Derek Jeter Under Fire For His Remark at World Baseball Classic
Derek Jeter managed to tick off an American League fanbase with his comments following Venezuela's 4-2 win over Italy in the semifinals of the 2026 World Baseball Classic Monday night.
Jeter and his FOX colleagues were interviewing Venezuela third baseman and Kansas City Royals star Maikel Garcia, one of the heroes of the night, when the New York Yankees legend appeared to take a shot at Kansas City and the Royals fanbase.
Jeter jabs KC
During the segment, Jeter gestured around Miami's LoanDepot Park and pointed out the atmosphere to Garcia
"Take a look around here," Jeter said. "Does it remind you of Kansas City?"
"Not even close," responded Garcia, who had the go-ahead single for his country in the seventh inning.
"Take a look around, does this remind you of Kansas City?"
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 17, 2026
"Not even close." ???? pic.twitter.com/1fZb35QtlY
Royals fans fight back
Jeter's question got under the skin of Royals fans and Kansas Citians in general. Missouri's largest city has been one of the top viewership markets throughout the WBC.
"Imma take this as Derek Jeter being a large market snob and also a challenge for Royals fans this October to match WBC-level energy," one Royals fan tweeted.
"Yankees try not to be so incredibly unbearable challenge," another Royals fan said.
"I'm not sure what's more lame -- Jeter doing this when KC is one of the 3 highest rated markets for the WBC, or FOX Sports posting it to highlight the back-and-forth," chimed in radio host Brandon Kiley.
"Just a reminder that even Aaron Judge thinks a World Series crowd in NY doesn’t compare to a WBC crowd," a third Royals fan added.
"If Jeter thinks that KC is going to turn on Maikel Garcia because of this ignorant question, he is sorely mistaken," another commenter said.
Venezuela, USA face off tonight
Garcia will try to help Venezuela become the first South American country to win the WBC when they take on the United States in the championship game Tuesday night.
New York Mets righthander Nolan McLean will be starting for the Americans, with Arizona Diamondbacks veteran lefthander Eduardo Rodriguez getting the ball for Venezuela.
The U.S. is looking for its second WBC title and first since 2017. First pitch is set for just after 8 p.m. ET on FOX.