If you are new to baseball, then Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez might have you fooled with their light-hearted jokes on FOX’s postseason desk. All smiles, giggles, and banter as they watch the best teams fight it out. But long before them, giggling away with Boston’s Big Papi, they were famously in a “cold war.”

But FOX has almost acted like an unexpected couples therapist for them. Because now both of them are not just sharing a studio but also showing signs that they might be putting the past where it deserves to be—in the past.

Just recently, A-Rod publicly poked fun at one of their most awkward on-field moments- that pop fly disaster against the Baltimore Orioles back in 2006. In the sixth inning, Jeter had called for a routine pop-up from the shortstop. A-Rod then drifted in from third, and both collided, and the ball dropped. A-Rod posted the clip of this hilarious gameplay with a five-word message, “Just let Derek Jeter catch it.”

But his caption was even more hilarious- “You live, and you learn.”

But here is the best part- even Jeter played along and liked the video A-Rod reposted. This is progress for sure once you know their history. Because whilst it seems all smiles now, make no mistake, this was not just some light-hearted Instagram moment—it was essentially an olive branch territory.

Now Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez share a history, one that really didn’t start bitterly. In the 90s, in fact, A-Rod idolized Jeter; they played golf together and were seen as a golden duo. But then, things started to unravel in 2001, after the infamous A-Rod comments.

Rodriguez had mentioned that Jeter “never had to lead” because he was “blessed with great talent around him.” Jeter, of course, given A-Rod was friends with him, felt blindsided and said, “He’s not a true friend… I wouldn’t do it to a friend.”

From there, the distance turned into tension. Later, when A-Rod even got to the Bronx in pinstripes, he was apparently shown the cold shoulder by Jeter. No team dinners, no bonding, and GM Brian Cashman apparently had to ask Jeter to “fake” friendship to keep the clubhouse calm. Such is their fallout that even now, the Lindor Soto drift is compared to them! 

So, this banter between the two, not offline but very public, is definitely progress. Although many would say this is just show business or PR, sometimes, people do move on.

The lesser-known blowup that deepened the A-Rod–Jeter feud

For all the well-documented drama between A-Rod and Derek Jeter, there is one story that somehow slipped through the cracks and mainstream radar, and it might be one of the most explosive ones. Long before their feud had become ESPN documentary material, A-Rod apparently nearly came to blows with broadcaster Dan Patrick…and it was all because of a comment about Jeter that was not supposed to go public.

This all came to the surface when Patrick went to Barstool Sports to talk about the chaos of the moment. When Rodriguez made an off-air remark regarding Jeter’s contract, or at least he thought it was off-air, but it wasn’t. And when the clip hit the public, things got messy and messy fast.

Patrick mentioned that A-Rod was furious about Patrick violating the truth. So when Patrick invited him for another interview, he thought he would talk things out with him. Instead, he walked into the Rangers locker room only to watch A-Rod chat with Mike Lamb while letting him wait for 15 minutes.

And then A-Rod talked; actually…he unloaded.

So, according to Patrick, Rodriguez started shouting at him the moment they spoke. So heated the conversation got that Patrick was anticipating a punch anytime. The punch didn’t land, but the comment of A-Rod on Jeter landed, and it surely embittered their relations even further.

When Patrick asked A-Rod who might surpass his then-record $252 million contract. Rodriguez answered, “I don’t know who it’s going to be… but it won’t be Derek.” This comment is not as infamous as the Esquire one, but it played a real role in deepening the rift between the two baseball stars.