Jim Leyritz
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James Joseph Leyritz (born December 27, 1963) is an American former professional
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
and
infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...
. In his 11-year
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) career, Leyritz played for the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
, Anaheim Angels, Texas Rangers,
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
,
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
, and
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
. With the Yankees, Leyritz was a member of the and 1999 World Series championships, both over the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
.


Early years

Leyritz grew up in Anderson Township, Hamilton County, Ohio with his parents, brother, and sister, and attended Turpin High School in
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
. He then attended Middle Georgia College, a
junior college A junior college is a type of post-secondary institution that offers vocational and academic training that is designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations or support roles in professions such as engineering, a ...
in
Cochran, Georgia Cochran is a city in Bleckley County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 5,026. The city is the county seat of Bleckley County. Cochran is named for Judge Arthur E. Cochran and was incorporated on Marc ...
, before transferring to the
University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...
. At Kentucky, Leyritz played
college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...
for the Kentucky Wildcats baseball team.


Baseball career

After playing the 1985 season for the
Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30, ...
, Leyritz went undrafted by
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB), but was signed as a free agent by the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
. Leyritz made his MLB debut for the Yankees on June 8, 1990. His playing days were highlighted by a pair of memorable postseason
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
s he hit with the Yankees in 1995 and 1996 in comeback wins. In Game 2 of the 1995 American League Division Series against the
Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...
at
Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...
, in rainy conditions, Leyritz hit a walk-off two-run home run to right-center field in the 15th
inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...
, giving the Yankees a 7–5 victory and a two-games-to-none lead in the best-of-five series. The home run was surrendered by Mariners pitcher Tim Belcher, who was famously involved in a
profanity Profanity, also known as swearing, cursing, or cussing, is the usage of notionally word taboo, offensive words for a variety of purposes, including to demonstrate disrespect or negativity, to relieve pain, to express a strong emotion (such a ...
-laced incident with a cameraman covering him walking through the tunnel to the clubhouse afterwards. The best known of Leyritz's playoff heroics occurred in Game 4 of the
1996 World Series The 1996 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1996 Major League Baseball season, 1996 season. The 92nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (bas ...
against the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
at
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, often referred to as Fulton County Stadium and originally named Atlanta Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The stadium was home of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseb ...
. In the series, the Yankees trailed the Braves two games to one, and in Game 4, the Yankees trailed, 6–0, after five innings. The Yankees rallied for three runs in the 6th inning, setting the stage for Leyritz in the 8th inning. Facing Atlanta closer
Mark Wohlers Mark Edward Wohlers (born January 23, 1970) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A right-handed, right-hander, he played all or parts of 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, exclusively as a relief pitcher. He is best known for hi ...
with one
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and two runners on base, Leyritz hit a three-run home run to left field to tie the game and cap the improbable Yankee comeback. "In the air to left field... back, at the track, at the wall, we are tied!" said announcer
Joe Buck Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster for ESPN. The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for Fox's Nati ...
on national television. The Yankees eventually won the game, 8–6, in 10 innings to tie the series. In Game 5, Leyritz caught pitchers
Andy Pettitte Andrew Eugene Pettitte (; born June 15, 1972) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the New York Yankees. He also pitched for the Houston Astros. Pettitte won fiv ...
and John Wetteland for a 1–0
shutout In team sports, a shutout (North American English, US) or clean sheet (Commonwealth English, UK) is a game in which the losing team fails to score. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketba ...
, and the Yankees clinched their championship with a victory in Game 6. After the 1996 season, the Yankees traded Leyritz to the Anaheim Angels for two players to be named later (PTBNL): minor leaguers Jeremy Blevins and Ryan Kane. On July 29, 1997, the Angels traded Leyritz and a PTBNL (minor leaguer Rob Sasser) to the Texas Rangers for Ken Hill. After the season, the Rangers traded Leyritz to the
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
with Damon Buford for Mark Brandenburg, Bill Haselman, and
Aaron Sele Aaron Helmer Sele (born June 25, 1970) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) right-handed pitcher. Sele debuted with the Boston Red Sox in 1993. He was traded to the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers after the 1997 season and wa ...
. On June 20, 1998, the Red Sox traded Leyritz with Ethan Faggett to the
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
for Carlos Reyes, Mandy Romero and Darío Veras. Leyritz had a number of unlikely playoff home runs and clutch hits that season. The most dramatic of them came in Game 2 of the
National League Division Series In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series (NLDS) determines which two teams from the National League will advance to the National League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring e ...
against
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
pitcher Billy Wagner. Leyritz hit an opposite-field game-tying home run off the right field
foul pole Foul may refer to: __NOTOC__ In sports * Foul (sports), an unfair or illegal act during a sports competition, including: ** Foul (association football), in football (soccer) ** Professional foul, in football (soccer) or rugby ** Foul (basketba ...
in the top of the 9th inning. However, the Astros won the game in the bottom half of the inning. In Game 3, Leyritz hit the eventual game-winning home run against Scott Elarton in the bottom of the 7th inning that broke a 1–1 tie. Overall, Leyritz batted .400 with three home runs and five
runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...
in that series. Leyritz's Padres were matched against his former team, the Yankees, in the
1998 World Series The 1998 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1998 season. The 94th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion New York Yankees and the National ...
. During player introductions in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium, Leyritz received a standing ovation from the fans who remembered his heroics from two years earlier. He went hitless in ten
at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...
s in a four-game Yankees sweep. On July 31, 1999, the Padres traded Leyritz to the Yankees for Geraldo Padua. The Yankees advanced to the 1999 World Series, and in Game 4, in the bottom of the 8th inning, Leyritz hit a solo home run to extend the Yankees' lead to 4–1 and help them complete a sweep of the Braves to win a championship.
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commentator
Bob Costas Robert Quinlan Costas (born March 22, 1952) is an American sportscaster who is known for his long tenure with NBC Sports, from 1980 through 2019. He has received 28 Emmy awards for his work and was the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games from ...
remarked incredulously about Leyritz after the home run, "You could send this guy to a resort in the spring and summer, as long as he comes back in October." That home run was the last one to be hit in the 1990s. On June 20, 2000, the Yankees traded Leyritz to the
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
for José Vizcaíno and cash. Although he was traded midway during the 2000 season before the Yankees won their third straight World Series title and fourth in five seasons, Leyritz was awarded his third World Series ring by the Yankees. Leyritz became a free agent after the 2000 season, and signed in 2001 with the
Newark Bears The Newark Bears were an American independent league professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They were a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and, later, the Canadian American Association of Professional Bas ...
of the independent Atlantic League. His performance there led to a contract with the Padres, who assigned him to AAA. He did not receive a call-up to the Major Leagues. Leyritz served as a pinch-hitter toward the end of his career. He batted and threw right-handed exclusively in the majors, but was known to switch-hit in the minor leagues.


Amphetamine use

On June 8, 2006, while doing an interview on the Opie and Anthony show on XM Satellite Radio, Leyritz admitted to using
amphetamines Substituted amphetamines, or simply amphetamines, are a chemical class, class of compounds based upon the amphetamine structure; it includes all derivative (chemistry), derivative compounds which are formed by replacing, or substitution reacti ...
during his playing career when they were not against the rules. The statement came in the wake of an admission by pitcher
Jason Grimsley Jason Alan Grimsley (born August 7, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for seven teams during a 15-year career. He was a member of both the 1999 and 2000 World Series champion New York Yankees. Major Leag ...
that he used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career.


Idiosyncrasies at the plate

Leyritz was known for using an unusual stance which involved keeping his front leg (left leg) straight and stiff while his back leg (right leg) behind him considerably bent at the knee. He did this while circling his bat around behind his head, waiting for the pitch. After each pitch that Leyritz did not put into play or strike out on, he grabbed the bat by its center and twirled it at his hip like a baton. He has said that former Yankee Mickey Rivers taught him how to twirl the bat at his hip. Leyritz was also Pettitte's personal catcher in 1995–96 and again in 1999–2000.


Career after baseball

In February 2011, Leyritz was hired as a pitching coach for the
Newark Bears The Newark Bears were an American independent league professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They were a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and, later, the Canadian American Association of Professional Bas ...
. He left the team after one season, wanting to spend more time with his family. On April 14, 2012, it was announced that Leyritz was returning to the Yankees on a personal services contract.


Radio

From 2004 to 2007, Leyritz co-hosted a radio show with Vinny Micucci and Billy Sample called ''MLB Radio Daily'' on MLB Radio and is a regular contributor to ''The Michael Kay Show'' on the New York City
ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...
affiliate. In October 2007, Leyritz worked with Harold Reynolds and Chris Myers covering the pre- and post-game reports on the field for the 2007 Playoffs and World Series for Fox.com. On January 6, 2014, Leyritz was hired to host a radio show for Angels Radio 830AM with Jason Brennan called "Inside The Game" with Leyritz and Brennan. The show was later postponed due to a conflict with ESPN radio. Starting in March 2016, Leyritz co-hosted a nationally syndicated weekly radio show with David Meltzer called "Sports Blender" on
SB Nation ''SB Nation'' (an abbreviation for their full name ''SportsBlogs Nation'') is a sports blogging network owned by Vox Media. It was co-founded by Tyler Blezinski, Markos Moulitsas, and Jerome Armstrong in 2003. The blog from which the netwo ...
radio.


Writing

Leyritz wrote a book titled ''Catching Heat: The Jim Leyritz Story'', published in June 2011. The book was co-written by brothers Jeffrey Lyons and Douglas B. Lyons. In a brief review, ''
Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' called the book "a surprisingly defensive attempt at a self-serving memoir."


Charitable work

Leyritz is involved with many charities. He is the spokesperson for Pinktie.org /1st Equity Title Co out of Melville, NY. He also works with many chapters of ALS, a disease which took his brother-in-law, Joe Toerner, in 2010. During his playing days, Leyritz and his wife brought foster children to see games at Yankee Stadium and contributed to Covenant House and
Police Benevolent Association Police unions in the United States include a large number and patchwork variety of organizations. Of those Police union, unions which conduct labor negotiations on behalf of its police members, 80% are independent and have no affiliation to any lar ...
.


Personal life

As of March 2015, Leyritz lives in
Orange County, California Orange County (officially the County of Orange; often initialized O.C.) is a county (United States), county located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population ...
, with his wife Michelle, his three sons, and her two daughters. They married in March 2016. He is a member and usher at Saddleback Church in
Lake Forest, California Lake Forest is a city in Orange County, California, United States. The population was 85,858 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Lake Forest incorporated as a city on December 20, 1991. Prior to incorporation, the community had be ...
.


Legal troubles

On December 28, 2007, Leyritz was arrested in
Broward County, Florida Broward County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Florida, United States, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the List of the most ...
on suspicion of
drunk driving Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is in ...
and
vehicular homicide Vehicular homicide is a crime that involves the death of a person other than the driver as a result of either criminally negligent or murderous operation of a motor vehicle. In cases of criminal negligence, the defendant is commonly charged ...
after his car struck Freida Veitch's car. Veitch, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the car and died at the scene. Leyritz was released on US$11,000 bond and charged with two counts of drunk driving. Police collected two blood samples from Leyritz, the first 2½ hours after the crash and the second about an hour later. The first sample showed a
blood-alcohol level Blood alcohol content (BAC), also called blood alcohol concentration or blood alcohol level, is a measurement of alcohol intoxication used for legal or medical purposes. BAC is expressed as mass of alcohol (drug), alcohol per volume of blood. ...
of .14, and the second, .13, police said. Veitch had a blood-alcohol level of .18. Both Leyritz and Veitch were legally drunk at the time of the collision. Several days after the accident, it was revealed that Leyritz could face further charges because his driver license had been suspended in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
prior to the accident. On June 20, 2007, Leyritz had been issued a ticket outside
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...
, for using a cell phone while driving. According to Leyritz's attorney, Leyritz's license "was not suspended in the state of Florida on the day of the accident, nor is it suspended today." On February 13, 2009, Leyritz was ordered back to jail as his bail was revoked following his apparent consumption of alcoholic beverages in violation of his bail conditions. A judge allowed him to return home on bail on February 23 after agreeing with Leyritz's attorney that his pretrial release conditions were unclear and that Leyritz had misunderstood them. On May 13, 2009, Leyritz was hospitalized in Florida. Reports on
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
claimed Leyritz had threatened suicide, but Leyritz issued a statement later saying he was not suicidal but stressed out. Leyritz ran into trouble on May 14 when he attempted to start his car but the alcohol monitoring device on the car malfunctioned, leading to a false positive and triggering an automatic urine test for Leyritz. The test showed he had not consumed any alcohol, and a judge cleared him. On July 2, 2009, Leyritz was arrested for battery against his former wife; however, the charges were later dropped. In November 2010, Leyritz's trial for the December 2007 DUI crash was held. He was acquitted on the DUI manslaughter charge in less than 45 minutes, but was convicted—after two days of deliberations—on a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence. He was subsequently sentenced to one year's probation and a $500 fine. In May 2010, Leyritz's insurance company settled a civil lawsuit for the accident, paying $350,000 to the other driver's family.Jim Leyritz acquitted of DUI manslaughter in Florida
. Associated Press. November 20, 2010.


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leyritz, Jim 1963 births Living people Anaheim Angels players Boston Red Sox players Kentucky Wildcats baseball players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball catchers New York Yankees players San Diego Padres players Texas Rangers players Fort Lauderdale Yankees players Oneonta Yankees players Albany-Colonie Yankees players 20th-century American sportsmen Columbus Clippers players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Las Vegas Stars (baseball) players Newark Bears players Portland Beavers players Baseball players from Cincinnati Sportspeople from Lakewood, Ohio Baseball players from Cuyahoga County, Ohio Middle Georgia Warriors baseball players People acquitted of manslaughter