In 2001 Whitey Ford (number 8 on our list) wrote a book called “Few and Chosen Yankees: Defining Yankee Greatness Across Eras”. In it, the Hall of Famer described his top five all-time Yankees at each position.
It
tells you all you need to know about Jeter that Ford would select him
as the organization’s best ever at his position. After all, Ford played
with Phil Rizzuto and yet chose Jeter, who had only been the team’s
starting shortstop for five seasons when the book was published.
In my lifetime (going on 50 years) I’ve never seen a smarter athlete.
In
the years since Curt Flood opened the doors of free agency, it has
become rare for a player to spend his entire career with one
organization. Even the richest of clubs have trouble holding on to
players that have climbed their way through the ranks to All-Star
status. As Yankee fans we know this all too well, don’t we Robinson Cano?
That’s what makes Derek Jeter so special, so iconic.
He
was called up from the Yankees minor league system for 15 games in
1995. In 1996 he was handed the Yankees starting shortstop job and
hasn’t relinquished it since.
That
first year he hit .314 and won Rookie of the Year while the team won
its first championship since 1978. During the playoffs Jeter hit .360.
It was only a sign of things to come.
As
we enter the 2014 season, “Jeets” is the proud owner of five World
Series rings, 13 All-Star appearances, five Gold Gloves and five Silver
Slugger awards. He holds a .312 lifetime batting average as well as a
.308 post season average. He has 3,316 career hits and is the first
player to hit a home run in November.
Jeter is the 13th captain in the history of the franchise and remains one of the faces of his sport.
Numbers and records only tell part of the story that is Derek Jeter.
His
calm, professional demeanor has raised the bar for what it means to be a
New York Yankee. It is one of the reasons why he will one day have his
number retired and bust in Cooperstown.
The
special memories Jeter has given Yankees’ fans are numerous. From the
famous “flip” play against Oakland in the playoffs to diving into the
stands to catch a foul ball against the Red Sox to hitting a game
deciding November home run in the Fall Classic, our captain always
appears to be at the right place at the right time. It’s a credit to
his athletic ability, hard work and baseball intellect.
As
Jeter comes to the sunset of his bright career, we as baseball fans
will realize just how privileged we have been to witness the brilliance
of the Yankees’ greatest shortstop.
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Last
season, as a result of a horrific ankle injury suffered in the 2012 AL
Championship, we caught a glimpse of life without Jeter in the Bronx.
It wasn’t pretty.
The team missed the playoffs for just the second time in the past 18 seasons and while the absence of Jeter wasn’t the sole reason for the failure, the club lacked the on-field leadership only number two could provide.
The team missed the playoffs for just the second time in the past 18 seasons and while the absence of Jeter wasn’t the sole reason for the failure, the club lacked the on-field leadership only number two could provide.
The
Yankees have undergone a face lift this off season with the additions of Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury and Carlos Beltran, but perhaps the most
important difference from last year will be that “Captain Clutch” is
going to return to his spot in the lineup and on the field.
Only
Jeter knows how many more summers he has in pinstripes, but one thing
is certain; we have been fortunate to watch one of baseball’s immortals
define an era.
--Steve Skinner, BYB Guest Writer
Twitter: @oswegos1
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