Jeter’s Place in History

With Derek Jeter’s 2,614th hit in yesterday’s game against the Jays, Jeter surpassed Mickey Mantle on the all-time hits list for Yankee players. His name now rests between legends, as he passes Mantle but still faces some stiff competition from Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Here’s what the captain had to say about the historic achievement (which was, to many of us, a touching moment):

“My name doesn’t fit up there,” he said. “It sounds funny, doesn’t it? Just playing on the same team as those guys is pretty special.”

The funny thing is, he’s right. It doesn’t sound like it fits as of now, but guess what? In 20, 30, maybe even 40 years from the day Jeter retires, nobody will ever look at that list and make that same statement. All it will take is time as his newly minted name will grow old and his legend will simply build and build. By then, Derek Jeter’s name will most certainly “fit”.