling point in Game 5 of the National League Division Series, as the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres collide in Chavez Ravine on Friday night. Before this epic California clash got underway, though, New York Yankees icon and Fox Sports analyst Derek Jeter brought back into focus the greatest MLB conflict of all-time.
And he did so at the expense of his former adversary and current colleague, Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz. While making the point that players tend to fill different roles in a deciding playoff matchup, Jeter referenced the classic Game 7 of the 2003 American League Championship Series between the Yankees and Red Sox.
He highlighted how starting pitcher Mike Mussina worked out of the bullpen as a reliever for three innings, which enabled New York to hang around long enough to overcome a 4-0 deficit. The team clawed its way back, and ultimately clinched the series on an Aaron Bone walk-off home run in extra innings. Fox played the clip of the moment that took years off Sox fans' lives, much to the chagrin of Ortiz.
Derek Jeter enacted his revenge for the 2004 ALCS taunting that Big Papi subjected him to in their first year working together in 2023. Given David Ortiz's mischievous on-air nature, he is not likely to let his fellow Hall of Famer sneak in a couple of Boston jabs without retaliating.
Shenanigans and glory-day reminiscing notwithstanding, Jeter's point stands. Mussina tossed three scoreless innings of two-hit ball in what was his first time entering an MLB game out of the pen. He exemplified impressive composure and did not let a change of circumstance faze him. There is a possibility a starter is given the same opportunity to shine in Game 5 of the 2024 NLDS.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts could employ Jack Flaherty as a reliever if he deems the right-hander to be the team's best hope at vanquishing the Padres. Michael King is also itching to come in for San Diego. Madison Bumgarner's relief outing in a winner-take-all Game 7 in the 2014 World Series solidified his status as an all-time great postseason performer, and there is a chance that Dodger Stadium witnesses its own legendary showing on Friday.
How ever this final NLDS battle shakes out, the baseball-watching world can only hope for the same drama that filled the old Yankee Stadium more than 20 years ago.