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Pequannock Township, New Jersey
June 26, 1974
Derek Jeter was born in Pequannock Township, New Jersey, to an African-American father, Dr. Sanderson Charles Jeter; his mother Dorothy is of Irish/German descent.
Moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan
June 26, 1978
Jeter and his family moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan, when he was 4
Kalamazoo Central High School
September 1, 1988 - June 1, 1992
Jeter was inspired to play baseball by Hall of Famer Dave Winfield. In high school, Jeter was a star baseball player at Kalamazoo Central High School, where he also played basketball, earning an All-State honorable mention. After batting .557 as a sophomore, Jeter hit .508 (30-59) with 7 HR, 23 RBIs 21 BB, and 1 strikeout his junior year. He got on base 63.7 percent of the time.
Drafted by the New York Yankees
June 1, 1992
Although Jeter received a baseball scholarship to attend the University of Michigan, he was drafted by the New York Yankees with the 6th overall pick of the 1992 amateur draft and chose to go pro. Jeter has said, however, that he will eventually go back to college and earn a degree.
Minor League Career
July 2, 1992 - May 1, 1995
Jeter spent 4 years in the minor leagues, beginning in the Rookie League before advancing to Class A. He spent 2 years there, collecting various awards, including Most Outstanding Major League Prospect of the South Atlantic League in 1993 and Best Defensive BUGG Shortstop.
In 1994 he was honored with the Minor League Player of the Year Award by Baseball America, The Sporting News, USA Today, and Topps/NAPBL after hitting .344 with five home runs, 68 RBIs and 50 stolen bases combined at Triple-A Columbus, Double-A Albany, and Class-A Tampa. He was also named the MVP of the Florida State League.
New York Yankees Starting Shortstop
May 29, 1995 - Now
Jeter has played a role for the Yankees since 1996. Jeter is one of three current veterans (the others are Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera) who came up through the Yankees organization, and has played his entire professional career with the Yankees. As the Yankees Shortstop, he is currently the longest-serving position player on the team. As of his current contract, Derek earns $22 million a year in salary, and is the second highest paid endorser in baseball having earned $7 million in endorsements in 2006.[7] Also, he was ranked as the most marketable player in baseball according to an 2005 Sports Business Survey.
Turn 2 Foundation
May 1, 1996
Jeter began the Turn 2 Foundation, a charity organization, in 1996. The Foundation was established to help children and teenagers avoid drug and alcohol addiction, and to reward those who show high academic achievement. The organization's name was chosen, besides the baseball reference to a double play (and Jeter's uniform number), to demonstrate the goal of giving youths a place to "turn to", besides drugs and alcohol
Rookie of the Year
October 1, 1996
He returned on Opening Day of the 1996 season as the starting shortstop (the first Yankee rookie since Tom Tresh in 1962 to do so) and hit his first major-league home run on that day. Coincidentally, his home run was called by another former Yankee shortstop, the late Hall of Famer Phil Rizzuto, with whom Jeter would get guidance from whenever the two met. Jeter played his way to a successful rookie season, hitting for a .314 batting average, 10 home runs, and 78 runs batted in and subsequently earning Rookie of the Year honors.
The Jeffrey Maier Incident
October 1, 1996
During the 1996 American League Championship Series, Jeter was involved in what has become an memorable moment in postseason history. During game one, with the Yankees trailing the Baltimore Orioles 4-3 in the 8th inning, Jeter hit a fly ball to right field. As right fielder Tony Tarasco moved to make a play on the ball near the fence, appearing to have a chance to catch the ball, 12 year old Jeffrey Maier reached over the wall and caught the ball, pulling it back into the stands. Despite Tarasco's protest, the umpires convened and ruled the ball a home run. Replays conclusively showed that had Maier not interfered, the ball would have fallen in front of the fence and potentially into Tarasco's glove for an out. The Yankees would go on to win in 11 innings, and eventually the series, 4 games to 1. The ruling made for the first home run of Jeter's postseason career.
First World Series Title
October 15, 1996
The New York Yankees became world champions
Mariah Carey
January 1, 1997 - January 1, 1998
Jeter's personal life has been a favorite topic in gossip columns and celebrity magazines since his rookie year in 1995. Jeter had a well publicized relationship with pop diva Mariah Carey from 1997 to 1998.
Other Relationship and Rumored Relationships
January 1, 1998 - Now
Jeter also dated former Miss Universe Lara Dutta and actress Jordana Brewster. He is rumored to have dated actresses Scarlett Johansson, Gabrielle Union, and Jessica Alba. Rumors also circulated that he was dating supermodel Tyra Banks after the two were spotted sitting next to each other at a New York Knicks game, but it turned out to be a coincidence; Jeter's actual "date" to that game was his father. He has also dated Brazilian Supermodel Adriana Lima; with whom he did a commercial. Jeter also had an on-and-off relationship with television personality Vanessa Minillo from late 2003 until early 2006. Most recently, Jeter had been linked to actress Jessica Biel
All-Star MVP
July 15, 2000
Jeter became the first player ever to win the All-Star Game MVP award and the World Series MVP Award in the same year. Jeter became the first Yankee since Yogi Berra, in 1959, to hit a home run in the All Star Game (Alfonso Soriano then hit one in 2001).
The Flip Pass to Home Plate
October 1, 2001
Jeter has made a series of spectacular plays both in the field and at the bat, especially in the 2001 postseason. Perhaps the most memorable took place in Game 3 of the 2001 American League Division Series vs. the Oakland Athletics. With Jeremy Giambi on first base, Oakland right fielder Terrence Long hit a double off Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina into the right-field corner. As Giambi rounded third and headed for home, Yankees right fielder Shane Spencer retrieved the ball and made a wild throw intended for Yankees catcher Jorge Posada. Instead, the errant throw missed cutoff man Tino Martinez and dribbled up the first base line. Jeter came out of nowhere to grab the ball and flip it to Posada, who tagged Giambi on the leg just before he crossed home plate for the out. Facing elimination, the Yankees went on to win the game 1-0, as well as the series.
First Player to Hit a Home Run in November
November 1, 2001
After the September 11th terrorist attacks, the baseball season was put on hold. Because of this, the playoffs started later, and Game 4 of the 2001 World Series was played on October 31st. The game went into the tenth inning tied at 3-3. At midnight, the scoreboard in center field read "Attention Fans, Welcome to NOVEMBER BASEBALL". This was the first time that any non-exhibition baseball game had been played in the month of November.
Moments after this message was displayed on the board, Jeter sent a 3-2 pitch from Byung-Hyun Kim over the right field stands. A fan in the stands held up a sign with the words "Mr. November", which he likely planned to hold up if anyone did something major after midnight. Michael Kay, who called the walkoff home run, called Jeter by this name, referencing the sign. Despite the nickname, Jeter was 3 for 12 (.250) in November baseball that season, as the Yankees lost the World Series in seven games to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Dislocated Shoulder
March 31, 2003
Jeter started the season by dislocating his left shoulder on opening day after being named captain of the Yankees, March 31, at the SkyDome in Toronto. With Jeter on first base and Jason Giambi at bat, Toronto used an extreme shift that left third base uncovered. Giambi hit a soft grounder to the pitcher, Roy Halladay, who threw to first baseman Carlos Delgado for an out. Jeter, seeing Toronto out of position, rounded second and ran to third. Toronto catcher Ken Huckaby ran up the line to cover third and fielded Delgado's throw. Jeter dived headfirst into the bag, while Huckaby attempted to catch the baseball and block Jeter from reaching third. In doing so, Huckaby fell onto Jeter; his shin guard driving into his shoulder.
The Diving Catch Into the Stands
July 1, 2004
In a game against the rival Boston Red Sox. In the top of the 12th inning, with the score tied at 3, the Red Sox had runners on second and third with 2 outs and right fielder Trot Nixon up at bat. Nixon hit a pop fly down the left field line. Jeter ran from his position at shortshop and made an over-the-shoulder catch. In dramatic fashion he launched himself over the third base side railing, landing three rows into the left field seats, and lacerating his chin and bruising his face in the process. Jeter was later taken out of the game.
First Gold Glove
October 1, 2004
Jeter won his first gold glove.
2000th Hit
May 26, 2006
Recorded his 2,000th career hit with an infield single on May 26, 2006 off Kansas City Royals pitcher Scott Elarton, becoming the eighth Yankee to reach the milestone.
Second Place in MVP Voting
October 15, 2006
In 2006 Jeter led the major leagues in highest groundball/flyball ratio (3.23; 313/97) and batting average on balls in play (.394), and tied for the American League lead in steals of third base (12). He was 2nd in the league in batting average (.343) and runs scored (118), 3rd in hits (214), SB success % (87.2), and batting average with runners in scoring position (.381), and 5th in infield hits (26). He finished 2nd in American League MVP voting to Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins (320 points to 306 points).
