'That's Derek Jeter!' The Captain surprises kids, parents at PLAY BALL event
Mandy Bell
@MandyBell02MIAMI -- More than 100 local kids gathered to play baseball together on Saturday afternoon, many of whom were born after Hall of Famer Derek Jeter laced up his cleats for the final time. But that didn’t matter. When the kids were crossing home plate, they knew whose hand they were high-fiving.
Jeter joined his Turn 2 Foundation and Major League Baseball’s PLAY BALL to host kids from the Boys & Girls Club of Miami-Dade and Broward County for a fun afternoon of baseball and softball activities. This marked the first time that the Turn 2 Foundation partnered with MLB to host an event.
“I think collaboration is the key,” Jeter said. “I think baseball still is the greatest sport in the world. And having the support of Major League Baseball down here in Miami … we get a chance to give back from the foundation’s point of view down here where I live.”
What could’ve just been a normal afternoon on a baseball field with some friends became a moment that these kids (and their parents) will never forget. Each age group broke up into stations, practicing their footwork, baserunning, hitting, fielding and catching. Suddenly, everything stopped.
In the middle of the action, a 14-time All-Star, five-time Gold Glover and five-time Silver Slugger Jeter came walking down the left-field line. Every head on the field turned. Every phone in the stands was flipped to its camera setting. Jeter was here to join in on the fun.
He immediately started hopping from station to station, watching these kids learn the fundamentals of a game he’s loved his entire life.
"It’s just fun to see kids, especially, get introduced to baseball at such a young age in a fun way,” Turn 2 Foundation president Sharlee Jeter said. “Like I’ve never really seen it done this way expect when MLB does these Play Ball clinics. So, it’s just a good feeling. It’s nice to see them out here just laughing and having a good time.”
Jeter stood back and let Coach Ballgame, the PLAY BALL youth ambassador for MLB, and the Atlantis University baseball team handle most of the coaching duties, while he grinned from ear-to-ear. Jeter laughed at Coach Ballgame’s funny instructions. He joked with kids about their heavy-weight necklaces and how tiring it is to run the bases. He high-fived every kid on the field. And he even fielded questions from the participants at the end of the event.
“It’s great to have them hear from someone else other than their parents, their families,” MLB’s vice president of baseball and softball development David James said. “There was a couple of questions, ‘Will these kids know who he is?’ They do know who he is. The parents were telling their kids, ‘That’s Derek Jeter.’ … These are lifelong memories and this is how we do fandom.”
Jeter offered some advice that pertained to more than just sports. He answered questions about his career and honored all the parents who were sitting in the stands, supporting their children. After a group photo with Jeter and his sister, Sharlee, the Atlantis University baseball team helped MLB out one last time. Each coach filled their arms with a bat and ball set, which is given out to every participant in each PLAY BALL event throughout the year. Kids lined up and grabbed their sets one by one in their new PLAY BALL T-shirts and ran to their families in the stands.
As one participant, Jay, left the field, he said that this was one of the best experiences he’s ever had.
“It really is awesome,” Jeter said. “I mean, you start talking about kids at this age. Who knows if any of them will be playing baseball five years from now. The ultimate goal is for them to have a good time, you introduce them to the game and maybe a few of them fall in love with it. So I think that’s the point of it.”