I know, I know. I have taken quite the hiatus from my blog, but the early part of the summer had me quite busy. Between advising the NFL and NBA on their labor issues, with mixed results, and the Casey Anthony trial, it has been quite a taxing time. Plus, the Shuttle Atlantis wasn’t going to launch itself! My promise to you is that I will be writing much more regularly going forward.
During the snoozer that was the MLB All-Star Game, I was taken back to the times as a kid that I could not wait for the midsummer classic. The combination of media coverage and inter-league play have dissipated interest throughout the years. I used to look forward to seeing the pitcher-batter matchups that were only possible either in this showcase or the world series. Like in 1986, when Roger Clemens made his all-star debut opposite Dwight Gooden. Clemens was the MVP in an AL win, but the show was stolen when Fernando Valenzuela struck out 5 straight AL batters. I was in the Pocono mountains in a log cabin at the time. Never forget it. But I digress. I am quite a baseball fan, and there were certainly a couple of pitchers in this game whom I had never heard of. 84 players in all were named all-stars. Some were legitimately injured. Some wanted rest. One, Aramis Ramirez, declined to even be added as a 3B for the National League. I won’t go into how the system should be fixed. I am going to talk about the most glaring absence in my mind. Derek Jeter.
To get it out of the way up front, I am a Yankee fan. I guess you could call me a die hard. I became a fan in the 80′s when the team was an annual disappointment. ’86 is the earliest season I can truly remember vividly. The Yanks finished 2nd in the AL East to the hated Red Sox, who lost to the cross-town Mets in the World Series. The Yankees were an afterthought. Second fiddle to the Doctor K and Strawman New York Metropolitans. The Mets were poised to be a dynasty and the Yankees were looking for answers. Mike Pagliarulo and Dan Pasqua were not gonna cut it. But I fell in love with the mystique, the uniforms, the tradition, and the first time I walked into Yankee Stadium, which was that season, I was hooked. So seeing Jeter become the first player to garner his 3000th hit as a Yankee really made me think. Just how good is he? And as I discussed it with other people I discovered most think he is overrated. I was shocked! I think he may be the most UNDERrated player in any sport over the past 2 decades. So I decided to look into it a bit further. And all I found was more and more information to support my opinion.
Let’s first get all the unquestionables out of the way. 5-time world champion, 5 gold gloves, 4 silver sluggers, and a 12-time all-star. Only player ever to win the All-Star game and World Series MVPs in the same season. Intangibles out the *ears*, consummate leader, team captain. Also, being a good-looking, single superstar in NYC for 15 years, never one controversy. No arrests, no DUIs, never a bad word ever said by a media member. Nothing. That, in and of itself deserves praise. But let’s dive a little deeper, shall we?
Jeter’s lifetime average is better with runners in scoring position then without. It is better with 2 outs then with less. It is better in the postseason then the regular season. The moral of this minutiae is that he is clutch in every sense of the word. Since he entered the majors, no player has reached base more times then Jeter. Only Hank Aaron has more seasons of 100 runs scored. Jeter will most likely pass Hank by the end of his career, and be the all-time leader. Even if Jeter takes an expected dip in production over the next 3 years, he will likely end up in the top 7 of both hits and runs scored. Those are all-time great numbers.
Ranking Jeter is tough, because of the steroid issue. Where you stand on that as a fan changes your personal opinions drastically, but if you are one to discount those players who have been strongly implicated or admitted to useage, it’s difficult to not consider Jeter the best position player in baseball over the past 15 seasons. Of those players who exclusively played shortstop throughout their careers, he is one of the best of all-time. I remember when all those great youngsters came up as AL shortstops. Miguel Tejada has faded, moved around, changed positions and never won anything. Nomar couldn’t stay healthy, and also changed positions. And ARod bulked up physically and moved to third. Jeter stayed at one position. On one team. And has just kept winning and producing. His number will be retired upon his departure, and etched in Yankee lore forever. Can you really ask for anything more?
