WRITERS WRITE & PLAYERS PLAY. JETER'S BACK IN 2014

Sports writers write.  Players play. There is a major difference.  Sports Writers sit behind a computer and criticize or praise things that happen on the field and make a determination of whether or not it was a good play, or smart move and then offer backhanded compliments. They attach catchy headlines to it and then people buy their rag.  Players bust their ass on the field for hours... and have done it since they were kids in little league.  Some get hurt, some never do, but they compile stats throughout their career.  Then, once again, the sports writers will critique whether or not the player is "good enough" to be a Hall of Famer.  Meanwhile... 80% of those writers have never done anything that made them sweat in their life.

I have played baseball.  Not professionally, but I understand the way things go and the way athletes think. I also understand the hard work. I love the game and when I played, I played hard, because that's what you are supposed  to do. Many writers have never picked up a bat.

I'm also a writer.  I also think that it's absolutely ridiculous to act like we writers can get into the heads of players and know what they are thinking or how they should feel.  After all, it's the player that's busting ass for years and knows his limitations of whether or not they can play longer.

Enter Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com and, the Cap, Derek Jeter.  How often are those 2 names in the same sentence? Hopefully never. Anyway, one thing is clear...  Jon Heyman needs to shut his hole.

This is the headline of Heyman's piece from September 11th, titled, Jeter's had perfect career, doesn't need to hang on one more year. The headline alone annoys me, but this is what he wrote:

"Jeter will turn 40 next year, an age at which 99 percent of shortstops are retired. Only Luke Appling and Barry Larkin had seasons at 40 that come close to Jeter's standard, and really only Appling. Larkin hit .289 in 346 at-bats at age 40 in 2004 for the Reds. Appling hit .300-plus at age 40 and again at age 42... There's no indication at all that Jeter is seriously thinking about retiring, and you just know he's not going to want to go out like this. He saw his friend Andy Pettitte return from retirement, and even a year off, and he saw him generally perform well this year at age 40, well enough to go 10-9 and help keep the Yankees afloat in a wild-card race still open. And Jeter saw Rivera return after a serious knee injury to perform very well -- and become the All-Star Game MVP -- at age 43. 

But Jeter had an even worse injury, and he plays shortstop. This is a whole different story, a whole different ballgame. It would make a nice story to see Jeter find any shortstop success at 40, and maybe join Larkin and Appling as the third to do it. But it would be a pretty nice story, too, if he went out with his good friend Rivera rather than try to hang on another year in an attempt to prove something that isn't necessary."

Look, I hate that last statement..."something that isn't necessary." To whom, Jon... to you? Please. Players know their limitations, this is true. Writers think about what others should do.  I find that ridiculous. Sure, you hear stories about Willie Mays hanging around the game too long, but you hear more about all the great things he did when he was in his prime.  If Derek Jeter wants to play until he's 52 years old and the Yankees want to sign him, what the hell does it matter to Jon Heyman?  It's Derek's occupation, not Jon's.  How would Heyman like it if Jeter kept asking when Heyman was going to go away? (He'd probably be excited because someone famous noticed him.)

Derek Jeter is the Captain. He's one of the best damn Yankees we have seen in this generation.  There are plenty of opinions out there, but this is what I know;  As a Yankee... as a champion... and much like Mariano Rivera.... Jeter will not go out like this.  He will be back in 2014 and he will try and win yet another championship.  Why? I'll tell you. Because Derek Jeter is a competitor.  He's a winner. He's a Yankee... he's not a writer.  You feel me?

Writing about how others should handle their own career and lives is ridiculous. Thanks anyway mom... Jeet's got this.

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