Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 669 - 20: The Legend Comes Home (Part 2)

Feeling the residual sensation from his shoulder, Lin Guanglai turned and looked at Aaron Judge beside him, noticing the same message was conveyed in the other's eyes.

The two young men just stared into each other's eyes, feeling a fire gradually igniting in their hearts.

Shortly after Derek Jeter left the player locker room, the match on that game day officially began:

Because it was a special gift day, the Yankees and Astros players all wore special pink jerseys, and multiple pieces of equipment including gloves, batting gloves, and protective gear were also replaced with pink ones.

Even the names on the players' back numbers were changed to their mothers' names—Major League Baseball has always done well regarding this aspect of human care. Next month on Father's Day, players will similarly switch to blue jerseys and equipment.

This matchday is not easy for the Yankees and Astros players:

As the game scheduled for yesterday was canceled due to weather, combined with Major League Baseball not having a season-end concentrated makeup rule like Nippon Professional Baseball, players of both teams had to engage in two games today: playing one in the morning, resting for half a day, and then having another face-off in the evening.

This is an essential part after joining Major League Baseball, and for the newbie Lin Guanglai, it is also a brand-new experience.

About a month and a half has passed since the official start of the 2017 season, and the records of various teams have also relatively stabilized: the New York Yankees currently lead the American League East Division and the entire American League with a record of 24 wins and 10 losses, surpassing the second place Baltimore Orioles and third place Boston Red Sox.

And their opponent today is equally strong:

Before the start of this season, the Houston Astros made extensive reinforcements to their team squad, starting by digging out starting pitcher Charlie Morton from Philadelphia, signing Josh Reddick and Aoki Naoki in the free agent market, followed by trading to acquire the Yankees' experienced catcher Brian McCann, and renewing ties with Carlos Beltran, who once served the team.

Plus, with their existing stars, including Jose Altuve, Dallas Keuchel, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman, George Springer, etc., the Astros achieved an outstanding record of 25 wins and 11 losses since the new season began.

With a comprehensive outstanding lineup, reasonable age structure, and superb competitive state of star players, they have become favorites in various betting odds—

The latest odds of 1 to 425 indicate that this star-studded Houston Astros team has already become the strongest contender for the world championship in the eyes of analysts, even surpassing the defending champion Chicago Cubs. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Moreover, according to recent revelations from Texas media, their general manager Jeff Luhnow is brewing a blockbuster trade that could shake the entire league, aiming to add a top pitcher to the starting rotation before the trade deadline.

This morning's game is the third of the four-game series between the Yankees and Astros. In the previous two matches, the Astros, thanks to their excellent batting lineup and ace pitcher Dallas Keuchel's top performance, secured two consecutive wins; and if the Yankees lose again in today's head-to-head battle, they will relinquish their current position at the top of the American League to the opponent—

On the important day of Derek Jeter's jersey retirement, such a result is something the Yankees players can't accept no matter what.

On this special day of the legend returning home, Yankee Stadium is packed: over fifty thousand home seats were sold out long ago; secondary market ticket prices have been speculated by scalpers to sky-high levels, even comparable to key playoff venue prices.

Among the fans on site, most are wearing that legendary number 2 jersey, paying tribute to their eternal captain in this way; of course, jerseys printed with Lin Guanglai's name, number 13, and Aaron Judge's number 99, have increasingly appeared in the Bronx stands. (Note: Yankees player's jerseys traditionally don't have names, but fan versions offer named options, specifically noted.)

As these two young players' performances in the new season become increasingly outstanding, the number of fans who love and support them becomes more and more, and many have already regarded them as the cornerstone of the team for the next 10-15 years.

Amid the deafening cheers of over fifty thousand home fans, New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter, accompanied by his wife and his career's best partner Mariano Rivera, walked into the center of the field once again, raising his hand to greet the fans.

Being a focal battle of the top American League teams, coupled with the gimmick of Jeter's jersey retirement ceremony, this game received national broadcast treatment from multiple media outlets including FOX and ESPN; meanwhile, in East Asian regions such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, there were also large numbers of fans paying attention to the game.

"Before Derek Jeter officially became captain of the New York Yankees in 2003, a total of 14 players had held this position, including Hall of Fame players like Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, who will forever be remembered—yet only Jeter can be forever called 'Captain' by Yankees fans."