It’s been reported this week that before Friday’s Opening Day game, Jorge Posada will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Posada is without a doubt one of the great Yankees of all-time and a return such as this is justified. Just not right now.
To put things in perspective, imagine the Yankees did something like this with Andy Pettitte last year. For those keeping score at home, he’s now slated to be our #4 pitcher by July at this rate. It just seems like the Yankees are jumping the gun a little bit. It’s almost like Posada’s getting short changed. Usually when a great Yank such as Posada retires or leaves for another club, his first return to the stadium is triumphant. And that’s because there’s a marinating period and when they do return it’s more than official that their career is over. Posada was taking hacks in a Yankees uniform just a short six months ago and was one of the key bats in our playoff run. He can undoubtedly still play in the bigs at some capacity right now. In fact, after seeing Pettitte come back this spring, anything can happen.
Posada made the respectable choice to hang it up rather than play for another organization. There are no open wounds and he should be welcomed Friday with an ovation for the books. Posada spent his career tossing lobs from home plate to the mound in Yankees Stadium. On Friday, that role will be reversed and instead of the pinstripes, he will likely be in street clothes. It’s something we all knew would happen eventually, it’s just seems a little too soon at this point.
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