Will the New York Yankees please stop disrespecting Derek Jeter, especially if they are too gutless to attach their names to their quotes?
An unnamed source, obviously within the Yankees organization, felt the need to publicly intimate that the Opening Day lineup for the Bronx Bombers will feature Brett Gardner displacing the captain in the top spot because it would be better for the team.
The quote was rather tame compared to the anonymous comments about Jeter made during the offseason and the mansion comments directed at Jeter by Hank Steinbrenner, which he quickly tried to backpedal from. But it begs the question: why do people within the Yankees organization, including those at the top, feel the need to turn any little issue related to Jeter into a headline in the newspapers, especially knowing how the man hates anything remotely resembling a public spectacle? Maybe that’s the answer. Perhaps the Steinbrenners are still so annoyed at the deal they had to give Jeter that they are taking shots at him just to embarrass him or piss him off.
For the record, I have no problem with people in the organization thinking that Jeter should shift to the #2 spot in favor of the speedy, young Gardner. There’s definitely a baseball case to be made for such a change. But I have a major problem with them trying to make the case in the media. Instead of whispering in a reporter’s ear, these officials should be discussing a lineup change with manager Joe Girardi behind closed doors.
I haven’t seen anything in the way of a response from Jeter, but I would imagine that he’s getting sick and tired of this whispering campaign (read this hilarious, expletive-laden column from the brilliant satirists at the Onion for the rant we all wish we could see Jeter have). But he’s likely to laugh it off publicly, even if he is privately wondering why the Yankees feel the need to constantly disrespect him.
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