Max Kepler received a challenge last Friday from a Hall of Famer. Kepler was taking batting practice at Yankee Stadium, "trying to go deep in Yankee Stadium, which every kid wants to do," the rookie outfielder said. Reggie Jackson, legendary outfielder and now a Yankees front-office employee, was chatting nearby with Paul Molitor, and asked who the batter was.
"He goes, 'Kepler, get over here.' He started giving him spiel, which was fun to listen to," Molitor said. "Reggie said something like, 'You want to impress me, hit one over there in the bullpen in left-center field, or hit one off the black in center field.' "
Said Kepler: "He introduced himself, and was just telling me, 'I'm 70 years old and I can do that, I can hit it to right field. Let me see you go the other way.' "
Trouble was, assistant hitting coach Rudy Hernandez was throwing the ball inside, Kepler said. Molitor did an uproarious imitation of Kepler trying to swing the bat with his arms pulled in close to his body.
"The next two rounds, I was trying to go [opposite-field] the whole time," Kepler agreed. "It wasn't working out for me."
