Alabama Softball Gets Inspiration From Derek Jeter

Crimson Tide begins play in Women's College World Series against UCLA on Thursday

Alabama catcher Riley Valentine (17) celebrates with her team after hitting a grand slam during an NCAA super regional game between Tennessee and Alabama at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium in Knoxville, TN, Sunday, May 26, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY

Be honest. You didn’t have the Alabama softball team penciled in the Women’s College World Series bracket a month ago. 

Even having the Crimson Tide advance out of the regional looked like wishful thinking. 

Yet, Alabama is in Oklahoma City, playing in the program’s 15th WCWS. The Crimson Tide (38-18) faces UCLA (42-10) on Thursday at 11 a.m. to kick off the tournament. 

The Crimson Tide team that takes the field Thursday is a different one from when the regular season ended. Alabama finished with a losing SEC record (10-14) for the first time in program history and had just one SEC series win (Ole Miss). 

Something, rather, someone helped turn it around. 

Andy Phillips is a former Crimson Tide baseball player and spent time in the Major Leagues, including a four-year stint with the New York Yankees. 

He was invited to speak to the softball team and told a story about his time with the Yankees, which was early in his career. 

“He was with the Yankees when Derek Jeter was there and (Alex Rodriguez) was there. They were playing rotten baseball and Jeter got them together,” said Alabama softball coach Patrick Murphy. 

Jeter, the Yankees’ team captain, didn’t give a fiery speech to motivate the team. Instead, he was reserved and simply asked the team for one thing. 

“He said, ‘I want everyone to tell me one thing they are going to bring to the table for the rest of the year that will help us win,’” Murphy said. “He said, ‘If you say it, I’m going to hold you accountable.’ They thought about it a little bit before they opened their mouths because if Derek Jeter was going to hold you accountable, you had better do it.” 

If it’s good enough for the Yankees, it’s good enough for the Crimson Tide.  

"A week later we wrote it on the chalk board in the club house,” Murphy said. “Mine was short-term memory. Everybody else had something. We stuck with it.” 

Murphy stuck with his ‘one thing’ and let all the mistakes and miscues roll off his back, choosing to look ahead. The rest of the team followed suit and the result was a 5-1 postseason record. 

The postseason run has included dominant pitching, clutch extra-inning performances and an early grand slam against Tennessee to set the tone in the final game of the super regional. 

Kayla Beaver, a second-team All-America selection, has a 2-1 postseason mark with a save and six runs allowed in 25 innings with 16 strikeouts. 

“It’s like we’ve said all year, some teams need a longer runway, and we are on that runway, and we’ve taken off,” Beaver said.