Low-key Jeter leads by example
Mark Herrmann
SPORTS COLUMNIST
Low-key Jeter leads by example
April 28, 2006
He does not have the American League Most Valuable Player plaque, as one of his teammates does. He did not have the winning hit last night, he did not have the lion's share of publicity this spring, he maybe does not have as much of his team's hopes on his shoulders as the closer does.
What Derek Jeter does have, though, is the Yankees in his hands.
No matter who they get or what those players do, this still is Jeter's team. He is the captain, the undisputed leader, the people's choice. He also happens to be batting .408.
"Man, he is in a zone," said Shawn Chacon, the winning pitcher who benefited from Jeter's three hits and a walk at Yankee Stadium last night. "You hope he stays that way for a long time."
No one expects Jeter to hit .400 for the season, but it is a sure bet that he is going to be the same Jeter tomorrow and July 4 and Oct. 1. In terms of personality, he is pretty much the same guy he was two years ago today, when he was in an 0-for-28 slide and batting .169. He is pretty much the same Jeter he was in 1996, only better.
"I go back and think of him as a 21-year-old kid," Joe Torre said, recalling 1996, his first year as manager and Jeter's first year as the starting shortstop. "How confident he was, and how he handled mistakes and misjudgments and stuff like that. I was very impressed.
"Derek has been very special here. High expectations as soon as he got here, replacing Tony Fernandez, an All-Star shortstop. He certainly has handled just about everything that was thrown at him."
Jeter went 3-for-3 last night, including the double that produced the final run in a 4-1 win over the Devil Rays. He and Torre were most taken by the walk he worked in the sixth inning against starter Mark Hendrickson, an at-bat that set up a three-run rally. Torre recalled that the young Jeter never would have been that selective.
The player sloughed it off. "I'm getting older," he said. "I can't swing as much."
He did admit that he is getting good at-bats. "When you get good at-bats, the hits will come," he said. But that was about it, in terms of ruminating. Introspection is not his thing.
"Nope. As soon as you do that, you don't get any more hits," said the man who is batting .591 on the current homestand, which continues tonight with a visit from the improved Blue Jays.
He does fine with honesty, even better with modesty, lousy with insight. Part of what makes him special is that he is able to shine while being so darned low-key. Fact is he still does stand out, which is no easy feat on this team.
Alex Rodriguez has the MVP plaque, which he received at the Yankees' request on the field before last night's game from Pete Caldera, chairman of the New York baseball writers chapter. Johnny Damon has had the lion's share of attention this year, and will get more as the Yankees visit his old team in Boston next week.
Hideki Matsui punched his way out of a slump with a key hit last night. Mariano Rivera secured the save, one night after he took his second loss of the season. Kyle Farnsworth threw 100 miles per hour.
And Jeter stole the show.
"When you watch him play, you see what he does on the field," said Chacon, who became a Yankee last summer. "Off the field, when you get over here, you see it's not about him getting on people and being that loud kind of leader. He leads by example. His energy, his positive attitude is contagious. He's just always trying to pick guys up, whether he has a good or bad night."
Jeter is a quietly commanding presence from that cubicle on the far side of the clubhouse, the one next to the permanently vacant locker of late captain Thurman Munson. It is where Jeter says stuff like this after he reaches .408: "We've only been playing a couple of weeks . . . It's really not any different than any other season . . . Everybody goes through stretches . . . "
"I don't overanalyze things like some guys do," he said.
No kidding. Might that just be part of the key to having such a handle on things?
"Probably," he said. Then he smiled and left.
SPORTS COLUMNIST
Low-key Jeter leads by example
April 28, 2006
He does not have the American League Most Valuable Player plaque, as one of his teammates does. He did not have the winning hit last night, he did not have the lion's share of publicity this spring, he maybe does not have as much of his team's hopes on his shoulders as the closer does.
What Derek Jeter does have, though, is the Yankees in his hands.
No matter who they get or what those players do, this still is Jeter's team. He is the captain, the undisputed leader, the people's choice. He also happens to be batting .408.
"Man, he is in a zone," said Shawn Chacon, the winning pitcher who benefited from Jeter's three hits and a walk at Yankee Stadium last night. "You hope he stays that way for a long time."
No one expects Jeter to hit .400 for the season, but it is a sure bet that he is going to be the same Jeter tomorrow and July 4 and Oct. 1. In terms of personality, he is pretty much the same guy he was two years ago today, when he was in an 0-for-28 slide and batting .169. He is pretty much the same Jeter he was in 1996, only better.
"I go back and think of him as a 21-year-old kid," Joe Torre said, recalling 1996, his first year as manager and Jeter's first year as the starting shortstop. "How confident he was, and how he handled mistakes and misjudgments and stuff like that. I was very impressed.
"Derek has been very special here. High expectations as soon as he got here, replacing Tony Fernandez, an All-Star shortstop. He certainly has handled just about everything that was thrown at him."
Jeter went 3-for-3 last night, including the double that produced the final run in a 4-1 win over the Devil Rays. He and Torre were most taken by the walk he worked in the sixth inning against starter Mark Hendrickson, an at-bat that set up a three-run rally. Torre recalled that the young Jeter never would have been that selective.
The player sloughed it off. "I'm getting older," he said. "I can't swing as much."
He did admit that he is getting good at-bats. "When you get good at-bats, the hits will come," he said. But that was about it, in terms of ruminating. Introspection is not his thing.
"Nope. As soon as you do that, you don't get any more hits," said the man who is batting .591 on the current homestand, which continues tonight with a visit from the improved Blue Jays.
He does fine with honesty, even better with modesty, lousy with insight. Part of what makes him special is that he is able to shine while being so darned low-key. Fact is he still does stand out, which is no easy feat on this team.
Alex Rodriguez has the MVP plaque, which he received at the Yankees' request on the field before last night's game from Pete Caldera, chairman of the New York baseball writers chapter. Johnny Damon has had the lion's share of attention this year, and will get more as the Yankees visit his old team in Boston next week.
Hideki Matsui punched his way out of a slump with a key hit last night. Mariano Rivera secured the save, one night after he took his second loss of the season. Kyle Farnsworth threw 100 miles per hour.
And Jeter stole the show.
"When you watch him play, you see what he does on the field," said Chacon, who became a Yankee last summer. "Off the field, when you get over here, you see it's not about him getting on people and being that loud kind of leader. He leads by example. His energy, his positive attitude is contagious. He's just always trying to pick guys up, whether he has a good or bad night."
Jeter is a quietly commanding presence from that cubicle on the far side of the clubhouse, the one next to the permanently vacant locker of late captain Thurman Munson. It is where Jeter says stuff like this after he reaches .408: "We've only been playing a couple of weeks . . . It's really not any different than any other season . . . Everybody goes through stretches . . . "
"I don't overanalyze things like some guys do," he said.
No kidding. Might that just be part of the key to having such a handle on things?
"Probably," he said. Then he smiled and left.
posted by Walking Contradiction at 5:20 AM
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