Shortstop showstopper

I realized this week that New York Yankees shortstop, Derek Jeter, is truly a legend.

I'll admit I'm a pretty new baseball fan, and while I don't cheer for the Yanks or live in the Big Apple, I love watching Jeter.

Besides the numbers, he has that Michael Jordan quality—you just have to watch him. He's exciting because he can influence a game single-handedly, like Bird or Gretzky or The Babe. Something not many can claim.

These days, athletes are propped up and torn down in a blink, but some just continue at a steady, brilliant pace. Some—a few, really.

Then there are, of course, the numbers. Through his last 10 games, just for example, Jeter has 14 hits in 40 at-bats for a tidy .350 average. It was also his bat last night against the Atlanta Braves—as it is nearly every night—that sparked the Yankee offense to yet another win. All in a day's work.

How about in his career's work?


There are too many Jeter stats that wow but take a look at these Hall of Fame-type figures. Jeter is only the second player in Yankee history to have as many as four 200-hit seasons, joining Lou Gehrig (who had eight). He ranks fifth on the all-time Yankees list with a .314 batting average behind only Hall of Famers Babe Ruth (.349), Lou Gehrig (.340), Earle Combs (.325) and Joe DiMaggio (.325).

Just for good measure, he played 1,400 games with 1,775 career hits, the most by any player through that many games since Kirby Puckett had 1,830. Over 1,500 games he amassed 1,906 hits and 1,140 runs. The last player in the Major Leagues with as many hits and runs in his first 1,500 games was Joe DiMaggio.

The thing that impresses me most, however, is that numbers mean little to this guy. He just wants to win the game. He'll sprint, scoop, twist, contort, or throw an arm out just to collect a ground ball. He focuses every at-bat, running through the same routine like a photocopier. And he plays with a sense of joy. It's simply nice to watch.

Yesterday's game, on Jeter's 32nd birthday, was nothing out of the ordinary. But his career, as easy as it is to take for granted, continues to excel. Why pine for MJ, when we've still got DJ?