He’s no Great Bambino. Not the Sultan of Swat, the Colossus of Clout, the Titan of Terror, or the King of Crash.
But he is the Captain.
What kind of player earns that title? A nickname like that isn’t handed out just because your baseball career lasted twenty years. You don’t stay in the same position both on the field and in the batting order when it’s the team’s best (postseason) interest for you to be replaced towards the end of your career. Captain isn’t a name you place on any player/sailor that boards the baseball ship.
It seems like the entire 2014 season was a tiresome farewell for No.2. Teams showered him with gifts as he made his final appearance at their stadiums, commemorating the longstanding physical connection Derek Jeter had there (example: The Trop–yeah, right). Over-used phrases (clutch, class, etc.) and don’t forget the Yankees placing Jeter at the head of a grand marketing/money making campaign, changing someone who never made himself bigger than the game exactly that.
That is my speculation of the Jeter 2014 Farewell Tour because it certainly wasn’t the magical story of the 2014 New York Yankees. The sad thing is that for Jeter, it was a no win situation. Say he didn’t announce his retirement and went about the entire season keeping his plans to himself. How disgruntled would the fans be? How upset and shocked would the baseball world be? It’d be like San Fran after the 1906 earthquakes. Instead, Jeter announces his retirement. The guy who’s spotlight was about the size of Lady Liberty’s torch has been upgraded to the lights atop the Empire State Building.
Now he’s accused of doing what he’s alway been praised for never attempting to do: take advantage of his spotlight. Jeter has been turned into the bad guy because God forbid the five time World Series Champion ever once show the slightest enjoyment of his accomplishments. Regardless of your team association, how good or bad you think Jeter’s long farewell was, there’s no questioning his accomplishments.
There are certain things that only a captain can bring aboard a ship. These are those things:
Jul 21, 2014; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter (2) takes the field against the Texas Rangers during the eighth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
1. Not Class
When I think of “class”, I think of dull. Thesaurus.com thinks of chic, dashing, fly and sharp. Which of those adjectives describes Derek Jeter?
Class is a characteristic of being human, not playing baseball. Yes, Derek Jeter is human, and I’m not attempting to make him anything more than that. But when someone says “Jeter, he’s a class act,” there’s no counter argument. You can’t say “but he’s barely batting over .250 this year”. There is no doubt the Captain has carried himself well in the public eye throughout his career. Despite a few appearances in New York City gossip columns, he’s done more than enough to be the example that you want your children to look up to.
Too often is his greatest attribute deemed being classy. Class: he had a phenomenal baseball career and he did it all without being a douche bag. Seriously? That’s his greatest accomplishment? It dumbs him down. Spectacular plays from the hole, the 2001 Mr. November moon-shot in game 4 of the World Series, those are things you can only place with Derek Jeter and you certainly don’t cover them up with the word class.