When David Ortiz retires in a couple years (maybe 10), I hope they don’t give him a victory tour.
Surely he deserves gifts and ovations at every park, long ceremonies and jersey patches. Ortiz is the best designated hitter in the history of the game, the lead author of the greatest comeback in sports and the winner of three World Series championships for a franchise that hadn’t had one since the days of Woodrow Wilson. Add in the fact that he has been an icon for the city of Boston — most notably his “Our (bleeping) city” speech after the Boston Marathon bombings last year — and it’s natural that he be on a plane with Mariano Rivera or Derek Jeter.
But I hope he doesn’t get one. I hope nobody does ever again.
Despite all the bias of a die-hard Red Sox fan, I love Derek Jeter. How can you not? Particularly in a time when Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson jam the news feeds, his quiet leadership and excellence are worth recognition.
But the symbolism of Jeter as the essence of the Yankees’ franchise is precisely the problem with his victory tour. Why do we take the glue of the team, the captain, “Mr. Team Player,” and separate him from the club?
In the last four days, the MLB Instagram account has posted a staggering 34 pictures of or about Derek Jeter (as of press time). His current teammates are only included or mentioned in two of them. This is the type of isolation that has happened all season, wherever Jeter goes.
While Jeter’s “#2” jersey has been the highest-selling jersey in the league, his team has floundered out of playoff contention. Why lift up the man who represents a losing team? Why celebrate the captain of a sinking ship? Everything Jeter has done to be a symbol of unity and teamwork is unraveled as he stands alone to a standing ovation.
This contradiction is not the only harmful aspect of the victory tour. Sports writers and anchors have praised Jeter and Rivera specifically for their ability to keep their noses clean. Neither has ever been involved in the types of off-the-field issues all too prevalent in sports today. This begs the question: Is staying out of legal or financial trouble so rare that we lift these stars above the rest?
Jeter has been a great role model, but I don’t want to tell my kids 20 years from now about the time we had a parade for a player because he didn’t assault his wife or rob a store.
Finally, Jeter’s ability and willingness to call his own retirement from a year out is problematic to me. Peyton Manning gave an interview last year and stated that he would play as hard as he could until the moment he could not or would not, and then he would retire — not a single game before or after. This is the mentality all athletes should take to the professional field.
If Jeter knew at the beginning of the season that he wanted to retire, one of two things is probably true. One, he was already ready to retire, but he’s wants to soak up one last season at the expense of his team. (This argument can be made, given that Jeter had a poor .616 OPS and played subpar defense.) Or, two, he will finish the season with good games left in him and do New York just as much harm by walking away.
As soon as a player knows he can no longer be helpful to the team, he should be done.
Rivera’s tearful exit left me emotionally moved, and I stood and cheered in Fenway Park alongside Yankees and Red Sox fans Sunday for Jeter in his last at-bats as a big leaguer. They were powerful moments for tremendous players that deserved them.
But why spend a season separating the one from the team? Let’s hope weekly gifts and celebrations don’t become commonplace and keeping a clean off-field reputation does. Let’s cheer for the guys that give everything they have and then retire. Let’s end victory tours.
Caleb Miller ’16 can be reached at caleb_miller@brown.edu.
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