The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the AAA affiliate of the New York Yankees, lost both games of a double-header to the Syracuse Mets on Thursday. Jeter Downs started at third base and went 0-for-2 in the second game, but he provided a highlight that should remind you of the man he was named after.
During the bottom of the fifth, Mets catcher Austin Allen hit a high fly ball into foul territory. Downs ran and jumped near a tarp and crashed into the protective netting and into the stands. While Downs got the out Syracuse's Rylan Thomas was able to tag up and advance to second base while he was trying to untangle himself. Thomas would score the game-deciding run on a single a few minutes later. Still, what an effort.
Jumpin' like Jeter. 🤯
— SWB RailRiders (@swbrailriders) July 12, 2024
THIS PLAY IS WILD! Jeter Downs is living up to his namesake Derek Jeter by jumping over the tarp and into the crowd.#SCTop10 #EverythingMajor #Yankees pic.twitter.com/fkadJkzJZ5
Downs is hitting .267 with 10 home runs for the RailRiders this year and has been in the Yankees organization since December. He previously had stints with the Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox and Washington Nationals.
However you feel about the Yankees, there's nowhere else a Jeter should ever be. The idea that someone would go through the trouble of naming their child after Derek Jeter only to see them end up with the Boston Red Sox seems completely wrong.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jeter Downs Made a Derek Jeter-esque Play in Triple-A.
