{"id":9927,"date":"2014-10-02T17:35:59","date_gmt":"2014-10-02T22:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=9927"},"modified":"2017-04-05T22:22:17","modified_gmt":"2017-04-06T03:22:17","slug":"derek-jeter-the-greatest-new-york-yankee-of-all-time-the-greatest-shortstop-of-all-time-one-of-the-greatest-baseball-players-of-all-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=9927","title":{"rendered":"DEREK JETER, THE GREATEST NEW YORK YANKEE OF ALL TIME, THE GREATEST SHORTSTOP OF ALL TIME, ONE OF THE GREATEST BASEBALL PLAYERS OF ALL TIME!!!!!"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\">\n<div id=\"siteSub\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"protected-icon\" class=\"metadata topicon nopopups\"><strong>LET US INTRODUCE YOU TO MR DEREK JETER, THE MLB SURGEON!!!!<\/strong><\/div>\n<div id=\"mw-content-text\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\" dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-12500\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-20-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"is (20)\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-20-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-20-140x94.jpg 140w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-20.jpg 312w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><br \/>\n<strong>Derek Sanderson Jeter (born June 26, 1974) is an American former <a title=\"Professional baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Professional_baseball\">professional baseball<\/a> <a title=\"Shortstop\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Shortstop\">shortstop<\/a> who played 20 seasons in <a title=\"Major League Baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball\">Major League Baseball<\/a> (MLB) for the <a title=\"New York Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_Yankees\">New York Yankees<\/a>. A five-time <a title=\"World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/World_Series\">World Series<\/a> champion, Jeter is regarded as a central figure of the Yankees&#8217; success of the late 1990s and early 2000s for his hitting, baserunning, fielding, and leadership. He is the Yankees&#8217; all-time career leader in <a title=\"Hit (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hit_%28baseball%29\">hits<\/a> (3,465), <a title=\"Double (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Double_%28baseball%29\">doubles<\/a> (544), games played (2,747), <a title=\"Stolen base\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Stolen_base\">stolen bases<\/a> (358), <a title=\"Times on base\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Times_on_base\">times on base<\/a> (4,716), <a title=\"Plate appearance\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Plate_appearance\">plate appearances<\/a> (12,602) and <a title=\"At bat\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/At_bat\">at bats<\/a> (11,195).<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> His accolades include 14 <a title=\"Major League Baseball All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game\">All-Star<\/a> selections, five <a title=\"Rawlings Gold Glove Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rawlings_Gold_Glove_Award\">Gold Glove Awards<\/a>, five <a title=\"Silver Slugger Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Silver_Slugger_Award\">Silver Slugger Awards<\/a>, two <a title=\"Hank Aaron Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hank_Aaron_Award\">Hank Aaron Awards<\/a>, and a <a title=\"Roberto Clemente Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Roberto_Clemente_Award\">Roberto Clemente Award<\/a>. Jeter became the 28th player to reach <a title=\"3,000 hit club\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/3,000_hit_club\">3,000 hits<\/a> and finished his career sixth all-time in career hits and the all-time MLB leader in hits by a shortstop.<\/strong><strong>The Yankees drafted Jeter out of high school in <a title=\"1992 Major League Baseball Draft\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1992_Major_League_Baseball_Draft\">1992<\/a>, and he debuted in the major leagues in 1995. The following year, he became the Yankees&#8217; starting shortstop, won the <a title=\"Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_Rookie_of_the_Year_Award\">Rookie of the Year Award<\/a>, and helped the team win the <a title=\"1996 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1996_World_Series\">1996 World Series<\/a>. Jeter continued to contribute during the team&#8217;s championship seasons of 1998\u20132000; he finished third in voting for the <a title=\"American League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/American_League\">American League<\/a> (AL) <a title=\"Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">Most <\/a><a title=\"Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">Valuable Player (MVP) Award<\/a> in 1998, recorded multiple career-high numbers in 1999, and won both the <a title=\"Major League Baseball All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">All-Star Game MVP<\/a> and <a title=\"World Series Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/World_Series_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">World Series MVP Awards<\/a> in 2000. He consistently placed among the AL leaders in hits and runs scored for most of his career, and served as the Yankees&#8217; <a title=\"Captain (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Captain_%28baseball%29\">team captain<\/a> from 2003 until his retirement in 2014. Throughout his career, Jeter contributed reliably to the Yankees&#8217; franchise successes. He holds many <a title=\"Major League Baseball postseason\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_postseason\">postseason<\/a> records, and has a .321 <a title=\"Batting average\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Batting_average\">batting average<\/a> in the World Series. Jeter has earned the nicknames of &#8220;Captain Clutch&#8221; and &#8220;Mr. November&#8221; due to his outstanding play in the postseason.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-12501\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-21.jpg\" alt=\"is (21)\" width=\"298\" height=\"219\" \/><\/strong><strong>Jeter has been one of the most heavily marketed athletes of his generation and is involved in several product endorsements. His personal life and relationships with celebrities have drawn the attention of the media throughout his career. Teammates and opponents alike regard Jeter as a consummate professional and one of the best players of his generation.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"toc\" class=\"toc\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter was born in <a title=\"Pequannock Township, New Jersey\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pequannock_Township,_New_Jersey\">Pequannock Township, New Jersey<\/a>, on June 26, 1974. His mother, Dorothy (n\u00e9e Connors), an accountant, is of Irish, as well as some German and English, ancestry. His father, Sanderson Charles Jeter, Ph.D., a substance abuse counselor, is African-American. They met while serving in the\u00a0<a title=\"United States Army\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Army\"> Army<\/a> in Germany.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> When Jeter was a child, his parents made him sign a contract every year that set acceptable and unacceptable forms of behavior.\u00a0<sup id=\"cite_ref-60minutes_7-0\" class=\"reference\"> <\/sup>Dorothy instilled a positive attitude in her son, insisting that he not use the word &#8220;can&#8217;t&#8221;. Jeter&#8217;s younger sister Sharlee (born c. 1979) was a <a title=\"Softball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Softball\">softball<\/a> star in high school, while his father played baseball at <a title=\"Fisk University\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fisk_University\">Fisk University<\/a> in Tennessee as a <a title=\"Shortstop\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Shortstop\">shortstop<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_and_Dave_Winfield.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/83\/Derek_Jeter_and_Dave_Winfield.jpg\/220px-Derek_Jeter_and_Dave_Winfield.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a navy blue and grey windbreaker with the word &quot;New&quot; visible stands on the left facing a man in a navy blue polo shirt who is looking away.\" width=\"220\" height=\"228\" data-file-width=\"1918\" data-file-height=\"1984\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter with his boyhood idol <a title=\"Dave Winfield\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dave_Winfield\">Dave Winfield<\/a> at <a title=\"Dodger Stadium\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dodger_Stadium\">Dodger Stadium<\/a>, June 2010.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>The Jeters lived in New Jersey until Derek was four years old, at which point they moved to <a title=\"Kalamazoo, Michigan\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kalamazoo,_Michigan\">Kalamazoo, Michigan<\/a>. Jeter and Sharlee lived in Kalamazoo with their parents during the school year and spent their summers with their grandparents in New Jersey. Attending <a title=\"New York Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_Yankees\">New York Yankees<\/a> games with his grandparents, Jeter became a passionate fan of the team. Watching Yankees player <a title=\"Dave Winfield\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dave_Winfield\">Dave Winfield<\/a> inspired him to pursue a career in baseball.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter attended <a title=\"Kalamazoo Central High School\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kalamazoo_Central_High_School\">Kalamazoo Central High School<\/a>, where he played baseball and <a title=\"Basketball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Basketball\">basketball<\/a>. Jeter posted high <a title=\"Batting average\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Batting_average\">batting averages<\/a> for the school&#8217;s baseball team; he batted .557 in his <a title=\"Tenth grade\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tenth_grade\">sophomore year<\/a> and .508 as a <a title=\"Eleventh grade\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eleventh_grade\">junior<\/a>.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> In his <a title=\"Twelfth grade\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Twelfth_grade\">senior year<\/a>, he batted .508 and compiled 23\u00a0<a title=\"Run batted in\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Run_batted_in\">runs batted in<\/a> (RBI), 21\u00a0<a title=\"Base on balls\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Base_on_balls\">walks<\/a>, four <a title=\"Home run\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Home_run\">home runs<\/a>, a .637 <a title=\"On-base percentage\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/On-base_percentage\">on-base percentage<\/a> (OBP), a .831 <a title=\"Slugging percentage\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Slugging_percentage\">slugging percentage<\/a> (SLG), 12\u00a0<a title=\"Stolen base\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Stolen_base\">stolen bases<\/a> (in 12\u00a0attempts), and only one <a title=\"Strikeout\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Strikeout\">strikeout<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter received several honors after his senior season. These included an All-State honorable mention, distinguishing him as one of the best high school baseball players in Michigan, the Kalamazoo Area <a title=\"B'nai B'rith\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/B%27nai_B%27rith\">B&#8217;nai B&#8217;rith<\/a> Award for Scholar Athlete, the 1992 High School Player of the Year Award from the <a title=\"American Baseball Coaches Association\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/American_Baseball_Coaches_Association\">American Baseball Coaches Association<\/a>, the 1992 <a title=\"Gatorade\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gatorade\">Gatorade<\/a> High School <a title=\"Player of the year award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Player_of_the_year_award\">Player of the Year award<\/a>, and <i><a title=\"USA Today\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/USA_Today\">USA Today<\/a><\/i>&#8216;s High School Player of the Year.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Kalamazoo Central High School inducted Jeter into its Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003 and renamed its baseball field in his honor in 2011.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter&#8217;s baseball talents drew the attention of the <a title=\"University of Michigan\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/University_of_Michigan\">University of Michigan<\/a>, which offered him a baseball <a title=\"Scholarship\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Scholarship\">scholarship<\/a> to attend and play <a title=\"College baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/College_baseball\">college baseball<\/a> for the <a title=\"Michigan Wolverines baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Michigan_Wolverines_baseball\">Michigan Wolverines baseball<\/a> team.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-12502\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-19-238x300.jpg\" alt=\"is (19)\" width=\"238\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-19-238x300.jpg 238w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-19.jpg 271w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 238px) 100vw, 238px\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<div><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<p><strong>As a <a title=\"Scout (sport)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Scout_%28sport%29\">scout<\/a> for the <a title=\"Houston Astros\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Houston_Astros\">Houston Astros<\/a>, <a title=\"Hal Newhouser\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hal_Newhouser\">Hal Newhouser<\/a> evaluated Jeter extensively before the <a title=\"1992 Major League Baseball Draft\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1992_Major_League_Baseball_Draft\">1992 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft<\/a>. The Astros held the first overall pick in the draft, and Newhouser, convinced that Jeter would anchor a winning team, lobbied team management to select him. The Astros feared that Jeter would insist on a salary bonus of at least $1\u00a0million to forgo his college scholarship for a professional contract,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> so they passed on him, instead<\/strong> choosing <a title=\"California State University, Fullerton\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/California_State_University,_Fullerton\">Cal State Fullerton<\/a> <strong><a title=\"Outfielder\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Outfielder\">outfielder<\/a> <a title=\"Phil Nevin\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Phil_Nevin\">Phil Nevin<\/a>, who signed with Houston for $700,000.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Newhouser felt so strongly about Jeter&#8217;s potential that he quit his job with the Astros in protest after they ignored his drafting advice.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The Yankees, who selected sixth, also rated Jeter highly. Yankees scout Dick Groch, assigned to scout in the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Midwest\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Midwest\">Midwest<\/a>, watched Jeter participate in an all-star camp held at <a title=\"Western Michigan University\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Western_Michigan_University\">Western Michigan University<\/a>. Though Yankees officials were concerned that Jeter would attend college instead of signing a professional contract, Groch convinced them to select him, saying, &#8220;the only place Derek Jeter&#8217;s going is to <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Baseball Hall of Fame\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_Hall_of_Fame\">Cooperstown<\/a>&#8220;. The second through fifth picks were <a title=\"Paul Shuey\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Paul_Shuey\">Paul Shuey<\/a>, <a title=\"B. J. Wallace\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/B._J._Wallace\">B. J. Wallace<\/a> (who never played in the majors), <a title=\"Jeffrey Hammonds\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jeffrey_Hammonds\">Jeffrey Hammonds<\/a>, and <a title=\"Chad Mottola\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chad_Mottola\">Chad Mottola<\/a> (125 career MLB at-bats and over 5,000 at-bats at AAA); those five would combine for two All-Star Game appearances (Nevin and Hammonds). The Yankees drafted Jeter, who chose to turn pro, signing for $800,000.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter played four seasons in <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Minor league baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minor_league_baseball\">minor league baseball<\/a>, then known as the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues (NAPBL). Jeter began the <a title=\"1992 in baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1992_in_baseball\">1992 season<\/a> with the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Gulf Coast Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gulf_Coast_Yankees\">Gulf Coast Yankees<\/a> of the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Rookie-level\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rookie-level\">Rookie<\/a>-level <a title=\"Gulf Coast League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gulf_Coast_League\">Gulf Coast League<\/a>, based in <a title=\"Tampa, Florida\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tampa,_Florida\">Tampa, Florida<\/a>.<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The Yankees promoted Jeter to the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Greensboro Hornets\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Greensboro_Hornets\">Greensboro Hornets<\/a> of the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Class A (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Class_A_%28baseball%29\">Class A<\/a> <a title=\"South Atlantic League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/South_Atlantic_League\">South Atlantic League<\/a> (SAL) to give him more at-bats.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He batted .247 in his first 11 games with Greensboro, and struggled defensively, making nine <a title=\"Error (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Error_%28baseball%29\">errors<\/a> in 48 <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Fielding chance\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fielding_chance\">chances<\/a>. Weighing 156 pounds (71\u00a0kg), Jeter had a scrawny appearance that did not match his reputation as the Yankees&#8217; future leader. <a title=\"Jorge Posada\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jorge_Posada\">Jorge Posada<\/a> and <a title=\"Andy Pettitte\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Andy_Pettitte\">Andy Pettitte<\/a>, who played for the Hornets that season, at first questioned the hype surrounding Jeter, but recognized his talent and poise.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter focused the next offseason on his fielding. <i><a title=\"Baseball America\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_America\">Baseball America<\/a><\/i> rated Jeter among the top 100 prospects<\/strong> <strong>in baseball before the <a title=\"1993 in baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1993_in_baseball\">1993 season<\/a>, ranking him 44th. Returning to the Hornets in 1993, his first full season of professional baseball, Jeter hit .295 with five home runs, 71 RBI and 18 stolen bases; SAL managers voted him the &#8220;Most Outstanding Major League Prospect&#8221; in the league.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He finished second in the SAL in <a title=\"Triple (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Triple_%28baseball%29\">triples<\/a> (11), third in hits (152), and eleventh in batting average, and was named to the postseason All-Star team. Jeter committed 56 errors, a SAL record.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Despite this, he was voted the SAL&#8217;s Best Defensive Shortstop, Most Exciting Player, and Best Infield Arm by <i>Baseball America<\/i>.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-12503\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-18.jpg\" alt=\"is (18)\" width=\"240\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-18.jpg 240w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-18-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-18-136x136.jpg 136w, https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/is-18-184x184.jpg 184w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Coming off his strong 1993 season, <i>Baseball America<\/i> rated Jeter as the 16th-best prospect in baseball. Jeter played for the <a title=\"Tampa Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tampa_Yankees\">Tampa Yankees<\/a> of the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Class A-Advanced\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Class_A-Advanced\">Class A-Advanced<\/a> <a title=\"Florida State League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Florida_State_League\">Florida State League<\/a> (FSL), the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Albany-Colonie Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Albany-Colonie_Yankees\">Albany-Colonie Yankees<\/a> of the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Class AA\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Class_AA\">Class AA<\/a> <a title=\"Eastern League (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eastern_League_%28baseball%29\">Eastern League<\/a>, and the <a title=\"Columbus Clippers\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Columbus_Clippers\">Columbus Clippers<\/a> of the <a title=\"Triple-A (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Triple-A_%28baseball%29\">Class AAA<\/a> <a title=\"International League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_League\">International League<\/a> during the <a title=\"1994 in baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1994_in_baseball\">1994 season<\/a>, combining to hit .344 with five home runs, 68\u00a0RBI, and steal 50 bases across the three levels. He was honored with the <a title=\"Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_America_Minor_League_Player_of_the_Year_Award\">Minor League Player of the Year Award<\/a> by <i><a title=\"Baseball America\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_America\">Baseball America<\/a><\/i>, <i><a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"The Sporting News\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Sporting_News\">The Sporting News<\/a><\/i>, <i><a title=\"USA Today Minor League Player of the Year Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/USA_Today_Minor_League_Player_of_the_Year_Award\">USA Today<\/a><\/i>, and <a title=\"Topps\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Topps\">Topps<\/a>\/NAPBL. He was also named the most valuable player of the FSL.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Considered the fourth-best prospect in baseball by <i>Baseball America<\/i> heading into the <a title=\"1995 in baseball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1995_in_baseball\">1995 season<\/a>,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> the Yankees projected Jeter as their starting shortstop. He suffered mild inflammation in his right shoulder in the <a title=\"Arizona Fall League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arizona_Fall_League\">Arizona Fall League<\/a> after the conclusion of the 1994 regular season. As a precaution, the Yankees signed <a title=\"Tony Fern\u00e1ndez\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tony_Fern%C3%A1ndez\">Tony Fern\u00e1ndez<\/a> to a two-year contract. With Fern\u00e1ndez the starting shortstop, the Yankees assigned Jeter to Class AAA. During the <a title=\"1994\u201395 Major League Baseball strike\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1994%E2%80%9395_Major_League_Baseball_strike\">1994\u201395 Major League Baseball strike<\/a>, <a title=\"Gene Michael\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gene_Michael\">Gene Michael<\/a>, the Yankees&#8217; <a title=\"General manager (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/General_manager_%28baseball%29\">general manager<\/a>, offered Jeter the opportunity to work out for the MLB team with <a title=\"List of Major League Baseball replacement players\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_replacement_players\">replacement players<\/a> in <a title=\"Spring training\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Spring_training\">spring training<\/a> before the 1995 season. Jeter denied receiving the offer, and did not <a title=\"Strikebreaker\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Strikebreaker\">cross the picket line<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Early in the <a title=\"1995 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1995_New_York_Yankees_season\">1995 season<\/a>, Fern\u00e1ndez and <a title=\"Infielder\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Infielder\">infielder<\/a> <a title=\"Pat Kelly (infielder)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pat_Kelly_%28infielder%29\">Pat Kelly<\/a> were injured. Consequently, Jeter made his MLB debut on May 29, 1995. Jeter was assigned\u00a0 2, which had been worn by <a title=\"Mike Gallego\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mike_Gallego\">Mike Gallego<\/a> from 1992 to 1994, one of only two single-digit numbers available at the time. <a title=\"Batting order (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Batting_order_%28baseball%29\">Batting ninth<\/a>, he went hitless in five <a title=\"At bat\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/At_bat\">at bats<\/a>, striking out once. The following day, he recorded his first two major league hits and scored his first two career runs. <\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_defense.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/5\/53\/Derek_Jeter_defense.jpg\/250px-Derek_Jeter_defense.jpg\" alt=\"Jeter in a grey baseball uniform tags his glove to a baserunner from the opposing team.\" width=\"250\" height=\"210\" data-file-width=\"2110\" data-file-height=\"1771\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<a title=\"List of New York Yankees managers\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_New_York_Yankees_managers\">Yankees manager<\/a> <a title=\"Joe Torre\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joe_Torre\">Joe Torre<\/a> asserted that Jeter would be the starting shortstop for the <a title=\"1996 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1996_New_York_Yankees_season\">1996 season<\/a><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Rated the sixth-best prospect in baseball by <i>Baseball America<\/i> heading into the 1996 season, Jeter started on <a title=\"Opening Day\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Opening_Day\">Opening Day<\/a>, the first Yankee <a title=\"Rookie\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rookie\">rookie<\/a> to start as shortstop for the team since <a title=\"Tom Tresh\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tom_Tresh\">Tom Tresh<\/a> in 1962. He hit his first MLB home run that day. With his speed and ability to execute the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Hit-and-run (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hit-and-run_%28baseball%29\">hit and run<\/a>, Jeter served as a complement to <a title=\"Leadoff hitter\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Leadoff_hitter\">leadoff hitter<\/a> <a title=\"Tim Raines\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tim_Raines\">Tim Raines<\/a> while batting in the ninth spot in the batting order.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter had a successful rookie season, exceeding Torre&#8217;s expectations, as he hit for a .314 batting average, with 10\u00a0home runs, 104\u00a0<a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Runs scored\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Runs_scored\">runs scored<\/a>, and 78\u00a0RBI.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Receiving all 28 first-place votes in the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"MLB Rookie of the Year award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/MLB_Rookie_of_the_Year_award\">AL Rookie of the Year<\/a> balloting, Jeter was the fifth unanimous choice for the award in its 50-year history.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The Yankees reached the 1996 postseason, and Torre batted Jeter in the leadoff spot in the lineup due to his strong performance. During Game 1 of the <a title=\"1996 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1996_American_League_Championship_Series\">1996 American League Championship Series (ALCS)<\/a>, the Yankees trailed the <a title=\"Baltimore Orioles\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baltimore_Orioles\">Baltimore Orioles<\/a> 4\u20133 in the 8th inning when Jeter hit a fly ball to <a title=\"Right fielder\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Right_fielder\">right field<\/a> that was ruled a home run by the <a title=\"Umpire (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Umpire_%28baseball%29\">umpires<\/a> after twelve-year-old fan <a title=\"Jeffrey Maier\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jeffrey_Maier\">Jeffrey Maier<\/a> reached over the wall to catch the ball. Though the ball would have remained in play if not for Maier, and could have been caught by <a title=\"Tony Tarasco\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tony_Tarasco\">Tony Tarasco<\/a>, the home run stood as called, tying the game. It marked the first home run of Jeter&#8217;s postseason career. The Yankees won the game and defeated the Orioles in five games. Overall, Jeter batted .361 in the 1996 postseason, helping to lead the Yankees offensively with <a title=\"Bernie Williams\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bernie_Williams\">Bernie Williams<\/a>, as <a title=\"Wade Boggs\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Wade_Boggs\">Wade Boggs<\/a>, <a title=\"Paul O'Neill (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Paul_O%27Neill_%28baseball%29\">Paul O&#8217;Neill<\/a>, and <a title=\"Tino Martinez\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tino_Martinez\">Tino Martinez<\/a> struggled. The Yankees defeated the <a title=\"Atlanta Braves\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Atlanta_Braves\">Atlanta Braves<\/a> in the <a title=\"1996 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1996_World_Series\">1996 World Series<\/a> to win their first championship since the <a title=\"1978 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1978_World_Series\">1978 World Series<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Following his Rookie of the Year campaign, Jeter headlined a group considered the &#8220;new crop&#8221; of shortstops, along with <a title=\"Alex Rodriguez\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Alex_Rodriguez\">Alex Rodriguez<\/a> and <a title=\"Nomar Garciaparra\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nomar_Garciaparra\">Nomar Garciaparra<\/a>, as the careers of older shortstops such as <a title=\"Cal Ripken, Jr.\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cal_Ripken,_Jr.\">Cal Ripken, Jr.<\/a>, <a title=\"Barry Larkin\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Barry_Larkin\">Barry Larkin<\/a>, <a title=\"Ozzie Smith\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ozzie_Smith\">Ozzie Smith<\/a> and <a title=\"Alan Trammell\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Alan_Trammell\">Alan Trammell<\/a> were concluding.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Rodriguez, the first overall selection in the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"1993 MLB Draft\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1993_MLB_Draft\">1993 MLB Draft<\/a>, first contacted Jeter about his experiences as a high-first round pick. The two became friends to the extent that <i>The New York Times<\/i> journalist Jack Curry commented &#8220;[r]arely have two higher-profile opponents been as close&#8221;. Rodriguez described Jeter as being &#8220;like my brother&#8221;, even though they were on-field adversaries.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Before the <a title=\"1997 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1997_New_York_Yankees_season\">1997 season<\/a>, Jeter and the Yankees agreed on a $540,000 contract with performance bonuses. Becoming the Yankees&#8217; leadoff batter,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter batted .291, with 10\u00a0home runs, 70\u00a0RBI, 116\u00a0runs, and 190\u00a0<a title=\"Hit (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hit_%28baseball%29\">hits<\/a><sup> \u00a0<\/sup> hit two home runs during the <a title=\"1997 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1997_American_League_Division_Series\">1997 American League Division Series<\/a>, the Yankees lost to the <a title=\"Cleveland Indians\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cleveland_Indians\">Cleveland Indians<\/a>, three games to two.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter earned $750,000 for the <a title=\"1998 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1998_New_York_Yankees_season\">1998 season<\/a>. That year, Jeter was selected for his first <a title=\"Major League Baseball All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game\">All-Star Game<\/a>. In the regular season, he batted\u00a0.324 with a league-leading 127\u00a0runs, 19\u00a0home runs, and 84\u00a0RBI, for a team that won 114\u00a0games during the regular season and is widely considered to be one of the greatest of all time. In the playoffs, Jeter hit only .176 in the <a title=\"1998 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1998_American_League_Division_Series\">1998 ALDS<\/a> and <a title=\"1998 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1998_American_League_Championship_Series\">ALCS<\/a>, but batted .353 in the <a title=\"1998 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1998_World_Series\">World Series<\/a>, as the Yankees defeated the <a title=\"San Diego Padres\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/San_Diego_Padres\">San Diego Padres<\/a> in four games. At season&#8217;s end, Jeter finished third in voting for the <a title=\"Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h4><strong><span id=\"1999.E2.80.932002\" class=\"mw-headline\">1999\u20132002<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_1999.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/a\/a5\/Derek_Jeter_1999.jpg\/250px-Derek_Jeter_1999.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"250\" height=\"201\" data-file-width=\"2303\" data-file-height=\"1856\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Eligible for <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Salary arbitration\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Salary_arbitration\">salary arbitration<\/a> for the first time before the <a title=\"1999 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1999_New_York_Yankees_season\">1999 season<\/a>, the arbitrator awarded Jeter a $5\u00a0million salary. Jeter led the AL in hits that season with 219, while finishing second in the league in batting average (.349) and runs scored (134), appearing in his second All-Star game that year.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> His season totals in batting average, runs, hits, runs batted in, <a title=\"Double (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Double_%28baseball%29\">doubles<\/a> (37), <a title=\"Triple (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Triple_%28baseball%29\">triples<\/a> (9), home runs (24), SLG (.552), and OBP (.438) are all personal bests. Jeter, who for part of the year hit third in the <a title=\"Batting order (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Batting_order_%28baseball%29\">batting order<\/a>, also drove in 102 runs, becoming only the second Yankee shortstop to do so, following <a title=\"Lyn Lary\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lyn_Lary\">Lyn Lary<\/a>&#8216;s 107 RBI in 1931. In the postseason, Jeter batted .455 in the <a title=\"1999 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1999_American_League_Division_Series\">ALDS<\/a>, .350 in the <a title=\"1999 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1999_American_League_Championship_Series\">ALCS<\/a>, and .353 in the <a title=\"1999 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1999_World_Series\">World Series<\/a>, as the Yankees defeated the Braves to win another championship, Jeter&#8217;s third.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>During the 1999\u20132000 offseason, the Yankees negotiated with Jeter, tentatively agreeing to a seven-year,<\/strong> <strong>$118.5\u00a0million contract. Steinbrenner did not want to set a record for the largest contract, and delayed a response while <a title=\"Juan Gonz\u00e1lez (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Juan_Gonz%C3%A1lez_%28baseball%29\">Juan Gonz\u00e1lez<\/a> and the <a title=\"Detroit Tigers\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Detroit_Tigers\">Detroit Tigers<\/a> negotiated on a reported eight-year, $143\u00a0million contract extension. When that agreement fell through, so did Jeter&#8217;s tentative deal. To avoid arbitration, Jeter and the Yankees agreed to a one-year deal worth $10\u00a0million.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter batted a team-best .339 in the 2000 regular season and added 15\u00a0home runs, 73\u00a0RBI, 119\u00a0runs scored, and 22\u00a0stolen bases. In the <a title=\"2000 Major League Baseball All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2000_Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game\">2000 MLB All-Star Game<\/a>, he recorded three hits, including a two-run single that gave his team the lead and victory. The performance earned him the <a title=\"Major League Baseball All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">All-Star Game MVP Award<\/a>, the first time a Yankee won the award.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> During the postseason, he batted only .211 in the <a title=\"2000 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2000_American_League_Division_Series\">Division Series<\/a> but rebounded to hit .318 in the <a title=\"2000 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2000_American_League_Championship_Series\">Championship Series<\/a> against the <a title=\"Seattle Mariners\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Seattle_Mariners\">Seattle Mariners<\/a>, and .409 in the <a title=\"2000 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2000_World_Series\">World Series<\/a> against the <a title=\"New York Mets\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_Mets\">New York Mets<\/a>.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter added two home runs, a triple, and two doubles in the World Series, including a leadoff home run on the first pitch of Game 4 and a triple later in the third inning.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> His home run in Game 5 tied the game and extended his World Series hitting streak to 14\u00a0games. The Yankees defeated the Mets in five games for their third consecutive title and fourth in Jeter&#8217;s first five full seasons.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter won the <a title=\"World Series Most Valuable Player Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/World_Series_Most_Valuable_Player_Award\">World Series MVP Award<\/a>, becoming the only player to win the All-Star Game MVP and World Series MVP Awards in the same season<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>With one year remaining until he would become eligible for <a title=\"Free agent\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Free_agent\">free agency<\/a>, Jeter signed a ten-year, $189\u00a0million contract before the 2001 season to remain with the Yankees. <a title=\"Alex Rodriguez\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Alex_Rodriguez\">Alex Rodriguez<\/a> had signed a ten-year, $252\u00a0million contract with the <a title=\"Texas Rangers (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Texas_Rangers_%28baseball%29\">Texas Rangers<\/a> earlier in the offseason, setting the market for Jeter&#8217;s negotiations. Jeter became the <a title=\"List of largest sports contracts\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_largest_sports_contracts\">second-highest-paid athlete<\/a> across all <a title=\"Team sport\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Team_sport\">team sports<\/a> and <a title=\"Auto racing\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Auto_racing\">auto racing<\/a>, trailing only Rodriguez. The $18.9\u00a0million average annual value of Jeter&#8217;s contract was the third-highest in baseball, behind only Rodriguez ($25.2\u00a0million) and <a title=\"Manny Ramirez\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Manny_Ramirez\">Manny Ramirez<\/a> ($20\u00a0million).<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In 2001, Jeter posted another strong season, batting .311 with 21\u00a0home runs, 74\u00a0RBI, 110\u00a0runs scored, and 27\u00a0stolen bases, making his fourth All-Star appearance. Jeter made a notable defensive <a title=\"Assist (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Assist_%28baseball%29\">assist<\/a> in Game 3 of the <a title=\"2001 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2001_American_League_Division_Series\">2001 American League Division Series<\/a> against the <a title=\"Oakland Athletics\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Oakland_Athletics\">Oakland Athletics<\/a>. With <a title=\"Jeremy Giambi\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jeremy_Giambi\">Jeremy Giambi<\/a> on <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"First base\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/First_base\">first base<\/a>, Oakland right fielder <a title=\"Terrence Long\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Terrence_Long\">Terrence Long<\/a> hit a double off Yankees pitcher <a title=\"Mike Mussina\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mike_Mussina\">Mike Mussina<\/a> into the right-field corner. As Giambi rounded <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Third base\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Third_base\">third base<\/a> and headed for <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Home plate\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Home_plate\">home plate<\/a>, Yankees right fielder <a title=\"Shane Spencer\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Shane_Spencer\">Shane Spencer<\/a> retrieved the ball and made a wild throw that missed <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Cut-off man\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cut-off_man\">cut-off man<\/a> Tino Martinez and dribbled down the first-base line. Jeter ran from shortstop to grab the ball and flipped it backhanded to catcher <a title=\"Jorge Posada\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jorge_Posada\">Jorge Posada<\/a>, rather than throwing it overhand.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Posada tagged Giambi out on the leg just before he crossed home plate, preserving the Yankees&#8217; one-run lead. Facing elimination, the Yankees eventually won the game, as well as the series. The play, known as &#8220;The Flip&#8221;, was later voted seventh in <i><a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Baseball Weekly\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_Weekly\">Baseball Weekly<\/a><\/i>&#8216;s 10 Most Amazing Plays of all time, and won the 2002 <a title=\"Best Play ESPY Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Best_Play_ESPY_Award\">Best Play ESPY Award<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:911_President_George_W._Bush_at_World_Series,_10302001..jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/f\/f6\/911_President_George_W._Bush_at_World_Series%2C_10302001..jpg\/220px-911_President_George_W._Bush_at_World_Series%2C_10302001..jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"147\" data-file-width=\"3072\" data-file-height=\"2048\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>The Yankees advanced to the <a title=\"2001 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2001_World_Series\">2001 World Series<\/a> to face the <a title=\"Arizona Diamondbacks\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arizona_Diamondbacks\">Arizona Diamondbacks<\/a>. Game 4<\/strong> <strong>marked the first time that any non-exhibition MLB game had been played in the month of November. In extra innings, Jeter hit a game-winning home run off of <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Byung-Hyun Kim\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Byung-Hyun_Kim\">Byung-Hyun Kim<\/a>. The words &#8220;Mr. November&#8221; flashed on the scoreboard, alluding to former Yankee <a title=\"Reggie Jackson\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Reggie_Jackson\">Reggie Jackson<\/a>&#8216;s nickname, &#8220;Mr. October&#8221;.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Despite the home run, Jeter slumped at the plate; he denied injuries were a factor, though a fall into a photographer&#8217;s box trying to catch a <a title=\"Foul ball\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Foul_ball\">foul ball<\/a> may have aggravated an earlier <a title=\"Hamstring\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hamstring\">hamstring<\/a> injury.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter batted .148 in the World Series, as the Yankees lost in seven games.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter batted .297, with 18\u00a0home runs, 75\u00a0RBI, 124\u00a0runs scored, 191\u00a0hits, and a career-best 32\u00a0stolen bases during the <a title=\"2002 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2002_New_York_Yankees_season\">2002 regular season<\/a>. He led the majors in stolen base percentage (91.4%), getting caught only three times. He made his fifth All-Star appearance. In the 2002 postseason, the <a title=\"Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Los_Angeles_Angels_of_Anaheim\">Anaheim Angels<\/a> defeated the Yankees in the <a title=\"2002 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2002_American_League_Division_Series\">ALDS<\/a> on their way to winning the <a title=\"2002 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2002_World_Series\">World Series<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Steinbrenner named Jeter the <a title=\"List of New York Yankees captains\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_New_York_Yankees_captains\">captain of the Yankees<\/a> on June 3, 2003, following eight seasons without a captain after <a title=\"Don Mattingly\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Don_Mattingly\">Don Mattingly<\/a> retired in 1995. That postseason, Jeter batted .314 with two home runs, five RBI and 10 runs scored across 17 playoff games,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> including three hits in Game 3 of the <a title=\"2003 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2003_World_Series\">2003 World Series<\/a> against the <a title=\"Miami Marlins\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Miami_Marlins\">Florida Marlins<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 the only three hits <a title=\"Josh Beckett\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Josh_Beckett\">Josh Beckett<\/a> allowed during the game.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter committed a crucial error in a Game 6 loss, and the Marlins won the series in six games.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_2004.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/a\/ae\/Derek_Jeter_2004.jpg\/170px-Derek_Jeter_2004.jpg\" alt=\"Derek Jeter stands in front of a batting cage wearing a navy long-sleeve shirt over a baseball uniform while holding a weighted bat in his left hand.\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" data-file-width=\"623\" data-file-height=\"935\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>The Yankees acquired Rodriguez from the <a title=\"Texas Rangers (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Texas_Rangers_%28baseball%29\">Texas Rangers<\/a> during the 2003\u201304 offseason. Rodriguez had won two <a title=\"List of Gold Glove Award winners at shortstop\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_Gold_Glove_Award_winners_at_shortstop\">Gold Glove Awards at shortstop<\/a> and was considered the best shortstop in baseball.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter\u2014who had no Gold Gloves at the time\u2014remained the team&#8217;s starting shortstop while Rodriguez moved to third base.<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter made the All-Star team and finished the season with a .292 average; 23\u00a0home runs, the second-most of his career; 78\u00a0RBI; 111\u00a0runs scored; and a career-best 44\u00a0doubles, which broke the Yankee single-season record for doubles by a shortstop, besting <a title=\"Tony Kubek\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tony_Kubek\">Tony Kubek<\/a>&#8216;s 38 in 1961. He batted .316 with a team-leading four RBI as the Yankees defeated the <a title=\"Minnesota Twins\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minnesota_Twins\">Minnesota Twins<\/a> in the <a title=\"2004 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2004_American_League_Division_Series\">2004 ALDS<\/a>. Jeter struggled in the <a title=\"2004 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2004_American_League_Championship_Series\">2004 ALCS<\/a>, batting .200 with one <a title=\"Extra base hit\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Extra_base_hit\">extra base hit<\/a>, as the Yankees lost the series to the Red Sox in seven games, despite winning the first three games.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In the 12th inning of a tied game on July 1, 2004, against their <a title=\"Yankees\u2013Red Sox rivalry\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Yankees%E2%80%93Red_Sox_rivalry\">rivals<\/a>, the <a title=\"Boston Red Sox\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Boston_Red_Sox\">Boston Red Sox<\/a>, <a title=\"Trot Nixon\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Trot_Nixon\">Trot Nixon<\/a> hit a <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Pop fly\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pop_fly\">pop fly<\/a> down the left field line. Jeter ran from his position at shortstop and made an over-the-shoulder catch. He launched himself over the third-base side railing and two rows of seats, receiving a lacerated chin and bruised face. The Yankees went on to win the game in the bottom of the 13th inning. This was voted the Play of the Year in the <i><a title=\"This Year in Baseball Awards\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/This_Year_in_Baseball_Awards\">This Year in Baseball Awards<\/a><\/i> competition, as voted on by fans at MLB.com. Following the 2004 season, Jeter was presented with his first Gold Glove Award; his diving catch on July 1 was cited as a reason for the award. Though Jeter was fourth among shortstops in <a title=\"Fielding percentage\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fielding_percentage\">fielding percentage<\/a> and errors, two traditional fielding statistics, critics pointed to his lower ratings in the more advanced <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Sabermetric\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sabermetric\">sabermetric<\/a> statistics, such as <a title=\"Range factor\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Range_factor\">range factor<\/a> and <a title=\"Ultimate zone rating\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ultimate_zone_rating\">ultimate zone rating<\/a> (UZR).<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter was second in the AL in runs scored (122) in the 2005 season, and was third in the league in both at bats (654)<\/strong> <strong>and hits (202). Though his critics continued to see Jeter as a liability defensively, he won his second consecutive Gold Glove in 2005. <a title=\"Orlando Cabrera\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Orlando_Cabrera\">Orlando Cabrera<\/a> of the Angels had a higher fielding percentage and committed fewer errors, but voters noted that Jeter had more assists. Though Jeter batted .333 during the <a title=\"2005 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2005_American_League_Division_Series\">2005 ALDS<\/a>, the Yankees lost to the Angels.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>For the 2006 season, the Yankees signed <a title=\"Johnny Damon\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Johnny_Damon\">Johnny Damon<\/a> to play center field and lead off, moving Jeter to the second position in the batting lineup during the <a title=\"2006 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2006_New_York_Yankees_season\">2006 season<\/a>, Jeter recorded his 2,000th career hit, becoming the eighth Yankee to reach the milestone.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter finished the season second in the AL in both batting average (.343) and runs scored (118), third in hits (214), and fourth in OBP (.417), earning his seventh All-Star selection. Jeter batted .500 with one home run in the <a title=\"2006 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2006_American_League_Division_Series\">2006 ALDS<\/a>, including a perfect 5-for-5 performance in Game 1, making him the sixth player to record five hits in one postseason game. The Yankees lost to the <a title=\"Detroit Tigers\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Detroit_Tigers\">Detroit Tigers<\/a>, three games to one<sup>.<\/sup><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Many expected Jeter would win the AL MVP Award for 2006.<sup>\u00a0 <\/sup>In a close vote, Jeter finished second in the voting to <a title=\"Justin Morneau\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Justin_Morneau\">Justin Morneau<\/a> of the Twins.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> It was his sixth top-10 finish in the MVP balloting in 11 full seasons through 2006. Though he lost the MVP Award, he won the <a title=\"Hank Aaron Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hank_Aaron_Award\">Hank Aaron Award<\/a>, given for superior offensive performance.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He also won his third consecutive Gold Glove Award.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_on_Aug_3_2007.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/b\/b7\/Derek_Jeter_on_Aug_3_2007.jpg\/170px-Derek_Jeter_on_Aug_3_2007.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" data-file-width=\"333\" data-file-height=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>During the <a title=\"2007 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2007_New_York_Yankees_season\">2007 season<\/a>, Jeter was third in the AL with 203 hits, his third consecutive season and sixth overall, with at least 200 hits. He also finished ninth in batting average (.322).<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He was selected for his eighth All-Star appearance.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> In the field, he was involved in turning a career-high 104 <a title=\"Double play\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Double_play\">double plays<\/a>. He struggled during the <a title=\"2007 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2007_American_League_Division_Series\">2007 ALDS<\/a>, batting<\/strong> <strong>3-for-17 (.176) with one RBI, as the Indians<\/strong> <strong>defeated the Yankees.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter hit his 400th career double on June 27, 2008,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> and his 200th home run on July 12. Jeter&#8217;s <a title=\"Slugging percentage\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Slugging_percentage\">slugging percentage<\/a> (SLG) dropped to .410 in the <a title=\"2008 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2008_New_York_Yankees_season\">2008 season<\/a>, his lowest mark since 1997. His offense took an upward turn after May as he hit .322 with a .824 OPS after June 1.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter was elected to his <a title=\"2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2008_Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game\">ninth All-Star game<\/a> as the starting shortstop. He finished the season with a .300 batting average.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter tied <a title=\"Lou Gehrig\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lou_Gehrig\">Lou Gehrig<\/a>&#8216;s record for hits at <a title=\"Yankee Stadium (1923)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Yankee_Stadium_%281923%29\">Yankee Stadium<\/a> (1,269) with a home run off <a title=\"Tampa Bay Rays\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tampa_Bay_Rays\">Tampa Bay Rays<\/a> pitcher <a title=\"David Price (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/David_Price_%28baseball%29\">David Price<\/a> on September 14, 2008. On September 16, he broke the record against <a title=\"Chicago White Sox\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chicago_White_Sox\">Chicago White Sox<\/a> pitcher <a title=\"Gavin Floyd\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gavin_Floyd\">Gavin Floyd<\/a>. Following the final game in Yankee Stadium history, Jeter made a speech at the request of the Yankees, thanking the Yankees fans for their support\u2014a moment later voted by fans as the Moment of the Year in MLB.com&#8217;s This Year in Baseball Awards:<\/strong><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"templatequote\">\n<blockquote class=\"templatequote\"><p><strong>&#8220;From all of us up here, it&#8217;s a huge honor to put this uniform on every day and come out here and play. Every member of this organization, past and present, has been calling this place home for 85 years. There&#8217;s a lot of tradition, a lot of history and a lot of memories. The great thing about memories is you&#8217;re able to pass them along from generation to generation. Although things are going to change next year and we&#8217;re going to move across the street, there are a few things with the New York Yankees that never change. That&#8217;s pride, tradition and most of all, we have the greatest fans in the world. We&#8217;re relying on you to take the memories from this stadium and add them to the new memories we make at the new Yankee Stadium and continue to pass them on from generation to generation. We just want to take this moment to salute you, the greatest fans in the world.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>For the <a title=\"2009 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2009_New_York_Yankees_season\">2009 season<\/a>, Yankees <a title=\"Manager (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Manager_%28baseball%29\">manager<\/a> <a title=\"Joe Girardi\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joe_Girardi\">Joe Girardi<\/a> switched Jeter and Damon in the batting order, with Damon moving<\/strong> <strong>to second and Jeter to the leadoff role.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter batted .334, third-best in the AL, with a .406 OBP, 18 home runs, 30 stolen bases in 35 attempts, 107 runs scored, and 212 hits (second in MLB). Defensively, Jeter committed a career-low eight errors, and his .986 fielding percentage was his career best.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> The addition of Gold Glove-winning <a title=\"First baseman\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/First_baseman\">first baseman<\/a> <a title=\"Mark Teixeira\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mark_Teixeira\">Mark Teixeira<\/a> allowed <a title=\"Second baseman\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Second_baseman\">second baseman<\/a> <a title=\"Robinson Can\u00f3\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Robinson_Can%C3%B3\">Robinson Can\u00f3<\/a> to shift his focus to his right, helping Jeter. During the season, the <i><a title=\"Sporting News\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sporting_News\">Sporting News<\/a><\/i> named Jeter eighth on their list of the 50 greatest current players in baseball.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_Hit_-2722_edit.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/e\/e5\/Derek_Jeter_Hit_-2722_edit.jpg\/170px-Derek_Jeter_Hit_-2722_edit.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a white baseball uniform with navy pinstripes removes his helmet to salute the crowd, which is cheering for him.\" width=\"170\" height=\"254\" data-file-width=\"1731\" data-file-height=\"2591\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter achieved two career hit milestones in the second half of the 2009 season. On August 16, 2009, against the <a title=\"Seattle Mariners\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Seattle_Mariners\">Seattle Mariners<\/a>, Jeter doubled down the right-field line for his 2,675th hit as a shortstop, breaking <a title=\"Luis Aparicio\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Luis_Aparicio\">Luis Aparicio<\/a>&#8216;s previous major league record. Then, Jeter became the all-time hits leader as a member of the Yankees (2,722), passing <a title=\"Lou Gehrig\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lou_Gehrig\">Lou Gehrig<\/a> on September 11, 2009. The hit was a single off Baltimore Orioles pitcher <a title=\"Chris Tillman\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chris_Tillman\">Chris Tillman<\/a> in the third inning.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In the 2009 postseason, Jeter batted .355, including .407 in the <a title=\"2009 World Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2009_World_Series\">2009 World Series<\/a>, as he won his fifth World Series championship. He was named <a title=\"Sportsman of the Year\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sportsman_of_the_Year\">Sportsman of the Year<\/a> for 2009 by <i><a title=\"Sports Illustrated\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sports_Illustrated\">Sports Illustrated<\/a><\/i>, and won the <a title=\"Roberto Clemente Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Roberto_Clemente_Award\">Roberto Clemente Award<\/a>, <a title=\"Hank Aaron Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hank_Aaron_Award\">Hank Aaron Award<\/a>, and his fourth Gold Glove Award.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter also finished third in the AL MVP voting, behind Minnesota&#8217;s <a title=\"Joe Mauer\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joe_Mauer\">Joe Mauer<\/a> and Yankee teammate <a title=\"Mark Teixeira\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mark_Teixeira\">Mark Teixeira<\/a>. It was also the fifth championship for Pettitte, Posada, and Rivera, who along with Jeter were referred to as the &#8220;<a title=\"Core Four\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Core_Four\">Core Four<\/a>&#8220;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In 2010, Jeter, along with Posada and Rivera, became the first trio of teammates in any of the four major league sports in North America (MLB, <a title=\"National Football League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Football_League\">NFL<\/a>, <a title=\"National Basketball Association\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Basketball_Association\">NBA<\/a>, or <a title=\"National Hockey League\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Hockey_League\">NHL<\/a>) to play in at least 16 consecutive seasons on the same team as teammates.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> The <a title=\"2010 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2010_New_York_Yankees_season\">2010 season<\/a> was statistically Jeter&#8217;s worst in many respects.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> The Yankee captain batted .270 with a .340 OBP and .370 SLG, all career lows, as he hit more ground balls than usual.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Despite this, Jeter was elected to start at shortstop in the All-Star Game.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He rebounded to bat\u00a0.342 in his last 79\u00a0at-bats after making adjustments to his swing with the help of <a title=\"Kevin Long (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kevin_Long_%28baseball%29\">Kevin Long<\/a>, the Yankees hitting coach, who had successfully helped <a title=\"Nick Swisher\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nick_Swisher\">Nick Swisher<\/a> and <a title=\"Curtis Granderson\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Curtis_Granderson\">Curtis Granderson<\/a> make adjustments that improved their production. With Long, Jeter changed the way he strode with his left leg.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Following the season, Jeter won his fifth Gold Glove award. Jeter committed six errors during the season, his lowest total in 15 full seasons.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>After the 2010 season, Jeter became a <a title=\"Free agent\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Free_agent\">free agent<\/a> for the first time in his career. At age 36, Jeter reached an agreement with the Yankees on a three-year contract for $51\u00a0million with an option for a fourth year.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He spent the offseason working with Long on adjustments to his swing.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter broke <a title=\"Rickey Henderson\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rickey_Henderson\">Rickey Henderson<\/a>&#8216;s franchise record for stolen bases when he stole his 327th base against the Mariners on May 28, 2011.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He suffered a calf injury on June 13 that required his fifth stint on the 15-day <a title=\"Disabled list\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Disabled_list\">disabled list<\/a>, and his first since 2003. At that point, he was batting .260 for the <a title=\"2011 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2011_New_York_Yankees_season\">2011 season<\/a> with a .649\u00a0OPS.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Rehabilitating from his injury in Tampa, Jeter worked on his swing with Denbo, his former minor league manager. With Denbo, Jeter returned to the mechanics he used in his minor league days Following his activation from the disabled list, he hit .326 with an .806 OPS in his last 64 games of the season.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter finished the year with a .297 batting average, 6 home runs, 61 runs batted in, 84 runs, and 16 stolen bases. He credited the turnaround to his work with Denbo;<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Long acknowledged that his attempt to adjust Jeter&#8217;s swing did not work.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Jeter_crosses_home_plate_after_3000th_CROP.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/d\/d9\/Jeter_crosses_home_plate_after_3000th_CROP.jpg\/250px-Jeter_crosses_home_plate_after_3000th_CROP.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a white baseball uniform with navy pinstripes and the number &quot;2&quot; on the back of his uniform runs towards home plate, while his teammates run to meet him to celebrate.\" width=\"250\" height=\"179\" data-file-width=\"2189\" data-file-height=\"1568\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>On July 9, 2011, Jeter recorded his 3,000th career hit, a home run off of <a title=\"David Price (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/David_Price_%28baseball%29\">David Price<\/a> of the <a title=\"Tampa Bay Rays\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tampa_Bay_Rays\">Tampa Bay Rays<\/a>. Jeter finished the day with five hits in five at-bats, the second player to have five hits on the day he achieved his 3,000th hit The last of Jeter&#8217;s five hits proved to be the game-winning hit. He is the only member of the <a title=\"3,000 hit club\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/3,000_hit_club\">3,000 hit club<\/a> to record all of his hits with the <a title=\"New York Yankees\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_Yankees\">New York Yankees<\/a>, and the only player to join the club as a Yankee Jeter became the second player to reach 3,000 career hits while still a regular <a title=\"Shortstop\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Shortstop\">shortstop<\/a> (the first was <a title=\"Honus Wagner\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Honus_Wagner\">Honus Wagner<\/a>).<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Only <a title=\"Ty Cobb\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ty_Cobb\">Ty Cobb<\/a>, <a title=\"Hank Aaron\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hank_Aaron\">Hank Aaron<\/a>, and <a title=\"Robin Yount\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Robin_Yount\">Robin Yount<\/a> were younger than Jeter on the day of their 3,000th hit.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> MLB and <a title=\"HBO\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/HBO\">HBO<\/a> produced <i>Deter Jeter 3K<\/i>, a documentary that profiled his path to 3,000 hits and originally aired on July 28, 2011.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Fatigued from the stress of chasing 3,000 career hits and wanting to rest his calf, Jeter opted not to attend the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"2011 MLB All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2011_MLB_All-Star_Game\">2011 MLB All-Star Game<\/a>.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter and Posada played their 1,660th game together on July 14, 2011, breaking the previous franchise record of 1,659 by Gehrig and <a title=\"Tony Lazzeri\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tony_Lazzeri\">Tony Lazzeri<\/a>. Jeter played his 2,402nd game with the Yankees on August 29, 2011, breaking <a title=\"Mickey Mantle\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mickey_Mantle\">Mickey Mantle<\/a>&#8216;s record for most <a title=\"Games played\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Games_played\">games played<\/a> as a Yankee.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He finished the 2011 season with 162 hits, his 16th consecutive season with 150 hits, which tied him with <a title=\"Pete Rose\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pete_Rose\">Pete Rose<\/a> for the second-most consecutive 150-hit seasons, one behind <a title=\"Hank Aaron\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hank_Aaron\">Hank Aaron<\/a> for the MLB record. Jeter was honored with the <a title=\"Lou Gehrig Memorial Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lou_Gehrig_Memorial_Award\">Lou Gehrig Memorial Award<\/a>, given in recognition of charitable endeavors.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Despite continuing concerns about his age, the beginning of the <a title=\"2012 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2012_New_York_Yankees_season\">2012 season<\/a> saw Jeter on a hot streak: he batted .411 through April 23. Rodriguez commented that Jeter is playing as he did in 1999, while Girardi said Jeter looks like he is 25 years old.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> In the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"2012 MLB All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2012_MLB_All-Star_Game\">2012 MLB All-Star Game<\/a>, Jeter recorded his eleventh All-Star hit, passing Mantle for the most All-Star Game hits in Yankees history<sup>.\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter went 1-for-2 in the game, moving into fourth all-time with a .458 average among players with a minimum of 12 plate appearances in the All-Star Game.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter finished the 2012 season with the most hits in MLB (216). Against the Tampa Bay Rays on September 14 of that year, he moved into the Top 10 on the all-time hit list, surpassing <a title=\"Willie Mays\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Willie_Mays\">Willie Mays<\/a> by beating out an infield single for his 3,284th career hit. After hitting .364 in the <a title=\"2012 American League Division Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2012_American_League_Division_Series\">2012 ALDS<\/a>, Jeter fractured his left ankle during Game 1 of the <a title=\"2012 American League Championship Series\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2012_American_League_Championship_Series\">2012 ALCS<\/a> against the <a title=\"Detroit Tigers\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Detroit_Tigers\">Detroit Tigers<\/a> reaching for a ground ball, an injury which ended his season. Jeter had received a <a title=\"Cortisone\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cortisone\">cortisone<\/a> shot to treat a bone bruise in his left foot in September, which could have contributed to the break. Jeter had surgery on<\/strong> his broken left <strong>ankle on October 20, with an expected recovery time of four to five months.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>While rehabilitating, Jeter suffered a small crack in the area of his previous ankle fracture. As a result, Jeter began the 2013 season on the disabled list. The Yankees activated Jeter on July 11,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> but after playing in one game, Jeter returned to the disabled list with a <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Quadriceps\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Quadriceps\">quadriceps<\/a> strain. He returned to the Yankees lineup on July 28, hitting a home run on the first pitch off of <a title=\"Matt Moore (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Matt_Moore_%28baseball%29\">Matt Moore<\/a> of Tampa Bay. Jeter was again placed on the 15-day disabled list on August 5 due to a Grade 1 <a title=\"Calf (anatomy)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Calf_%28anatomy%29\">calf<\/a> <a title=\"Strain (injury)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Strain_%28injury%29\">strain<\/a>, and after a brief return to the lineup, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list for a third time on September 11 due to problems with his ankle, ending his season. On September 14, 2013 Jeter was transferred to the 60-day disabled list. Jeter batted .190 in only 17 games played during the 2013 season.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter re-signed with the Yankees on a one-year, $12 million contract for the 2014 season. Jeter announced on his <a title=\"Facebook\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Facebook\">Facebook<\/a> page on February 12, 2014, that the <a title=\"2014 New York Yankees season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2014_New_York_Yankees_season\">2014 season<\/a> would be his last.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> During his final season, each opposing team honored Jeter with a gift during his final visit to their city, which has included donations to Jeter&#8217;s charity, the <a title=\"Turn 2 Foundation\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Turn_2_Foundation\">Turn 2 Foundation<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_Fan_%2814462795718%29.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/b\/b6\/Derek_Jeter_Fan_%2814462795718%29.jpg\/200px-Derek_Jeter_Fan_%2814462795718%29.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with brown hair wearing a navy blue hat and navy blue shirt holds a sign to her right with the word &quot;DEREK&quot; at the top left, the word &quot;JETER&quot; at the bottom right, and a navy blue circle with navy blue vertical stripes and the number 2 inside it in the center.\" width=\"200\" height=\"174\" data-file-width=\"2104\" data-file-height=\"1830\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\u00a0<strong>On July 10, Jeter recorded his 1,000th career multi-hit game, becoming the fourth player to do so.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He was elected to start at shortstop in the <a title=\"2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2014_Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game\">2014 All-Star Game<\/a>, and batted leadoff for the AL.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter went 2 for 2, scored one run and received two standing ovations in the four innings he played at the 2014 All-Star Game. As a result, Jeter&#8217;s .481 career All-Star batting average (13 for 27) ranked him fifth all-time (among players with at least 10 at-bats). At 40, Jeter also became the oldest player to have two or more hits in an All-Star Game. In July, Jeter broke <a title=\"Omar Vizquel\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Omar_Vizquel\">Omar Vizquel<\/a>&#8216;s MLB career record of 2,609 games started at <a title=\"Shortstop\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Shortstop\">shortstop<\/a>, and Gehrig&#8217;s franchise career record of 534 doubles. On July 17, Derek scored the 1,900th run of his career becoming the 10th player in MLB history to do so.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter passed <a title=\"Carl Yastrzemski\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Carl_Yastrzemski\">Carl Yastrzemski<\/a> for seventh place on MLB&#8217;s all-time career hit list on July 28<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> and on August 11 he passed <a title=\"Honus Wagner\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Honus_Wagner\">Honus Wagner<\/a> climbing to sixth on the all-time hits list.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>The Yankees honored Jeter with a pregame tribute on September 7.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Beginning with that day&#8217;s game, the Yankees wore a patch on their hats and uniforms honoring Jeter for the remainder of the season. In the final week of Jeter&#8217;s career, MLB Commissioner <a title=\"Bud Selig\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bud_Selig\">Bud Selig<\/a> honored him as the 15th recipient of the <a title=\"Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Commissioner%27s_Historic_Achievement_Award\">Commissioner&#8217;s Historic Achievement Award<\/a> for being &#8220;one of the most accomplished shortstops of all-time&#8221;.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>During Jeter&#8217;s final <a title=\"Series (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Series_%28baseball%29\">series<\/a> at Yankee Stadium, <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Louisville Slugger\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Louisville_Slugger\">Louisville Slugger<\/a> announced they would retire their &#8220;P72&#8221; model <a title=\"Baseball bat\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baseball_bat\">baseball bat<\/a>, the bat Jeter uses, though it will be sold under the name &#8220;DJ2&#8221;, in Jeter&#8217;s honor. The average ticket price for Jeter&#8217;s final home game, on September 25, reached $830 on the <a title=\"Secondary market\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Secondary_market\">secondary market<\/a>. In his final game at Yankee Stadium, Jeter hit a <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Walk-off hit\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Walk-off_hit\">walk-off<\/a> single against <a title=\"2014 Baltimore Orioles season\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2014_Baltimore_Orioles_season\">Orioles<\/a> pitcher <a title=\"Evan Meek\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Evan_Meek\">Evan Meek<\/a> to win the game, 6\u20135. Jeter decided to play exclusively as the <a title=\"Designated hitter\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Designated_hitter\">designated hitter<\/a> in the final series of his career, at <a title=\"Fenway Park\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fenway_Park\">Fenway Park<\/a> in Boston, so that his final memories of playing shortstop would be at Yankee Stadium.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> In his final at-bat, he hit an RBI infield single against <a title=\"Clay Buchholz\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Clay_Buchholz\">Clay Buchholz<\/a>, before being substituted for pinch runner <a title=\"Brian McCann (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Brian_McCann_%28baseball%29\">Brian McCann<\/a>; he received a rare ovation from the Red Sox fans as he exited the field.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter started at shortstop for the <a title=\"United States national baseball team\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_national_baseball_team\">United States national baseball team<\/a> in the <a title=\"2006 World Baseball Classic\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2006_World_Baseball_Classic\">2006 World Baseball Classic<\/a>. He hit 9-for-20 (.450) and scored five runs in six games. Only teammate <a title=\"Ken Griffey, Jr.\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ken_Griffey,_Jr.\">Ken Griffey, Jr.<\/a> (.524) and <a title=\"Cuba national baseball team\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cuba_national_baseball_team\">Cuba&#8217;s<\/a> <a title=\"Yoandy Garlobo\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Yoandy_Garlobo\">Yoandy Garlobo<\/a> (.480) had a higher batting average with a minimum of 20 at-bats.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter&#8217;s play earned him recognition as the shortstop selection on the All-Tournament Team.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In the <a title=\"2009 World Baseball Classic\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2009_World_Baseball_Classic\">2009 World Baseball Classic<\/a>, Jeter again started at shortstop. He was named captain of the United States team by manager <a title=\"Davey Johnson\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Davey_Johnson\">Davey Johnson<\/a>, and he batted 8-for-29 (.276) in eight games.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Jeter and the United States team faced the Yankees at <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Steinbrenner Field\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Steinbrenner_Field\">Steinbrenner Field<\/a> in an exhibition game, the only time Jeter played against the Yankees.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter is considered to be one of the most consistent baseball players of all time.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He has played fewer than 148 games a season only three times in his career: when he dislocated his left shoulder on Opening Day 2003 (119 games), when he injured his calf in 2011 (131 games), and in 2013 when he struggled with a myriad of injuries (17 games). Through the 2010 season, he averaged 194 <a title=\"Hit (baseball)\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hit_%28baseball%29\">hits<\/a>, 118 <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Runs scored\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Runs_scored\">runs scored<\/a> and 23 <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Stolen bases\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Stolen_bases\">stolen bases<\/a> per year over the course of 152 games played. He is currently 6th on the all-time hits list in Major League Baseball history\u00a0 Highly competitive, Jeter once said, &#8220;If you&#8217;re going to play at all, you&#8217;re out to win. I hate to lose.&#8221; Seen as one of the best players of his generation, sportswriters believe that Jeter will be inducted on the 1st ballot into the <a title=\"National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Baseball_Hall_of_Fame_and_Museum\">Baseball Hall of Fame<\/a> following his retirement, and could be a unanimous selection.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"quotebox\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;Derek Jeter has always been above the fray. As someone who&#8217;s wallowed in it, &#8216;foot-in-mouthed&#8217; it hundreds of times, said dumb things and backed up dumber ones, it&#8217;s refreshing.\u00a0 He&#8217;s shown up, played, and turned in a first-ballot Hall of Fame career in the hardest environment in sports to do all of the above.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>An aggressive hitter, Jeter swings at most pitches in the strike zone, and many near it. Though right-handed hitters often pull the ball into left field, Jeter&#8217;s signature inside-out swing, dubbed the &#8220;Jeterian Swing&#8221;,<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> results in most of his hits going to center and right field. Similarly, most of his home runs have been hit to right field than to center or to left, as his swing takes advantage of Yankee Stadium&#8217;s close right-field fences.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter is also known for his professionalism. In an age where professional athletes often find themselves in personal scandals, Jeter has mostly avoided major controversy in a high profile career in New York City while maintaining a strong work ethic.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> Due to his style of play, opponents and teammates hold Jeter in high esteem.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> A clubhouse leader, Jeter defuses confrontations between teammates.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter is noted for his postseason performances, and has earned the titles of &#8220;Captain <a title=\"Clutch hitter\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Clutch_hitter\">Clutch<\/a>&#8220;, and &#8220;Mr. November&#8221; due to his outstanding postseason play.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He has a career .309 postseason batting average, and a .321 batting average in the World Series. Except for 2008, 2013 and 2014, the Yankees have been to the postseason every year since Jeter joined the team. Jeter holds MLB postseason records for <a title=\"Games played\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Games_played\">games played<\/a> (158), <a title=\"Plate appearance\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Plate_appearance\">plate appearances<\/a> (734), at-bats (650), hits (200), singles (143), doubles (32), triples (5), runs scored (111), total bases (302) and strikeouts (135). Jeter is also third in home runs (20), fourth in runs batted in (61), fifth in base on balls (66) and sixth stolen bases (18).<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_pregame_ground_balls_2011.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/e\/ea\/Derek_Jeter_pregame_ground_balls_2011.jpg\/220px-Derek_Jeter_pregame_ground_balls_2011.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a blue baseball uniform with &quot;New York&quot; written on the front in grey letters and a navy hat with white letters &quot;N&quot; and &quot;Y&quot; interlocking prepares to catch a ground ball with his baseball glove.\" width=\"220\" height=\"227\" data-file-width=\"1996\" data-file-height=\"2062\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Jeter has won five <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Gold Glove Award\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gold_Glove_Award\">Gold Glove Awards<\/a> at shortstop.<sup>\u00a0<\/sup> He is credited with positioning himself well and for a quick release when he throws the ball.<sup>\u00a0 <\/sup>One of his signature defensive plays is the &#8220;jump-throw&#8221;, by which he leaps and throws to first base while moving towards third base.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jeter maintains homes in <a title=\"Marlboro Township, New Jersey\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Marlboro_Township,_New_Jersey\">Marlboro Township, New Jersey<\/a>; <a title=\"Greenwood Lake, New York\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Greenwood_Lake,_New_York\">Greenwood Lake, New York <\/a>and the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Davis Islands, Tampa, Florida\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Davis_Islands,_Tampa,_Florida\">Davis Islands<\/a> neighborhood of <a title=\"Tampa, Florida\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tampa,_Florida\">Tampa, Florida<\/a>.<sup>\u00a0 <\/sup>Jeter established his residence in Tampa, Florida, in 1994 and that he was still a resident of Florida at the time. <\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tleft\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Derek_Jeter_2007_in_Baltimore.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/3\/3b\/Derek_Jeter_2007_in_Baltimore.jpg\/170px-Derek_Jeter_2007_in_Baltimore.jpg\" alt=\"Derek Jeter wearing a navy hat and grey baseball uniform with a black glove stares into the distance.\" width=\"170\" height=\"195\" data-file-width=\"1741\" data-file-height=\"2000\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>In December 2002, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner criticized Jeter for staying out until 3 a.m. at a birthday party during the 2002 season, saying that his star shortstop &#8220;wasn&#8217;t totally focused&#8221; and that &#8220;it didn&#8217;t sit well&#8221; with him. The two mocked the incident in a May 2003 <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"VISA\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/VISA\">VISA<\/a> commercial, similar to the manner in which Steinbrenner and former Yankees manager <a title=\"Billy Martin\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Billy_Martin\">Billy Martin<\/a> made light of their feud in a <a title=\"Miller Lite\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Miller_Lite\">Miller Lite<\/a> commercial during the 1970s.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>During his injury-shortened 2013 season, Jeter arranged a partnership with <a title=\"Simon &amp; Schuster\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Simon_%26_Schuster\">Simon &amp; Schuster<\/a> to form an <a title=\"Imprint\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Imprint\">imprint<\/a> called Jeter Publishing. He called it &#8220;the blueprint for postcareer&#8221;. It will begin publishing nonfiction books for adults, children\u2019s picture books, elementary grade fiction, and books for children who are learning to read, and could lead to film and television productions.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>On October 1, 2014, Jeter announced the creation of a new webste, ThePlayersTribune.com. Billed as &#8220;a new media platform that will present the unfiltered voice of professional athletes, bringing fans closer to the game than ever before&#8221; Derek wrote that the site will be revealed on October 2, 2014.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumb tright\">\n<div class=\"thumbinner\">\n<p><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:JeterSmilingt.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"thumbimage\" src=\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/9\/90\/JeterSmilingt.JPG\/180px-JeterSmilingt.JPG\" alt=\"A man in a navy helmet and navy windbreaker smiles while talking to someone dressed in the same uniform who is turned away from the camera.\" width=\"180\" height=\"238\" data-file-width=\"906\" data-file-height=\"1200\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"thumbcaption\">\n<div class=\"magnify\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<p><strong>DEREK JETER <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>FROM THE MYBOYSAY MLB SPORTS ENTHUSIASTS, &#8220;HEY FELLAS&#8221;, HE&#8217;S THE BEST IN HIS GENERATION, THE BEST YANKEE SHORTSTOP, NO DOUBT, AND A SURE BET NO.1 BALLOT HALL OF FAMER IN 2019!!!!!<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>LET US INTRODUCE YOU TO MR DEREK JETER, THE MLB SURGEON!!!! Derek Sanderson Jeter (born June 26, 1974) is an American former professional baseball shortstop who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees. A five-time World Series champion, Jeter is regarded as a central figure of the Yankees&#8217; success [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[330,11,8,13,107,14,1,12,7,9,10],"tags":[753,685,466,373,375,351,754,382,755],"class_list":["post-9927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-basketball-sports","category-business","category-entertainment","category-health","category-mlb-sports-news","category-most-commented","category-news","category-scitech","category-sports","category-us","category-world","tag-2014-mlb-season","tag-derek-jeter","tag-future-mlb-hall-of-fame","tag-mlb-a-l-pennant-playoffs","tag-mlb-alds","tag-mlb-hall-of-fame","tag-mlb-most-valuable-shortstop-ever","tag-mlb-world-series","tag-mybosaynations-most-valuable-short-stop-of-all-time","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9927"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9927\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}