The current and former captains of the New York Yankees seem to be at odds — even if they haven’t said so directly.
Two days after Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge called the World Baseball Classic bigger than the World Series, Derek Jeter came back with a pointed jab.
“I think the people that say it’s bigger than the World Series never played in a World Series,” Jeter, 51, said on Tuesday, March 17, during FS1’s pregame coverage of the WBC championship game between the United States and Venezuela.
To be fair, Judge, 33, has played in one World Series. The Yankees lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2024 Fall Classic in five games, with Judge’s infamous dropped ball in center field opening the floodgates for the Dodgers to win the clinching game.
“I think people are always trying to compare what’s bigger,” Jeter continued. “It’s completely different. When you retire, they ask, ‘How many championships did you win?’ for a reason. Playing in a World Series, going through a 162-game schedule plus the postseason, is difficult to do.”
Jeter won five World Series championships in his time with the Yankees and played in an additional two. Since the first-ballot Hall of Famer retired in 2014, however, New York has reached the World Series just once.
Judge came up with the Yankees in 2016, bursting onto the scene with 52 home runs in his rookie season the next year.
“I’ll say, it’s been bigger,” Judge told reporters Sunday of the WBC. “The World Series I was in versus the crowd here and the one we had against Mexico, it’s bigger and better than the World Series.
He added, “The passion that these fans have representing their country, representing some of their favorite players, there’s nothing like it.”
Though Jeter was famous during his career for approaching each season with a World-Series-or-bust mentality, he was careful on Tuesday to clarify that he does not mean to diminish the impact of the WBC.
“Doesn’t take anything away from the WBC,” he said. “It is an absolute honor, I’ve done it a couple of times, it’s an honor to wear the USA across your chest. How this tournament has grown over the last 20 years is impressive.”
“This really unites fans,” Jeter added. “I remember playing for the US, running into Boston and them telling me, ‘Hey, I hate the Yankees, but I’m going to enjoy rooting for you the next two weeks.’ So it doesn’t take anything away from the WBC [but] it’s completely different.”
