This Man is Good at Baseball

by jscape2000 on Sep 14, 2008 5:51 PM EDT in Game Recap Comment 12 comments

Lou Gehrig was a couple months shy of his 36th birthday when he finished his final game in April of 1939.

Derek Jeter, for all his flaws, is a lapidary hitter.

I think the quality of the game is much higher today (Jeter wouldn't have been allowed to play in Gehrig's day), so my bias goes to modern baseball. But then again, if not for that Ruth fellow, Gehrig would be remembered as the greatest hitter of his era, in the argument for all time.

Some of my favorite Gehrig facts:

batted .340 career
slugged .600+ 9 times and .700+ 3 times
walked nearly twice as often as he struck out; in an era when walks weren't always appreciated Gehrig racked up 100+ walks in 11 of his 14 seasons as a regular
his 493 homers were second all time when he retired, but he racked up 534 doubles and 163 triples. If you saw Lou Gehrig get a hit, you were nearly as likely to see an extra base hit as a single.

If you had the choice, would you rather witness Gehrig's entire career or Jeter's?

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Lapidary

Polished and precise.

I learned a new word and I like it!

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. Herm Albright (1876 - 1944)

by Cbeck3 on Sep 14, 2008 7:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Also

“engrave-able or worthy of being engraved” as in, the highest quality gem.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."

by jscape2000 on Sep 14, 2008 8:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hmmm.... tough choice.

Gehrig vs. Jeter?
I would have to go with the Iron Horse because unless Jetes comes down with brain and skin cancer, along with leukemia and some other big disease, I don’t see how his retirement is gonna come close to Gehrig’s. That speech was one of the greatest of all time, even with the cheesy “luckiest man” line.

Remember when we were kids and we mixed sodas together and called them "suicides"? It was OK though, because Dr. Pepper was always there.

by bs.uf15bosox9bears23 on Sep 14, 2008 9:00 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

For all his flaws?

If only the Yanks had 24 other guys who were as flawed.

They’d have a pretty lapidary team if they did.

"Well, that kind of puts a damper on even a Yankees win."
-- Phil Rizzuto after hearing about the Pope's death

by matthaggs on Sep 14, 2008 9:36 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Well

defense, and patience at the plate, and since he hit his late 20s, power.
He’s still among the top players in the league, and probably the most consistent performers, even among Hall of Famers.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."

by jscape2000 on Sep 14, 2008 10:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Position

Gehrig was a better numbers player halfway because he was a first baseman, who naturally hit for better power numbers and the fact that he hit behind the best friggin’ baseball player that ever wore cleats. Asking for another Gehrig isn’t possible, please be very happy with Jeter and stop trying to compare him to a top 10 player, because he is not that. What he is is the best shortstop to ever wear pinstripes who is a first ballot HOF’mer who obviously isn’t Gehrig, but might be the best Yankee we’ve watched for the past 30 years.

by jdefelice2 on Sep 14, 2008 10:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

good question

my father-in-law always refers to two quotes when comparing baseball eras. How far we’ve come from Gehrig’s “Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth” to Rickey Henderson’s “Baseball is lucky to have me”.

anyway, it would be Gehrig for me. to watch him play every single day for 2100 games, with that incredible power would have been a treat. there was some book that came out in the last few years that said that Gehrig should hold the single season HR record. he accounted for ballpark size, pitching quality, talent pool, league averages, etc. and Gehrig came out on top.

but i’d take Ruth over either.

by Travis G on Sep 14, 2008 11:10 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Jeet's got

the stats, he’s got the rings, but he still winds up at the top of SI’s “most over-rated players” poll every year. i realize that those are anonymous players’ polls, and there is jealousy involved- but come on. What more does the guy have to do??

As to the question at hand— it’s not really a fair one because we have all gotten to see Jeter’s “lapidary-ness” first hand, even take it for granted sometimes, so of course the chance to see Gehrig’s game would be more intriguing. I mean, I love reading about New York during that time period, so to sit in the stands and take all in would be pretty amazing indeed. I just feel lucky to have witnessed a player or team that can even come close to being compared the teams and guys from back then.

The Jayfiss Report ...one fan's rants

by NumberSeven on Sep 15, 2008 1:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Most overrated

That is true about the SI poll, but Jeter also ranks near the top of the list of “Players you’d want to build your team around.”

I think Jeter is just one of those “love ’em or hate ’em” type players and that’s the extent of it. People who love the Yanks love Jeter and those who hate the Yanks hate Jeter.

But I’m with you on his overall greatness and we’ve really been spoiled watching this guy over the years. The very same argument can be made about Mo.

by anaconda on Sep 15, 2008 1:28 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

No question ...

Lou Gehrig hands down. I’m reading his bio by Eid, and he’s a remarkable fellow—not unlike Jeter. As for saying Jeter wouldn’t have been allowed to play in Gehrig’s day, I’m assuming because he’s half black? I contend that he could have and likely would have played and probably hit around .330.

Pitching back then wasn’t as good, and the deeper a team went through an oppositions rotation, the fatter their averages got. Gehrig would have been a monster regardless what era he played in, but his average wouldn’t have been .340 simply because of the bullpen specialization.

As for Jeter’s flaws, I really can only see one: He’s not a vocal leader. In fact, I’d suggest that he doesn’t go out of his way to lead. I’m not in the clubhouse and I don’t see how or if he exerts his personna with other teammates, but from what I’m allowed to see, he’s not demonstrative enough—especially with guys like Cano, Cabrera, Arod. Outside of that, Jeter’s an absolute joy to watch. He plays the game the way it was intended, and no doubt benefits from being successful on the world’s grandest stage.

"Baseball is the background music of my life." -George Will

by Ronster22 on Sep 15, 2008 2:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Lord, What an argument! Jeter or Gehrig

Man, he’s good, they’re both good.

Players at that level aren’t comparable, replaceable, duplicatable etc. etc.

Each is unique.

Dad and Grandpa said Lou was as good defensively as any firstbaseman. Like a ballet dancer around the bag!

Enjoy Jete. We will never see #4.

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. Herm Albright (1876 - 1944)

by Cbeck3 on Sep 15, 2008 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

My grandfather did Babe's books back in the 30s ...

and asked Babe who was the greatest next to him. Without hesitation, Babe told him Lou Gehrig. Not Ty Cobb, Jimmy Foxx, Williams, DiMaggio … Lou Gehrig!

I thought that was particularly interesting. My grandfather loved watching Lou Gehrig, and told me that Don Mattingly reminded him of Lou around first base.

"Baseball is the background music of my life." -George Will

by Ronster22 on Sep 16, 2008 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs