When the New York Yankees take the field at the start of the 2015 season, they'll be doing so without one of the team's fixtures and all-time greats. Entering his 20th and final season in Yankees pinstripes, shortstop Derek Jeter announced earlier this week that he'll be hanging up his cleats and retiring at the conclusion of the 2014 season. The franchise's all-time hits leader who turns 40 years old in June, broke onto the big league scene in 1995 as an injury replacement at shortstop, a position he would soon takeover and never look back while creating quite the name for himself and setting the standard for many of today's young players. Having achieved just about every highlight and award possible to go along with his five World Series rings as well as date a laundry list of some of Hollywood's hottest babes, there's very few things the one better known as "the Captain" has yet to accomplish throughout his Major League career that is nothing short of first-ballot Hall of Fame worthy.
When he wasn't making dazzling, acrobatic plays with his glove such as his signature "jump-throw", he was diving and crashing into the stands. And when he wasn't doing that, he was getting it done at the plate, driving in runs while earning such nicknames as "Mr. November" and "Captain Clutch". Whatever it was that he did, he gave it his all. But it wasn't until 2012 that we were all reminded that Derek Jeter is in fact human. Though the world didn't come to an end in 2012 like many predicted, the next closest thing happened in Yankee land when Jeter fractured his left ankle while reaching for a ground ball in the American League Championship Series versus the Detroit Tigers. Jeter's absence would be a devastating blow to the Yankees lineup as Detroit went on to sweep the series and advance to the Fall Classic. The injury to Jeter's ankle along with a handful of other ailments would plague his 2013 campaign, forcing him to miss all but 17 games last season. Prior to 2013, no other season saw Jeter play fewer than 119 games aside from the year he was called up to the Majors some 19 seasons ago. So if it seems like it's been forever since someone not named Jeter routinely roamed between second and third base, it's because it has been. At least it has for me.
Since I can remember watching baseball as a child, the Yankees were always the glitz and glamour of the Major Leagues, almost always had some of the best players and without a doubt had the nicest uniforms. It's hard to think back and see a Yankee team without Jeter as the everyday shortstop mainly because I was five years old at the time he was called up. And while I've never been a fan of the Yankees and would much rather root against them, Jeter is one of the few that has donned the pinstripes that I can honestly say I've always liked. With baseball's Spring Training in full swing, the Bronx Bombers are less than a month away from kicking off the season without another mainstay in closer Mariano Rivera who took his farewell tour just a season ago and received gifts from every ball club along his journey before calling it quits after 19 years in the Big Apple. Though he wasn't healthy enough to be on the field to witness most of it, hopefully Jeter took notes as he will take a similar approach while making his rounds across the country to other visiting ballparks around the league and receive gifts while doing so on his way out.
It's hard to believe that next year will be the first season in which neither Mariano River nor Derek Jeter's names will be called during player introductions. No 'Enter Sandman' by Metallica will be playing from the stadium speakers to introduce the "Sandman" himself who ran out of the bullpen gates to compile a record 652 career saves, the most all-time. And the famous recording of long-time Yankees public address announcer Bob Sheppard introducing Jeter as, "Number two" will no longer be heard. Highly regarded as a consummate professional among those he's worked for and played alongside of, Jeter is the type of guy you'd want your kids to grow up idolizing. At least that would be the case if I had kids. Jeter, a 13-time All-Star, wore the pinstripes the way they were meant to be worn -- with class. And though 2014 will see Jeter take his farewell tour, I like to think of it as a victory lap rather before he embarks on his next journey -- Cooperstown.
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One last go around - For 17 seasons, longtime Yankees closer Mariano Rivera has dominated the American League landscape with his devastating cutter, sawing off broken bats and fooling batters while on his way to becoming baseball's all-time saves leader with 608 career saves. Saturday afternoon, however, the 43-year old Panama native held a press-conference in front of the media where he announced his plans to retire at the conclusion of the 2013 MLB season, ending the distinguished career that began with the New York ball club in 1995. With plans to retire after the 2012 season last year, Rivera, a 12-time All-Star was forced to rethink his retirement when those plans came to an abrupt stop after suffering a knee injury while shagging balls prior to a game in Kansas City on May 3, which turned out to be a torn ACL that put the 17-year veteran on the shelf for the remainder of the season. Having been the poster boy for success during much of his career, many thought there was no way that one of baseball's most celebrated players would go out like that.
They would be right as Rivera refused to let his decorated big league career end at the hands of an injury, shooting down all rumors of that being the last we saw of the one they call 'Mo' toeing the rubber in the ninth inning with the game on the line. "I'm not going down like this," Rivera told the baseball world after undergoing knee surgery in June. And after those words left his mouth, the sun came out and the birds began to sing like a scene from a Disney movie. But like all Disney movies which feature a happy ending, the only way to properly end this saga will be for the Yankees to send their closer on a horse riding in the sunset with a sixth World Series title under his belt. With Rivera calling it an "honor to put on the pinstripes," it's been nothing short of an honor for us baseball fans to watch him take the hill during the ninth inning and do what he's done his entire career -- win ball games. And though I'm not a fan of the Yankees personally, I think I can speak for everyone when I say Mo wore the pinstripes the way they were meant to be worn -- with class. After watching another one of baseball's all around good guys take the field for one last hurrah in 2012, Mo could expect similar treatment to that of Chipper Jones who received gifts from every National League organization last season in what was his final year in the big leagues before calling it quits.
One gift that won't be given to him, however, is a sixth World Series Championship and is one he and his teammates want more than anything else. Unfortunately it won't be an easy task as the Yankees will be without much of their power hitters to start the year. With Mark Teixeira out 8 to 10 weeks with a strained tendon in his right wrist, Curtis Granderson sidelined until May with a fractured right forearm and Alex Rodriguez not expected back until mid-season at the very least while recovering from hip surgery, the Yankees will depend heavily on Robinson Cano to provide much of the pop for the Bronx Bombers. They'll also be looking for some much needed production from players such as Ichiro Suzuki, Travis Hafner and Kevin Youkilis, all of which were All-Stars for their respected former clubs. Not to be forgotten is Derek Jeter who himself is recovering from an ankle injury sustained during the ALCS last season and Brett Gardner who when healthy can run the base paths with the best of them. As for the pitching staff, Phil Hughes is expected to miss his first start of the regular season while battling back problems.
The injury bug has been so contagious to the Yankees organization as of late that even Yankees GM Brian Cashman hit the disabled-list with a broken leg and dislocated ankle suffered during a sky-diving stunt. For their sake, I hope this isn't a bad omen of things to come for those who support the pinstripes. And for the first time in awhile, the Yankees are entering the season as underdogs to make it out of their division on top with the recent retooling of the Toronto Blue Jays who many are expecting to contend for a title.
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