Breaking: Richard Justice Really, Really Stupid

[GD]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/nyy/richard-justice-derek-jeter-deserving-of-place-among-yankees-legends?content_id=67700502&partnerId=as_mlb_20140212_18494344&vkey=news_nyy&ymd=20140212

Derek Jeter's legacy will not be all that complicated. He was the perfect baseball player. Got anything else?

 

In fact, it could be argued that Jeter is the greatest player who ever lived. Wrap your mind around that idea. Think of all the ways we assess a player's career and tell me another player who ranks ahead of Jeter.

 

First, Jeter has been incredibly productive. In his 17 full seasons, he has averaged 194 hits. His lifetime batting average is .312. Jeter's trophy case has five Gold Glove Awards and five Silver Slugger Awards. He's a 13-time All-Star.

 

Jeter has never won an American League Most Valuable Player Award, but he's finished in the Top 10 eight times. Those top-10 finishes were spread over a span of 15 seasons. So for a long time, he was a tremendous player, one of the best in the game. His 3,316 hits are the 10th most in history.

 

Also, Jeter was a winner. His teams have gone to the World Series seven times and won it five. The Yankees have missed the playoffs once when he was healthy.

 

And there's the other stuff.

 

Brutal.

[Jimcanuck]

an argument could be made he is the best non-steroids linked player of his generation, but best ever hahaha

 

Pujols has accumulated more WAR in 5 less seasons and gets my vote

[John_Havok]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/nyy/richard-justice-derek-jeter-deserving-of-place-among-yankees-legends?content_id=67700502&partnerId=as_mlb_20140212_18494344&vkey=news_nyy&ymd=20140212

 

 

Brutal.

 

His rationale is horrid, but I'd take Jeter on my team any day of the week and twice on Sunday. I'd just put him at second.

[John_Havok]

We'll be hearing this all season.

 

Won't take long either, home opener weekend series against the Yankees, we'll hear Buck and tabler gobble jeter's knob for three days straight.

[dineke]

Jeter is the most valuable player of all time so...

[Convo]

Brutal.

 

There's not a shred of real baseball sense in the entire article. What an absolute door knob.

[havok24]

That was an awful read.

[Dick_Pole]

I think I just became illiterate after reading this.

 

I have Topps baseball cards from the 1970's with blurbs on the back that go into more analysis than this.

[eastcoastjaysfan]

Jeter has the 40th most WAR in the history of baseball. Could move up to 35th this year with a good year.

 

He had a huge impact on the most recognizable team in the sport. I hate when people bash Jeter. I get that it is the fashionable thing to do, and yes, it's nauseating how the NY media fellate him at every given moment, but he deserves the respect of every baseball fan out there.

 

Cheers to a legend.

[eastcoastjaysfan]

Also, how many guys can you name me that gave herpes to all of the following people?

 

Alba

Mariah Carey

Scarlett

Jessica Biel

Vanessa Manillo

 

He's indirectly given herpes to like half of Hollywood

 

GOAT

[GeorgiaPeach]

an argument could be made he is the best non-steroids linked player of his generation, but best ever hahaha

 

Pujols has accumulated more WAR in 5 less seasons and gets my vote

 

Do pitchers count?

 

Because Maddux would rank ahead of Jeter for me.

[Convo]

Jeter has the 40th most WAR in the history of baseball. Could move up to 35th this year with a good year.

 

He had a huge impact on the most recognizable team in the sport. I hate when people bash Jeter. I get that it is the fashionable thing to do, and yes, it's nauseating how the NY media fellate him at every given moment, but he deserves the respect of every baseball fan out there.

 

Cheers to a legend.

 

Is anyone bashing Jeter here? I think they are laughing at the idea of him being the greatest player ever and some of the brain-dead arguments being used to support that.

[The Nemesis]

I am shocked he didn't point out that Jeter was never once a finalist for the NL MVP voting! Can you imagine!!

 

can't point that out. It would tarnish his image. And we can't have that.

 

Seriously, Jeter feels like a throwback to the 40s and 50s where the media protected players to heap fawning adoration on them. It's like they're all afraid to admit that Jeter kind of sucks defensively (and historically has through his whole career).

[ILDD]

can't point that out. It would tarnish his image. And we can't have that.

 

Seriously, Jeter feels like a throwback to the 40s and 50s where the media protected players to heap fawning adoration on them. It's like they're all afraid to admit that Jeter kind of sucks defensively (and historically has through his whole career).

 

But, but, but..... look at his 5 Gold Gloves!

 

Seriously though, great player but not the best of all time. Not even the best of my lifetime. Probably top 5 of my lifetime.

[The Nemesis]

Jeter has the 40th most WAR in the history of baseball. Could move up to 35th this year with a good year.

 

He had a huge impact on the most recognizable team in the sport. I hate when people bash Jeter. I get that it is the fashionable thing to do, and yes, it's nauseating how the NY media fellate him at every given moment, but he deserves the respect of every baseball fan out there.

 

Cheers to a legend.

 

He deserves respect for his bat, absolutely. He is unequivocally among the very best offensive shortstops in the history of baseball. I don't believe you can question that at all.

 

Where I draw the line though is the over-the-top gushing that people go through over his defence. He was a mediocre defender at best. And a bad one at worst. With the exception of that time he came flying out of nowhere on the cutoff to make that shovel throw to home in the playoffs vs Oakland, basically every play on the Derek Jeter career defensive highlight reel is massively, massively overrated. The famous "flying into the stands" catch is one of my picks for the most overrated baseball highlight ever.

 

His defence wasn't awful enough that it should tarnish his place in history, but the ridiculous way that people throw around terms like "the perfect baseball player" or "excellent in all facets of the game" or hold up his gold gloves (and let's be realistic, he only won 6 in 19 years, and you can make a pretty good case for him not deserving a few of those) to try and make him out to be a baseball god irks me.

 

It is a shame that his defensive overratedness drags down his offensive prowess, but it's equally awful that the way he gets fellated by general baseball media is largely responsible for the knee-jerk way that lots of people dislike him.

[jays_fever]

He isnt even the best current Yankee..yet hes somehow the best player ever

[GD]

Who's a better current Yankee? A-Rod??

 

Beltran???

 

McCann, Ellsbury, Sabathia, Kuroda, Tanaka, Tex, etc..

[jays_fever]

Who's a better current Yankee? A-Rod??

 

Im talking about in terms of career. A rod and it isnt even close..if youre talking about current skill set right now..jeter doesnt even make the top 10

[Atothe]

Does Justice not remember Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Ricky Henderson, Babe Ruth, Roger Hornsby, Albert Pujols, Barry Bonds played in the past half century. I wouldn't even put Jeter in my top 10 of the past 25 years. Great player but huge slight to those who played the game at a higher level. If Ted Williams' head could talk, it would say stfu Justice

[GD]

Not even close!

 

Are we talking all time or for next season?

[Boxcar]

If we're looking at pitchers and hitters, Jeter would have a hard time making my top-20 of the last 25 years.

 

Bonds

Griffey

Maddux

R. Johnson

Pedro

Rodriguez

Trout

Cabrera

Pujols

Bagwell

Schilling? (close)

Clemens

Mussina?

Chipper?

 

I think he pretty easily makes my top 20, but his accomplishments have been overblown to the point of disgust.

[Boxcar]

Bonds

Rodriguez

Pujols

Jones

Bagwell

Walker

Griffey

Thomas

Rolen

Ichiro (credit for time in Japan)

Johnson

Maddux

Clemens

Pedro

Schilling

Mussina

Halladay

 

I'd have tentatively ahead of him. So he'd be in the 15-20 range of the last 25 years for me.

 

That's a real stretch. Seems to me you came to a conclusion and then gathered evidence afterwards, just like all those people you hate. Hypocrite dumn dumn.

[GD]

I don't know if this is sarcastic, but it's probably true.

 

He bolded player as a reference to all the girls he's been with lol.

[Boxcar]

Who from that list was an inferior player?

 

Walker

Thomas

Rolen

Ichiro

Halladay

 

And several are debatable.

[Anemic0ffense]

I still think Jeter is in the closet. Call me nuts, but the guy is never seen kissing any women. I think it'll be something that comes out years after his retirement.

[saskjayfan]

Best in Baseball, ever?

 

with the ladies maybe....

[saskjayfan]

Walker

Thomas

Rolen

Ichiro

Halladay

 

And several are debatable.

 

Walker couldn't stay healthy, but his peak was higher than jeters. That's why you call it a career though. 19 years of consistency is pretty impressive.

[Boxcar]

Walker gets underrated because of Coors. His 141 wRC+ is on par with A-Rod. Dude should be a slam dunk HOF inductee. I hate punishing him because he wasn't healthy enough to play 500 more games.

 

He's also not a SS. Walker is a great player and should be in the HOF, but I don't think saying he's not as good as Derek Jeter is a slight on him.

[Boxcar]

I obviously disagree on all of those, but I don't think there's even an argument against Rolen being better. 3.7 fewer WAR than Jeter in almost 600 fewer games and more than 3000 fewer plate appearances.

 

Sorry, egregious oversight on my part. It's somehow hard for me to not think of Rolen as a decrepit old man.

[Boxcar]

http://www.bluejayhunter.com/2009/08/scott-rolens-top-10-defensive-gems.html

 

I worked at Best Buy a few years ago when Rolen had a house in Oakville and he was a regular, was pretty cool.