First of all, why would Jeter stepping down as captain be doing what's worst for the team? What does he do as the captain that he didn't do before he got the "title" in the summer of '03? Absolutely nothing. I'm not saying Jeter defending A-Rod will turn him into a great, clutch player, but it's silly for the captain of the team to not defend a player because of what was said in a magazine five years ago. I'd prefer to have a "captain" that put the team first when dealing with his teammates. Jeter doesn't do that. He just wants to go play baseball, he doesn't like dealing with the media, he always gives vague answers on every topic to avoid giving a particular stance either way. That's not a bad thing, but it's not what a captain should be doing.
I'm calling bullshit on the Jeter should be a better man argument. A-Rod is a prick. He threw his supposed best friend under the bus at the height of their friendship. Why should Jeter just "be the better man?" Have you ever seen A-Rod say "Well, I was wrong, those comments were totally off-base, and I should never have made them."? No, you haven't. Alex made his own bed, and no one wants to let him lie in it now. People are making excuses for A-Rod??? Come on. One of the most talented players ever to don a uniform, yet dismal in the postseason, and he deserves people to stick up for him? The highest paid player in the sport, who can't transition from SS to 3B? Please. Alex is a dipshit, and that interview (I saw it on ESPN a little while ago,) just helped to confirm it. And Strawberry saying someone should stand up and defend a teammate does not lend ANY credence to the argument. (Hey Daryl, feel like a line or two?) Jeter IS vocal when the situation warrants it. He's been a face in the media for his entire career. He's always got something to say when he feels someone should be defended (see Torre, or Giambi.) Quite simply, it seems to me that he's just remembering the lesson his mother probably taught him, that all of our mothers did: "If you don't have something good to say about someone, don't say anything at all." I'm willing to bet, if Jeter said how he honestly feels about ARod, and what he means to the team, Derek would say that if the Yankees traded Alex, they'd be a better team for it. And you know what? He'd be absolutely right.
As for Pavano, if Colorado is interested, let's make this thing happen. Could a three-way involving Lieber coming here, Pavano going to Colorado, and the Rockies and Phils be possible? Lieber's still got some left in the tank, right? At the very worst, he would be an upgrade over Pavano wouldn't he?
I would agree that A-Rod is an asshole, and shouldn't have made those comments, and should apologize for making them. But it doesn't make Jeter's captaincy skills, or lack thereof, any more acceptable. He shouldn't pick and choose who to support, as captain. It's not even a matter of some of the deeper issues (like letting A-Rod, a far superior defensive player, play SS), it's being fully supportive of his entire team vocally in a public forum. If he doesn't like A-Rod, fine, when A-Rod's not a Yankee anymore he could stab him to death in a dark alley for all I care. But he should atleast fake a friendship with him. Maybe it's not even fair to blame Jeter, though. Steinbrenner or whoever offered him the role of captain could be to blame. It's not like he was going to decline it.
Because A-Rod, whether you think of him as a cancer or not, is still on the team. Jeter is the captain of the team. If Jeter is so against A-Rod and playing with him, he should have gone to Cashman this off-season and demanded A-Rod be traded. It's silly for him to continuously fuel this feud.
So, by your theory, Jeter should have supported Sheff when Sheff wanted to be captain over Jeter.:up: And where did Jeter say he did not Alex on the team? Seems like the "feud" is a media fabrication.
Name another captain in MLB that is better. Please, let us know who would be better suited for the honor.
GM and junc, it has nothing to do with Arod needing to be tough enough or taking his own heat, I agree he should....but it doesnt take much for Jeter to give some PSA in Arods defense if it will help team unity...Jeter is basking in the glory of Arods failures and that is not the actions of a team captain
its not media fabrication. it exists as arod eluded to in the recent interview. read a little between the lines GM...Jeter is the only one who is capable of squashing it. Alio, it has nothing to do with the fact that Arod hasnt apologized either. I dont care if theyre fuckin mortal enemies to the death.Jeter needs to come out publicly and support arod to stop the division in the lockerroom...it doesnt take a genius to see that this sint a team that has chemistry....its 25 seperate entities and Jeter supporting arod could at least squash one aspect of it....its painfully obvious that this is the right thing to do FOR THE TEAM!This same attitude that a lot of you guys have towards arod is the same attitude shared by half the team...it doesnt make any difference if alio or gm or jonnyd hates arod but it does if his teammates do...again I ask....would it really be putting Jeter out so much to say a few words? I mean cmon guys
I find myself with 10P10 on this issue. None of this discounts anything that Arod said in the article, or the shameless way he has carried himself while he's been in NY. I don't quite understand what makes Jeter a great captain. He is an outstanding leader, but I don't think that automatically qualifies you as captain. It's much greater. It can require swallowing pride, and taking a personal hit for what's best of the team. As much a role as Arod has in keeping this thing going, so has Jeter. He could've ended this a long time ago if he wanted to. If he was an ordinary player, he wouldn't be required to, but if he's supposed to carry himself above that and look for what's the best for the team, he should have made it his own personal mission to settle all this a few offseasons ago.
IIRC, Jeter was handed the title by Joe himself. And it wasn't so that he would suddenly be a "legitimate" leader, but more just out of his strange man-love for his "guys." It's not like he really picks and chooses. He defended Giambi, and that couldn't have been easy. I mean, how do you go to bat for a guy that everyone "knows" is a cheater? ARod is a totally different story though. He outright downplayed Jeter as even significant to the team. That's a personal attack. Be serious, if someone called you out and said you were a fraud, you'd have a tough time making nice afterward too. It's simple human nature. I've said it so many times my keyboard practically types it by itself. Holding athletes to some higher expectations of personality is unfair. They are human beings, just like you and me. When you look at it from that angle, you have to come to the understanding that Jeter is just a guy who got shit on by a guy who was supposed to be his closest friend at the time. Even with all that happened, especially with Alex making stupid comments like "Stop asking me, and I'll stop lying about it," Jeter still keeps his mouth shut. IMO, Jeter would be fully justified saying ARod is a total douchebag and should be traded. But ever the consumate professional, he just keeps his mouth shut. For that factor alone, he is doing what is "best" for the team. The only thing Jeter ever did in relation to ARod being a Yankee that was "bad" for the team, was refusing to give up the SS position. Truth be told though, I was, and still am, in total agreement with that. Jeter IS the Yankee SS. It's not like he's a poor SS. Just because ARod couldn't adjust to the corner isn't Derek's fault. The "best" player in the game should be able to transition to any position, save for pitcher or catcher. Alex couldn't. And Jeter still doesn't take the opportunity to rip the guy. ARod goes stone cold in October, and Jeter doesn't rip that either. I just can't abide riding Jeter for not coming out and wholeheartedly defending this jackass. It's just not right.
I would agree that the feud has been overblown by the media. Jeter should come out and dismiss the notion that he and A-Rod are anything but good friends.
I don't know many captains of other teams, and I don't think "captain" is a very important official title. But it's different being captain of the Yankees, a team that plays in the media capital of the world, with all the marquee players with big egos, it's an important job. I don't think there's anyone who should be the captain. I think maybe, if Johnny Damon never played for the Red Sox, and was a long-tenured Yankee like Jeter, he would be a good guy for the job. He has more of an outgoing personality and doesn't discriminiate with praise. He destroyed A-Rod in the book he wrote with the Sox, and once he came to the Yankees, he said how dumb it was, and how he's a great player and a great teammate. So I guess if Damon had Jeter's resume, I wouldn't mind him as "captain".
Maybe, although I doubt Torre had the power to hand out a title like that without the support of George. Because, by all accounts, Giambi is one of the nicest guys in the game. He went to every player and coach on the team the first day of spring training in '05 and apologized to them for all the distractions of the off-season. A-Rod's not the nice guy Giambi is, he's not going to do that. But a captain doesn't discriminate with public praise. All of that is fine for Jeter to feel personally. If this was 2002, when Jeter was "seen" as the leader of the Yankees, then I would agree. It's 2007, he's officially the leader of the team and its spokesman. He has to put that aside when the media comes calling.
