Leave Derek Jeter alone and let his past speak for itself

Kaitlin O’Brien, WSIN General Manager: Derek Jeter is single-handily one of the best baseball players to ever play the game. Yes, he went 62 games without a homerun, but sometimes I am unsure as to what people, especially Yankees fans, expect. As one of the biggest Jeter fans around, I can safely say I do not think he deserves the negative publicity he has gotten since the season has started, and I feel as though he deserves much more respect than that. At almost 37 years old, he still holds some of the most amazing records any baseball player has ever held. Almost 3,000 hits. Yes, that’s right 3,000. And some people say he should be doing more? Well, if you think you can do better, maybe you should ask Joe Giradi if you could play shortstop instead. Jeter has never had negative publicity in his life. He has simply played shortstop and never done anything to put himself in a negative spotlight as many other baseball players have. He hasn’t slept with any married women (or none that we know of) and has never done anything to make him a hated baseball player. He instead has done everything he could to be one of the best captains and best shortstops the Yankees have ever had. As I sit at my computer everyday and read the negative articles about Jeter, I wonder why someone so good can get so much publicity. Instead, I remember how much negative publicity Alex Rodriquez got because he was “on steroids.” Well, Jeter has never even been accused of it. Instead he has lead the Yankees to five World Series titles and proven that he can be a Yankee all by himself. Whether you are a Yankee fan or not, you cannot hate on Derek Jeter. He has never talked negatively about his team, other teams or any players in his 15 years as one of the best players to be obtained by the New York Yankees. He has proven more to the overall game of baseball than most players in my generation ever have. He has been a classy, exceptional and dedicated baseball player. I’ll continue to read the articles and understand that this is what has to happen in order for the world of sports to go on. There are times in which people are going to have to put the negative spotlight on others, however most will know that it is just writing and nothing anyone can write will take back the career Jeter has had. Jeter will be in the hall of fame, and will continue to go down in history. My kids, and their kids will be talking about the Yankees amazing shortstop. The negative articles will mean nothing when he retires and I hope that everyone will remember what he has done, and maybe not the slump he was in at the beginning of the 2011 season.