JETER SPEAKS: "I WILL BE GOOD TO GO!"

No Derek Jeter on Opening Day? Say it ain't so! Well….maybe “it ain't so!” It was hard to watch the Captain go down during game one of the ALCS. I know I felt like someone sucker punched me in the stomach and all of the air was sucked out of me as soon as I saw him grimace when he hit the ground. Opening Day would not be the same without him, but maybe we won’t even have to worry about that….cross your fingers.

Jeter is on the road to recovery, and while it is a slow process all signs indicate that he is right on schedule. Right now Derek Jeter is in a walking boot, and he will be for another six or seven weeks. It’s a good sign, and Brian Cashman doesn’t seem concerned either, “he’s going to be ready for us by Opening Day. He’ll be a restricted player early in camp but all indications are very strong for a healthy recovery,” read the rest HERE.

Cashman is confident that Jeter will be ready for the big day on April 1st, and so is Jeter. On Monday Jeter was a guest on “The Michael Kay show” and said that there was “no question” that he would be ready for Opening Day. You can read the rest of the interview HERE. I know that there is always the possibility that he won’t be ready. In baseball anything is possible. There is just something so convincing when Derek Jeter says something with conviction. It’s hard not to believe him. It’s hard not to just get sucked into that enthusiasm and go with that notion. Right now, I want to go with that notion and side with optimism. I wonder if I click my red heals three times and say “Jeter WILL be ready for Opening Day…” that it will actually happen. Either way, I have faith.

Derek Jeter is a gamer, he will always say that he is ready to play and he would never tell us any differently but to hear him talk about it brings back that excitement. He is like a superhero, he overcomes challenges and ends up doing the impossible, and I don’t think this will change any of that. Once the season gets underway he will be back to lead this team. I can’t imagine watching someone else jog out of the dugout and man that position…and I pray I don’t have to.

Jeter’s rehab progress isn’t the only thing that has been in question lately, last week Jeter was seen walking around in Miami. I’m sure you have heard the story but in case you haven’t a less than flattering looking picture was captured of him and pretty soon the story changed to how Jeter was supposedly overweight. Come on, we all have pictures like this, right? The point is the picture is out there, but that isn’t the story here. Right now his ankle isn’t in shape….that is the only story here. That is gossip, and since then we can see that Jeter isn’t letting himself go by any means. For those who missed it Harold Reynolds of MLB Network did take a picture with him since and there is the evidence….Jeter in a walking boot. Jeter and his ankle will be ready to go when the time comes.

There are a lot of questions right now that the Yankees are trying to solve. One thing that we can all take comfort in is that Derek Jeter is still as hungry and determined as ever. Jeter has never let anything stand in his way and this injury is no exception. It’s possible that Jeter isn’t ready in time? Sure….but if anyone can do it, Jeter can!

--Jeana Bellezza, BYB Writer and Editor

Twitter: @NyPrincessJ


Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.