Jeter overrated? Let's count the reasons...?

Question

And you Yankee fans and/or Jeter apologists, you have to prove he's worth the equivalent attention of Jordan in the NBA or Montana in the NFL because that's what the media makes him out to be in MLB!

Answer 1

My favorite exerpts from a well-written article defining Jeter the Overrated:

Overrated does not mean bad - Yankees fans flip out when the "o-word" comes up in relation to Jeter. But Tony Gwynn was overrated, too. So was Joe DiMaggio, in that he's a top 20 all-time player, rather than a top 5. Both are still deserving Hall of Famers.

Salary - $19 million per year. Jeter has ranked in the top 5 in salary for the past 4 seasons. It's the only category in which he has placed in the top 5 for those four seasons.

"Mr. November" - He did hit the first home run in the history of November baseball in 2001, but he also hit .148 overall in the Series - not exactly Reggie-like.

Never been the best player at his position - for even a single season. This would seem to be a prerequisite if you're going to be a legend.

Intangibles - Jeter fans and most announcers will tell you that it's his intangibles that separate Jeter from everyone else. Of course, you can't measure intangibles - that's why they're intangibles - and so you can credit Jeter with anything without being able to prove or disprove it. Fall of Communism? Jeter. Human Genome Project? also Jeter. iPod? That's right...

The Yankees $200 million payroll - See, it's this, and not Jeter's leadership that makes the players around him better. It turns Aaron Boone into Alex Rodriguez and Raul Mondesi into Gary Sheffield.

"Knows how to win" - perhaps the single most oft-cited and utterly ridiculous of Jeter's mystical abilities. Apparently the secret formula is a 200-HR offense, mercenary Cy Young winner de jour and the best closer in the history of baseball.

Jeter the Leader - Hannibal, Churchill, Washington - rank amateurs compared to the Yankee captain. No player gets more credit for his leadership. Not that leadership is non-existent, but where's the love for Bernie Williams, who's been a Yankee just as long and hit just as well in the post season? And where was Jeter's leadership in 2001? Or when the Yankees collapsed against Boston? Incidentally, the Yankees haven't won the Series since Jeter was named captain.

Answer 2

1. His average is worse than Pedrioa, Papi, and lowell from the Red Sox and Posada from the Yankees
2. He is the second best shortstop on his team
3. If he was a team leader, he would sit down and convince A. Rod to be quiet and that he is earning double what he deserves.
4. Since 1999 Jeter has had a minimum of 13 errors (including 15 this season so far).
5. 125 out of 166 hits this season have been singles, and he has walked less than 50 times this season.
6. Jeter is proclaimed for his speed, yet he only has 12 stolen bases this season and 3 triples
7. Jeter also only has 58 RBI's this season
8. Jeter's lifetime average in the ALCS is .262

These should prove that Derek Jeter is overrated.

Answer 3

1st of all Jeter has never been the equivalent of Montana or Jordan for the main reason that he is not a pioneer for his sport like the other two.

The guy above me with the list of reasons has about half of the stats incorrect. So I wouldn't even bother looking at them in any sense. Jeter also has more clutch hits than any other shortstop in the history of baseball.

You can say he's overrated all you want but it will never be accepted, he's a sure fire 1st ballot Hall Of Fame shortstop get over it.

Answer 4

First off, I despise the Yankees for as long as I remember. That said, I've always had the utmost respect for Derek Jeter over the past 10yrs. He isn't the best player in baseball (that's Pujols, imho) nor even on his own team (A-Rod).

What he is, is a very good player that plays for the love and passion of the game that seems lacking in 95% of the young players nowadays. He steps up huge and plays clutch in the postseason (WS MVP in '00) and has unbelievable instincts and smarts (cutting off a bad throw home to get Giambi out at the plate during the '01 ALDS).

While he may not put up eye-popping statistics like the Bonds, Pujols, and A-Rods of the world, his numbers make him a 1st ballot Hall-of-Famer if he plays just several more years.

- .317 career average
- 2,316 base hits (he may actually have an outside shot at 4,000 hits if he plays into his 40's which is unbelievable considering only Rose and Cobb have achieved that benchmark)
- 4 championships
- 3 gold gloves
- 1,359 runs scored (should easily cross over 2,000 when his career is over)

Answer 5

Im a mets fan and i disagree with you saying jeter is overtated. He is one of the main reasons the yankee even won those four world series. I mean of course he is not gonna be as good as he was back in the day now but i'd take him any day over some of these crappy shortstops and they talk so much crap. Jeter is not a crap talker and i repect that. Oh and if the mets didnt have jose reyes i would want jeter on my team...hes mr. clutch

Answer 6

definite. I comprehend Derek Jeter. i think of he's a stable all around baseball participant. yet is he puffed up? definite. And that only comes with being a Yankee and being in ny. a chief occasion of that's what exceeded off the different day while Jeter tried to scouse borrow 0.33. each and all of the attention it have been given replaced into loopy. undesirable calls ensue each and all of the time that don't get even a spotlight in baseball this night. returned it only comes from being a Yankee and a stable participant.

Answer 7

Without a doubt, Derek Jeter is the most overrated in baseball history.

Never the best on his own team, and I won't even talk about shortstops.

He is a very good player mind you, and I won't hesitate to say he's a great player. He would be deserving of a HOF ticket if he keeps producing at the current rate for a few more seasons.

He is just not the Michael Jordan of MLB. When I think baseball nowadays, I think of Bonds... for better or worse.

Yeah, please tell me I'm jealous of him too... I want his looks and his money, no wait, just his money. I'm also jealous of anyone in MLB, NFL, NBA, NFL, English Premier League, and Australia Rules Football. Wish I could make money to play sports.

Answer 8

Yankee fans are missing the point with this question. They should be on their knees praising you, not complaining.

You've given them a chance to talk about something else rather than the absolutly embarrassing situation the team finds themselves in.

And what has Jeter done to help the Yankees? Sit on the bench with a "knee" injury...please.

Answer 9

He may not be the best Shortstop in baseball but he brings the intangible to the Yankees. He has the uncanny ability to make a spectacular play when the team needs it most. He gets the hit when the teams needs it most. "The Flip" is probably the best play ever made by a shortstop in the hisrtory of basball. I wouldn't want any other SS on my team.

Answer 10

I don't know what media you're referring to that gives him as much attention as Jordan got in his glory days. I hate the Yankees as a team and I think they get more attention than they deserve, but given that, it's natural that a lot of attention would focus on Jeter because of his role, just like NFL quarterbacks get disproportionate attention. It seems to me A-Rod gets just as much or more media attention, by the way.

As for being overrated (which is different from getting too much attention), I don't think so. I don't think anyone is rating him the greatest shortstop in history, but he's solid on defense and he's a first-rate hitter. Probably not a historically great hitter, but top rank. I think the intangibles he brings to the team are more remarkable than his stats. He seems to me to be a good leader, which is really tough in New York with spoiled fans, Steinbrenner, and a lot of massive egos on the team.