CAPTAIN TAKES SPOT WITH FOX
Derek Jeter is ready for his next chapter.
During a Fox Super Bowl LVII pregame show, the network announced Jeter will join its MLB team, beginning in the 2023 season.
Jeter walked on set, hugging Michael Strahan and former Yankees teammates Alex Rodriguez, as he was welcomed into the Fox family.
“I never thought in my wildest dreams that we’ll be reunited,” Rodriguez said while holding a Fox branded pinstripe jersey with Jeter’s name. “But here we are, Derek to the Fox family.”
Jeter then responded, “I appreciate it.”
The two former Bombers are again on the same team after playing with each other from 2004-2014 in the Bronx.
They were good friends early in their careers, but they grew apart after comments Rodriguez made to Esquire magazine, when he credited teammates for the Yankees’ World Series run starting in 1996. Jeter said last year that the two had cleared things up.
Jeter will also join former Red Sox slugger David Ortiz on the Fox MLB team.
“I was on set at the World Series in Philly (last season), and Ortiz kept showing me his World Series ring,” Jeter said. “So I just figured I’d join the team now, so we could humble him a little bit.”
The MLB season begins on March 30, with all 30 teams in action on that day.
FIIFI FRIMPONG
SETBACK FOR ZION
Pelicans All-Star Zion Williamson has aggravated his previously injured right hamstring, extending the timeline for his return to “multiple weeks past All-Star break,” basketball operations chief David Griffin said Sunday.
Griffin said Williamson, who has been averaging 26 points per game this season, had progressed to the point where he was able to participate in 3-on-3 drills in practice and was on the court when he experienced his setback.
When asked how Williamson handled the setback emotionally, Griffin said, “it’s fair to say not terribly well because he was really diligent in his rehab.”
Williamson has missed 20 straight games since his initial hamstring injury on Jan. 2. If he misses the first two weeks after the All-Star break, he will have been out at least 27 games.
SCHEFFLER TAKES PHOENIX
Scottie Scheffler successfully defended his WM Phoenix Open title Sunday at TPC Scottsdale to regain the No. 1 spot in the world.
Scheffler closed with a 6-under 65 to beat Nick Taylor by two strokes on the Stadium Course. The 26-year-old Texan took the No. 1 ranking from Rory McIlroy with his fifth PGA Tour victory.
Last year, Scheffler beat Patrick Cantlay in a playoff for his first tour title.