Athletes - Derek Jeter

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	Athletes - Derek Jeter

Derek Sanderson Jeter (born June 26, 1974 in Pequannock, New Jersey) is a six-time All-Star shortstop for the New York Yankees and is the team's current captain.

Early life

Derek Jeter was born in Pequannock, New Jersey to Charles and Dorothy Jeter, but most of his childhood was spent in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Jeter was a star baseball player at Kalamazoo Central High School, where he also played basketball, and in 1992, he was named High School Player of the Year by the American Baseball Coaches Association. Although he received a baseball scholarship to attend the University of Michigan, he attended one semester after he was drafted by the New York Yankees in the first round of the 1992 amateur draft. He spent four years in the minor leagues, starting in the Rookie League and then advancing to Class A where he spent two years. In 1995, he advanced from Class A to Class AAA within the season.

Professional baseball accomplishments

Jeter made his major league debut on May 29, 1995. He earned Rookie of the Year honors in his first full season, 1996, in which he had a .314 batting average. During the 8th inning of Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series, Jeter was awarded a home run on a memorable and controversial play. Jeter hit a pitch to the right field wall, and the ball was pulled into the stands by 12 year-old spectator, Jeffrey Maier, depriving Oriole outfielder Tony Tarasco the opportunity of making a play. Despite protests from the Orioles, the home run call was upheld, which allowed the Yankees to tie and eventually win the game in extra innings by the walk-off home run hit by Bernie Williams.

Jeter has maintained his success on the field. During the 1998 season, Jeter batted .324, led the American League with 127 runs, earned his first All-Star appearance, and placed 3rd in the American League MVP voting.

1999 showed more progress, as Jeter reached career highs in batting average, home runs, RBIs, and walks, and he led the AL in hits with 219. During the 2000 season, he was voted the MVP of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game and the World Series.

The 2004 season was a rollercoaster for Jeter statistically. Early in the year, he had a mysterious 0-for-27 slump and was inexplicably hitting .198 after the first two months of the season. He later recovered and ended the year with 23 home runs and a .292 batting average.

In 2004 and 2005, Jeter won the American League Gold Glove Award.

Mr. November

Throughout his career, Jeter has been known as one of the best clutch postseason players in baseball history. Since arriving in the majors in 1996, Jeter has participated in every postseason, and he was a member of 6 American League Championship teams and 4 World Series Championship teams. Jeter's personal postseason performance has been a major factor in the Yankees' success. The term "Mr. November" comes from Jeter's accomplishments in the 2001 World Series, which ran into November that year due to the delay of the baseball season caused by the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Some of Jeter's most memorable moments have come in postseason play. These include the aforementioned eighth inning, game-tying disputed home run against Baltimore in Game 1 of the 1996 ALCS; his game-winning, tenth-inning home run off Arizona's Byung-Hyun Kim in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series; as well as one of the most unusual, improbable, and amazing defensive plays in postseason history: With the Yankees down 0 games to 2 versus the Oakland Athletics in the 2001 American League Division Series, and holding on to a 1-0 lead in Game 3 and with an A's runner on first base, Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina served up a high fly ball to deep right field to the A's Terrence Long. With Oakland's Jeremy Giambi about to round third, Yankees right fielder Shane Spencer retrieved the ball and threw home. The throw sailed over the heads of both cut off man Alfonso Soriano and backup cut off man Tino Martinez. With Giambi nearing homeplate, Jeter ran across the field, and nearing the 1st base line, caught the ball off a bounce and shovel passed it across his body to catcher Jorge Posada, who promptly tagged the back of Giambi's knee, a fraction of a second before his foot hit homeplate. The Yankees later went on to win the series in 5 games.

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Athletes - Derek Jeter

Early life

Professional baseball accomplishments

Mr. November

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