The New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals will begin their best-of-five American League Division Series Saturday night. The winner of this series will advance to the league championship round, where they'll take on either the Cleveland Guardians or Detroit Tigers for the rights to both the AL pennant and a spot in the World Series.

NEW YORK — Bobby Witt Jr. sounded like a postseason vet as he fielded questions from reporters in the press conference room at Yankee Stadium on Friday. The 24-year-old was one sleep away from the biggest test of his young career — a showdown with the Yankees in his American League Division Series debut — and he was saying all the right things.

Witt went down a rabbit hole of Derek Jeter highlights, and the memories came rushing back. As much as anything or anyone else, it was the New York Yankees’ Hall of Fame shortstop who inspired Witt to start playing baseball as a kid.