Carlos Correa picks up new rival after his Derek Jeter comments

Noah Syndergaard, the new Los Angeles Angels pitcher, made it clear in an interview on Tuesday who he wanted to strike out most – Carlos Correa.

“Not just for the obvious reason,” Syndergaard said, “but just what he said about Derek Jeter not deserving his Gold Gloves. I think that was a little ridiculous to say.” Gold Glove awards are given to the players in both the National and American Leagues who are voted by the managers and coaches as the top defensive player at their position for the entire Major League Baseball season.

The former Mets star signed with the Angels for a one-year $21 million deal after being out of commission for 2020 and 2021 due to injuries. The “obvious reason” is likely referring to the Houston Astros' sign-stealing scandal in 2017.

Former Astros shortstop Correa is one of the hottest free agents this off-season, but he got into some hot water after stating in an interview that retired New York Yankees star Derek Jeter did not deserve any of the five Gold Gloves he won in his career.

"You know how much Derek Jeter's (defensive runs saved was) in his career? Negative 160. In his career,” Correa said to a Spanish-language baseball show. “But your eyes can lie to you."

Correa earned his first Gold Glove and Platinum Glove earlier this month with 21 total defensive runs saved.

This comment angered fans across the league. Jeter shrugged off the comment, telling reporters, “I don’t know how my name was brought up, but it doesn’t even warrant a response.”  

However, some in the sports world have come forward to defend Correa, pointing out that Jeter was a better hitter than a shortstop.

“Statistically, no player hurt his team on defense more than Derek Jeter did,” tweeted Paul Hembekides of ESPN’s Get Up! morning show. “Minus-253 career runs from fielding, worst (fewest) in MLB history.”

Jon Hoefling of Deadspin refers to metrics like the Ultimate Zone Rating per 150 games placing Jeter near the bottom of qualified shortstops in the period he won his Gold Gloves.