Derek Sanderson Jeter (pronounced /ˈdʒiːtər/; born June 26, 1974) is a Major League Baseball (MLB) shortstop who has played his entire MLB career with the New York Yankees. He is the Yankees' current team captain. Jeter's presence in the Yankees' lineup, highlighted by his hitting prowess, played an instrumental role in the team's late 1990s dynasty, which won four World Series championships.[1]
Jeter debuted in the Major Leagues in 1995, and the following year, he won the Rookie of the Year Award and helped the Yankees win a World Series title. Jeter would lead the Yankees to championships in 1998, 1999, and 2000, as well. In 2000, Jeter became the only player to win both the All-Star Game MVP Award and the World Series MVP Award in the same year. He has been selected as an All-Star ten times, and he has won the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove awards on three occasions. He is considered a consummate professional, by teammates and opponents alike.[2][3]
Jeter is considered to be one of the best-hitting shortstops in baseball history. He is the all-time hits leader among shortstops and his .316 career batting average through the 2008 season ranks as the fifth-highest among active players. He has been among the American League leaders in hits and runs scored for the past ten years. In 2009, Jeter became the 74th player in MLB history to reach 2,600 hits, and on September 11, 2009, he recorded his 2,722nd hit as a Yankee, passing Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig for most hits by a Yankees player.[4]
Derek was the starting shortstop for the USA team in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Jeter hit .450 (9-for-20) for Team USA and scored 5 runs in 6 games. Only Ken Griffey, Jr. (.524) and Cuba's Yoandy Garlobo (.480) had a higher batting average with a minimum of 20 at bats.[55] Jeter's play earned him recognition as the shortstop selection on the All-Tournament Team.[56]
Jeter was also the starting shortstop for Team USA in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. At the start of the tournament, Derek was named captain of Team USA by manager Davey Johnson.[57] With Team USA, Jeter faced the Yankees at Steinbrenner Field in an exhibition game, the first time he has played against the Yankees.[58]
Milestones
On September 11, 2009, Jeter became the all-time Yankees hits leader.
* Jeter recorded his 2,000th career hit with an infield single on May 26, 2006 off Kansas City Royals pitcher Scott Elarton, becoming the eighth Yankee to reach the milestone.[59]
* Jeter holds the record for most singles all-time by a Yankee.[60]
* Jeter is one of six players to have 2,700 hits, 1,500 runs, 220 homers, 300 steals and 1,000 RBI (the others are Craig Biggio, Barry Bonds, Rickey Henderson, Willie Mays, and Paul Molitor).[61]
* On June 18, 2005, against the Chicago Cubs, Jeter hit his first and only grand slam, after 10 years in the major leagues. At one point, Jeter had the most at bats of any active player to not have hit a grand slam.[62]
* On June 4, 2008, Jeter passed Mickey Mantle for 3rd place on the Yankees all time hit list.[63]
* On June 27, 2008, Jeter hit his 400th double.[64]
* On July 12, 2008, Jeter hit his 200th home run.[65]
* On September 9, 2008, Jeter passed Babe Ruth for 2nd place on the Yankees all time hit list.[66]
* On September 14, 2008, Jeter tied Lou Gehrig for most hits at Yankee Stadium[67]
* On September 16, 2008, Jeter moved past Lou Gehrig for most hits at Yankee Stadium with his 1,270th in the 1st inning, and 1,271st in the 5th inning.
* On June 2, 2009, Jeter became the 74th player to reach 2,600 hits.
* On June 23, 2009, Jeter passed Babe Ruth for most career doubles in Yankees history.
* On July 24, 2009, Jeter passed Ted Williams for 68th place in all-time hits with his 2,655th.[68]
* On August 2, 2009, Jeter played in his 2,084th game, tying Babe Ruth for 4th in Yankees history.[69]
* On August 16, 2009, Jeter recorded his 2,673th and 2,674th hits, tying and passing Luis Aparicio for most hits by a shortstop in Major League history.[70]
* On August 23, 2009, Derek Jeter became the third youngest player since 1930 (behind Hank Aaron and Robin Yount), and sixth youngest of all players with their entire career in the Modern Era (behind Aaron, Yount, Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, and Rogers Hornsby), with 2,700 hits.
* On September 11, 2009, Jeter became the Yankees' all-time hits leader, surpassing Lou Gehrig with his 2,722nd hit, a single to right field off of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Chris Tillman in the 3rd inning.
Appearances outside of baseball
Philanthropy
MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said that Jeter is an excellent ambassador for baseball, along with Albert Pujols and Trevor Hoffman.[71]
Jeter began the Turn 2 Foundation, a charity organization, in 1996. The Foundation was established to help children and teenagers avoid drug and alcohol addiction, and to reward those who show high academic achievement. The organization's name was chosen, besides the baseball reference to a double play (and Jeter's uniform number), to demonstrate the goal of giving youths a place to "turn to", besides drugs and alcohol.[72]
During the 2009 season, Jeter and Mets star David Wright will represent their foundations in a competition sponsored by Delta Airlines; the player with the highest batting average will receive $100,000 for their foundation from Delta; the runner-up's foundation will receive $50,000.[73]
Endorsements
Jeter has appeared in national ad campaigns for Nike, Gatorade, Fleet Bank, Discover Card, Florsheim, VISA (with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner), Skippy, Ford, and XM Satellite Radio. He endorses a cologne named Driven designed in collaboration with and distributed by Avon.[74] Jeter is one of the only three athletes to have their own Jumpman shoe, and has appeared on Gillette Fusion commercials along with Tiger Woods and Roger Federer (Thierry Henry appears in Gillette advertisements outwith North America in place of Jeter, for reasons of recognisability).
In 2006, Jeter was the second highest paid endorser in baseball, having earned $7 million in endorsements.[75] Also, he was ranked as the most marketable player in baseball according to an 2005 Sports Business Survey.[76]
Other appearances
Derek Jeter was the cover athlete for 2K's MLB 2K5, MLB 2K6, and MLB 2K7. Jeter was also the cover athlete for Acclaim Entertainment's All-Star Baseball series of video games. Jeter is currently the cover athlete for Gameloft's wireless phone baseball game, Derek Jeter Pro Baseball 2008. He has appeared on television in Seinfeld and as a host on Saturday Night Live. He has also can be seen briefly on The Simpsons during the eighth episode of season 19, titled "Funeral for a Fiend." He is parodied as guest starring on Sesame Street. Jeter was the subject of a 2005 segment on the TV news magazine 60 Minutes.[77]
Wax figure
There is a wax figure of Jeter at the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in New York.[78]
