You can knock Jeter, but you can't forget him
You can knock Jeter, but you can't forget him
Ken Rosenthal / FOXSports.com
Posted: 11 days ago
Signature moments. You know the type. Plays that are instantly memorable, that stay with you for years.
Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter makes more of those plays than anyone else.
That's a subjective view — fire away, all you statistical analysts who want everything quantified in black and white — but is there anyone even close?
Jeter's teammate, Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, certainly isn't, which is one reason he continues to get booed at Yankee Stadium.
Unfair as it might to be A-Rod, the reigning American League MVP, some fans perceive him as a choker, particularly when compared to Jeter.
David Ortiz has produced some huge moments since joining the Red Sox in 2003 — eight regular-season walk-off hits, including five homers, plus his three walk-off hits in the '04 postseason, including two homers.
But Ortiz, a designated hitter, doesn't play defense.
Barry Bonds? You remember his milestone homers, maybe, and oh, yes — his failure to throw out the Braves' Sid Bream at the plate in Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series.
Ichiro? His spectacular laser throw from right field to nail the A's Terrence Long at third base heralded his arrival from Japan during his rookie season.
Albert Pujols? His monstrous home run off Brad Lidge in last year's NLCS was indelible, but so far, that's pretty much it.
Vladimir Guerrero? He does some cool stuff — hitting balls off his shoetops, things like that — but signature moments aren't his specialty.
They are for Jeter.
Of course, anything written or said about Jeter frequently ignites heated debate. He plays in the nation's media capital, New York, and for the game's richest team, the Yankees.
That alone gets a reaction.
Derek Jeter might be a little flawed defensively, but you can't deny he has had his share of shining moments with the Yankees. (Nick Laham / Getty Images)
Jeter recently was voted the most overrated player in Major League Baseball, according to a Sports Illustrated poll of 470 players. A new book, The Fielding Bible by John Dewan, shatters the myth that Jeter is an elite defensive shortstop.
His detractors say his legend outstrips his actual value, and they've got a point. Heck, Jeter might never have become Jeter if say, the Reds had selected him instead of outfielder Chad Mottola with the fifth pick of the 1992 draft. The Yankees grabbed Jeter out of Kalamazoo (Mich.) High School at No. 6.
Circumstances play into this, no doubt. But then, the Yankees wouldn't be the Yankees without Jeter, would they? Big-money players like Rodriguez, Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield come and go, but Jeter is the team's standard-bearer, elevating the club in ways that simply can't be measured.
The SI poll attracted more attention than it deserved; Jeter received only nine percent of the votes, a grand total of 42. What's more, part of the antipathy toward him surely is due to jealousy. A good number of players believe that Jeter, in the sixth year of a 10-year, $189 million contract, is overpaid.
The indictment of Jeter's defense in The Fielding Bible, based on exhaustive statistical research, is a far more serious matter. The book includes an essay by Bill James — yes, Red Sox executive Bill James — that explains why Astros shortstop Adam Everett is far superior to Jeter at short. James writes that, in the past three years, Jeter was "probably the least effective defensive player in the major leagues, at any position."
Wow.
Jeter fans can accuse James of bias, but for years statistical analysts have pointed out that Jeter makes fewer plays than most shortstops. At this point, it's virtually indisputable that on a day-to-day basis, he's a below-average defender. However, the counterargument also is powerful; Jeter invariably finds ways to help the Yankees win. Just watch him play.
OK, so Adam Everett is a better defender than Jeter; that's useful, enlightening information. But for heaven's sake, which shortstop would you rather have on your team?
Polarizing as the discussion has become, pretty much everyone can agree that Jeter has been delivering big plays at opportune moments from the start of his career.
Consider the following list of Jeter's top 10 signature moments. Out of respect to the Jeter Haters, each item includes an anti-Jeter spin — basically, what a Red Sox fan in a bar might say, wishing that just once, Jeter could play for the Olde Towne Team.
A star is born
Date: April 2, 1996.
Setting: Opening Day, Cleveland.
Intro: Amid concerns that he is not ready to take over as the Yankees' shortstop, as detailed in Joel Sherman's new book, Birth of a Dynasty, Jeter steps in for the injured Tony Fernandez. The previous season, Jeter had hit only two homers in 534 at-bats, playing mostly at Triple A and also with the Yankees.
Jeter moment: Actually, there are two. Jeter hits a solo homer off Dennis Martinez in the fifth inning to extend the Yankees' lead to 2-0. Two innings later, he makes an over-the-shoulder catch on a popup by Omar Vizquel to save a run.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Jeter looked brutal in the spring. He only made the team because Fernandez got hurt!"
Walk-off warrior
Date: April 5, 2005
Setting: Second game of regular season, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: In the first series between the Yankees and Red Sox since their epic seven-game ALCS in 2004, Yankees closer Mariano Rivera blows a save by allowing a one-out, game-tying homer in the ninth by Jason Varitek.
Jeter moment: Against Red Sox closer Keith Foulke, Jeter gets ahead in the count 3-0, then hits an opposite-field, walk-off homer on a 3-2 pitch.
Anti-Jeter spin: "No wonder Foulke is no longer the Sox's closer!"
Jeter had a big game in Game 2 against the Rangers in the 1996 ALDS. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
Trust me, Joe
Date: Oct. 2, 1996
Setting: Game 2, ALDS, Yankee Stadium
Intro: Under first-year manager Joe Torre, the Yankees are trying to win their first playoff series since 1981. They lose Game 1 with Jeter stranding six runners in his first postseason game. Afterward, Jeter playfully tells Torre to get a good night's sleep, saying the next game would be the most important of the manager's life.
Jeter moment: After the Yankees rally from a 4-1 deficit to force extra innings, Jeter leads off the 12th with a single, his third hit of the game. Tim Raines walks, and Jeter scores the winning run when third baseman Dean Palmer makes a throwing error on an attempted sacrifice by Charlie Hayes. The Yankees go on to win the series in four games and eventually win their first World Series since 1978.
Anti-Jeter spin: "The fix was in! Mike Stanton was the losing pitcher! He just wanted to pitch for the Yankees!"
Stanton signed with the Yankees following the 1996 season and pitched for them from 1997 to 2002.
Boosting the Rocket
Date: Oct. 14, 2000
Setting: Game 4, ALCS, Seattle.
Intro: The Yankees lead the series, two games to one. Roger Clemens buzzes the Mariners' Alex Rodriguez, then strikes out 15 in a one-hit, complete-game shutout.
Jeter moment: The game is scoreless with two outs in the fifth when the Yankees' Scott Brosius hits a single to right and Chuck Knoblauch draws a walk. Jeter follows with a three-run homer off Mariners right-hander Paul Abbott, the decisive blow in a 5-0 victory.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Like the Mariners would have scored off of Clemens, anyway."
Jeffrey Maier reaches over the wall to turn Jeter's flyball into a home run in 1996. (TIMOTHY CLARY / Getty Images)
Thank you, Jeffrey Maier
Date: Oct. 9, 1996.
Setting: Game 1, ALCS, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees trail 4-3 with one out in the eighth inning. Jeter faces Orioles right-hander Armando Benitez, who is poised to embark upon a career of big-game meltdowns.
Jeter moment: Flyball to right, Tony Tarasco under it ... the ball disappears! Maier, 12, reaches over the wall and becomes a New York legend. Umpire Richie Garcia rules home run instead of fan interference and Bernie Williams hits a game-winning homer off Randy Myers in the 11th. The Yankees win the series, four games to one.
Anti-Jeter spin: "A flyball, that's all it was. A lousy flyball."
Half-gainer to heaven
Date: Oct. 15, 2001.
Jeter makes a twisting, diving catch against the A's in Game 5 of the 2001 ALDS. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
Setting: Game 5, ALDS, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees, after rallying from a two-games-to-none deficit in the best-of-five series, lead the A's 5-3 with one out in the eighth inning. Jason Giambi is on first after hitting a leadoff single when Terrence Long hits a foul pop near the third-base stands.
Jeter moment: In a foreshadowing of an even more famous play three years later, Jeter sprints toward foul territory, makes a running catch near the rail and barrels into the stands.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Those choking-dog A's, they played terrible defense, ran the bases horribly and said, 'Please, Derek, have your way with us.' "
Adios, Mets
Date: Oct. 25, 2000.
Setting: Game 4, World Series, Shea Stadium.
Intro: The Mets look to tie the series at home after ending the Yankees' record 14-game World Series winning streak the previous night.
Jeter moment: On the first pitch of the game, Jeter hits a home run off Mets right-hander Bobby Jones. The Yankees win the game 3-2 and clinch their third straight World Series title the next night. Jeter is named MVP.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Bobby Jones. Bobby freakin' Jones. It wasn't as if Jeter took Tom Seaver deep."
Mr. November
Jeter celebrates his game-winning home run in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series. (Ron Vesely / Getty Images)
Date: Oct. 31, 2001.
Setting: Game 4, World Series, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees, down two games to one, are tied 3-3 with the Diamondbacks in the 10th inning. Diamondbacks closer Byung-Hyun Kim gets the first two outs, then Jeter steps to the plate, 1-for-15 in the Series.
Jeter moment: Jeter falls behind 0-2, works the count to 3-2 and then hits Kim's 62nd pitch of the night for an opposite-field walk-off homer. The Yankees tie the Series, which had been pushed back due to 9-11, but ultimately lose in seven games.
Anti-Jeter spin: "What was Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly doing, allowing Kim to throw that many pitches after he gave up a two-out, two-run homer to Tino Martinez in the ninth?"
Hey Nomar, check this out!
Jeter's dive into the stands against the Red Sox is a tough one to forget, even for Boston fans. ( / Associated Press)
Date: July 1, 2004.
Setting: Regular-season game, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees begin the night leading the division by 7 1/2 games.
Jeter moment: With runners on second and third and two out in the 12th inning, the Red Sox's Trot Nixon lofts a popup down the left-field line. Jeter catches the ball in fair territory, then crashes head-first into the stands. The Yankees win in the 13th, and afterward Jeter is taken to the hospital with a bloodied chin, swollen cheek and bruised shoulder.
The juxtaposition between Jeter and Red Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, who sits out the game with a sore Achilles', is jarring. Garciaparra, perceived by many to be a clubhouse downer, is traded later that month — and the Red Sox go on to win their first World Series in 86 years.
Anti-Jeter spin: "How many times do we need to see the replay? How many?"
The flip
Jeter's flip to nail Jeremy Giambi at the plate helped turn around the 2001 ALDS. ( / Associated Press)
Date: Oct. 13, 2001.
Setting: Game 3, ALDS, Oakland.
Intro: The Yankees, down two games to none in the best-of-five series, lead 1-0 in the seventh inning. The A's Jeremy Giambi hits a two-out single, then tries to score on Terrence Long's double into the right-field corner as Yankees right fielder Shane Spencer overthrows both cutoff men.
Jeter moment: Like a human GPS, Jeter dashes toward the first-base line, grabs the bouncing ball and flips it back-handed to Yankees catcher Jorge Posada, about 20 feet away. Posada tags out Giambi, and the Yankees go on to win the next three games and the series.
Anti-Jeter spin: "If the idiot Giambi had slid, he would have been safe and Jeter's 'brilliance' would have amounted to nothing."
Ken Rosenthal is FOXSports.com's senior baseball writer.
Ken Rosenthal / FOXSports.com
Posted: 11 days ago
Signature moments. You know the type. Plays that are instantly memorable, that stay with you for years.
Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter makes more of those plays than anyone else.
That's a subjective view — fire away, all you statistical analysts who want everything quantified in black and white — but is there anyone even close?
Jeter's teammate, Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, certainly isn't, which is one reason he continues to get booed at Yankee Stadium.
Unfair as it might to be A-Rod, the reigning American League MVP, some fans perceive him as a choker, particularly when compared to Jeter.
David Ortiz has produced some huge moments since joining the Red Sox in 2003 — eight regular-season walk-off hits, including five homers, plus his three walk-off hits in the '04 postseason, including two homers.
But Ortiz, a designated hitter, doesn't play defense.
Barry Bonds? You remember his milestone homers, maybe, and oh, yes — his failure to throw out the Braves' Sid Bream at the plate in Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series.
Ichiro? His spectacular laser throw from right field to nail the A's Terrence Long at third base heralded his arrival from Japan during his rookie season.
Albert Pujols? His monstrous home run off Brad Lidge in last year's NLCS was indelible, but so far, that's pretty much it.
Vladimir Guerrero? He does some cool stuff — hitting balls off his shoetops, things like that — but signature moments aren't his specialty.
They are for Jeter.
Of course, anything written or said about Jeter frequently ignites heated debate. He plays in the nation's media capital, New York, and for the game's richest team, the Yankees.
That alone gets a reaction.
Derek Jeter might be a little flawed defensively, but you can't deny he has had his share of shining moments with the Yankees. (Nick Laham / Getty Images)
Jeter recently was voted the most overrated player in Major League Baseball, according to a Sports Illustrated poll of 470 players. A new book, The Fielding Bible by John Dewan, shatters the myth that Jeter is an elite defensive shortstop.
His detractors say his legend outstrips his actual value, and they've got a point. Heck, Jeter might never have become Jeter if say, the Reds had selected him instead of outfielder Chad Mottola with the fifth pick of the 1992 draft. The Yankees grabbed Jeter out of Kalamazoo (Mich.) High School at No. 6.
Circumstances play into this, no doubt. But then, the Yankees wouldn't be the Yankees without Jeter, would they? Big-money players like Rodriguez, Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield come and go, but Jeter is the team's standard-bearer, elevating the club in ways that simply can't be measured.
The SI poll attracted more attention than it deserved; Jeter received only nine percent of the votes, a grand total of 42. What's more, part of the antipathy toward him surely is due to jealousy. A good number of players believe that Jeter, in the sixth year of a 10-year, $189 million contract, is overpaid.
The indictment of Jeter's defense in The Fielding Bible, based on exhaustive statistical research, is a far more serious matter. The book includes an essay by Bill James — yes, Red Sox executive Bill James — that explains why Astros shortstop Adam Everett is far superior to Jeter at short. James writes that, in the past three years, Jeter was "probably the least effective defensive player in the major leagues, at any position."
Wow.
Jeter fans can accuse James of bias, but for years statistical analysts have pointed out that Jeter makes fewer plays than most shortstops. At this point, it's virtually indisputable that on a day-to-day basis, he's a below-average defender. However, the counterargument also is powerful; Jeter invariably finds ways to help the Yankees win. Just watch him play.
OK, so Adam Everett is a better defender than Jeter; that's useful, enlightening information. But for heaven's sake, which shortstop would you rather have on your team?
Polarizing as the discussion has become, pretty much everyone can agree that Jeter has been delivering big plays at opportune moments from the start of his career.
Consider the following list of Jeter's top 10 signature moments. Out of respect to the Jeter Haters, each item includes an anti-Jeter spin — basically, what a Red Sox fan in a bar might say, wishing that just once, Jeter could play for the Olde Towne Team.
A star is born
Date: April 2, 1996.
Setting: Opening Day, Cleveland.
Intro: Amid concerns that he is not ready to take over as the Yankees' shortstop, as detailed in Joel Sherman's new book, Birth of a Dynasty, Jeter steps in for the injured Tony Fernandez. The previous season, Jeter had hit only two homers in 534 at-bats, playing mostly at Triple A and also with the Yankees.
Jeter moment: Actually, there are two. Jeter hits a solo homer off Dennis Martinez in the fifth inning to extend the Yankees' lead to 2-0. Two innings later, he makes an over-the-shoulder catch on a popup by Omar Vizquel to save a run.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Jeter looked brutal in the spring. He only made the team because Fernandez got hurt!"
Walk-off warrior
Date: April 5, 2005
Setting: Second game of regular season, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: In the first series between the Yankees and Red Sox since their epic seven-game ALCS in 2004, Yankees closer Mariano Rivera blows a save by allowing a one-out, game-tying homer in the ninth by Jason Varitek.
Jeter moment: Against Red Sox closer Keith Foulke, Jeter gets ahead in the count 3-0, then hits an opposite-field, walk-off homer on a 3-2 pitch.
Anti-Jeter spin: "No wonder Foulke is no longer the Sox's closer!"
Jeter had a big game in Game 2 against the Rangers in the 1996 ALDS. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
Trust me, Joe
Date: Oct. 2, 1996
Setting: Game 2, ALDS, Yankee Stadium
Intro: Under first-year manager Joe Torre, the Yankees are trying to win their first playoff series since 1981. They lose Game 1 with Jeter stranding six runners in his first postseason game. Afterward, Jeter playfully tells Torre to get a good night's sleep, saying the next game would be the most important of the manager's life.
Jeter moment: After the Yankees rally from a 4-1 deficit to force extra innings, Jeter leads off the 12th with a single, his third hit of the game. Tim Raines walks, and Jeter scores the winning run when third baseman Dean Palmer makes a throwing error on an attempted sacrifice by Charlie Hayes. The Yankees go on to win the series in four games and eventually win their first World Series since 1978.
Anti-Jeter spin: "The fix was in! Mike Stanton was the losing pitcher! He just wanted to pitch for the Yankees!"
Stanton signed with the Yankees following the 1996 season and pitched for them from 1997 to 2002.
Boosting the Rocket
Date: Oct. 14, 2000
Setting: Game 4, ALCS, Seattle.
Intro: The Yankees lead the series, two games to one. Roger Clemens buzzes the Mariners' Alex Rodriguez, then strikes out 15 in a one-hit, complete-game shutout.
Jeter moment: The game is scoreless with two outs in the fifth when the Yankees' Scott Brosius hits a single to right and Chuck Knoblauch draws a walk. Jeter follows with a three-run homer off Mariners right-hander Paul Abbott, the decisive blow in a 5-0 victory.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Like the Mariners would have scored off of Clemens, anyway."
Jeffrey Maier reaches over the wall to turn Jeter's flyball into a home run in 1996. (TIMOTHY CLARY / Getty Images)
Thank you, Jeffrey Maier
Date: Oct. 9, 1996.
Setting: Game 1, ALCS, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees trail 4-3 with one out in the eighth inning. Jeter faces Orioles right-hander Armando Benitez, who is poised to embark upon a career of big-game meltdowns.
Jeter moment: Flyball to right, Tony Tarasco under it ... the ball disappears! Maier, 12, reaches over the wall and becomes a New York legend. Umpire Richie Garcia rules home run instead of fan interference and Bernie Williams hits a game-winning homer off Randy Myers in the 11th. The Yankees win the series, four games to one.
Anti-Jeter spin: "A flyball, that's all it was. A lousy flyball."
Half-gainer to heaven
Date: Oct. 15, 2001.
Jeter makes a twisting, diving catch against the A's in Game 5 of the 2001 ALDS. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
Setting: Game 5, ALDS, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees, after rallying from a two-games-to-none deficit in the best-of-five series, lead the A's 5-3 with one out in the eighth inning. Jason Giambi is on first after hitting a leadoff single when Terrence Long hits a foul pop near the third-base stands.
Jeter moment: In a foreshadowing of an even more famous play three years later, Jeter sprints toward foul territory, makes a running catch near the rail and barrels into the stands.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Those choking-dog A's, they played terrible defense, ran the bases horribly and said, 'Please, Derek, have your way with us.' "
Adios, Mets
Date: Oct. 25, 2000.
Setting: Game 4, World Series, Shea Stadium.
Intro: The Mets look to tie the series at home after ending the Yankees' record 14-game World Series winning streak the previous night.
Jeter moment: On the first pitch of the game, Jeter hits a home run off Mets right-hander Bobby Jones. The Yankees win the game 3-2 and clinch their third straight World Series title the next night. Jeter is named MVP.
Anti-Jeter spin: "Bobby Jones. Bobby freakin' Jones. It wasn't as if Jeter took Tom Seaver deep."
Mr. November
Jeter celebrates his game-winning home run in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series. (Ron Vesely / Getty Images)
Date: Oct. 31, 2001.
Setting: Game 4, World Series, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees, down two games to one, are tied 3-3 with the Diamondbacks in the 10th inning. Diamondbacks closer Byung-Hyun Kim gets the first two outs, then Jeter steps to the plate, 1-for-15 in the Series.
Jeter moment: Jeter falls behind 0-2, works the count to 3-2 and then hits Kim's 62nd pitch of the night for an opposite-field walk-off homer. The Yankees tie the Series, which had been pushed back due to 9-11, but ultimately lose in seven games.
Anti-Jeter spin: "What was Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly doing, allowing Kim to throw that many pitches after he gave up a two-out, two-run homer to Tino Martinez in the ninth?"
Hey Nomar, check this out!
Jeter's dive into the stands against the Red Sox is a tough one to forget, even for Boston fans. ( / Associated Press)
Date: July 1, 2004.
Setting: Regular-season game, Yankee Stadium.
Intro: The Yankees begin the night leading the division by 7 1/2 games.
Jeter moment: With runners on second and third and two out in the 12th inning, the Red Sox's Trot Nixon lofts a popup down the left-field line. Jeter catches the ball in fair territory, then crashes head-first into the stands. The Yankees win in the 13th, and afterward Jeter is taken to the hospital with a bloodied chin, swollen cheek and bruised shoulder.
The juxtaposition between Jeter and Red Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, who sits out the game with a sore Achilles', is jarring. Garciaparra, perceived by many to be a clubhouse downer, is traded later that month — and the Red Sox go on to win their first World Series in 86 years.
Anti-Jeter spin: "How many times do we need to see the replay? How many?"
The flip
Jeter's flip to nail Jeremy Giambi at the plate helped turn around the 2001 ALDS. ( / Associated Press)
Date: Oct. 13, 2001.
Setting: Game 3, ALDS, Oakland.
Intro: The Yankees, down two games to none in the best-of-five series, lead 1-0 in the seventh inning. The A's Jeremy Giambi hits a two-out single, then tries to score on Terrence Long's double into the right-field corner as Yankees right fielder Shane Spencer overthrows both cutoff men.
Jeter moment: Like a human GPS, Jeter dashes toward the first-base line, grabs the bouncing ball and flips it back-handed to Yankees catcher Jorge Posada, about 20 feet away. Posada tags out Giambi, and the Yankees go on to win the next three games and the series.
Anti-Jeter spin: "If the idiot Giambi had slid, he would have been safe and Jeter's 'brilliance' would have amounted to nothing."
Ken Rosenthal is FOXSports.com's senior baseball writer.
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