I'm not sure if either of you remember, but two years ago, Mariano Rivera got off to a slow start. He blew a couple of saves and everyone was saying "he's done". It looked like the kryptonite had finally gotten to the Sandman and that would be it. Well, he rebounded and is still the best closer in baseball. While Jeter isn't the best shortstop in baseball (maybe not top 5 anymore), he's still well above average. If he even has another average here, raising his average to .280 and driving in 50-60 runs while scoring close to 100 at the leadoff spot, that's still better than most shortstops. Still, Jeter has NEVER been a guy you can judge based on numbers. Back in his prime, Nomar, A-Rod and Tejada had better numbers, but Jeter had that "it" factor that made him a star in NY. The key hits, the big plays. THAT is what Jeter is about. If he completely falters and the Yankees completely falter in September and October, we can talk about "done" then. This is April though, so look at his numbers all you want, but with Jeter, it's never been about the numbers.

While the numbers do indicate he is done (or at least on the way), I won't call him done for one reason. As a Red Sox fan, I'm sill terrified of him coming up to bat in a big spot. Until he starts chocking in those moments, he can still play.

It's never been about numbers with Jeter. Like I said, in the 90's, he wasn't the best shortstop based on numbers. He never was. It's always been about more with him. If it's always about numbers, how come in 1998 when all of baseball was jacking home runs and breaking records, the Yankees didn't have a player with more than 30 home runs. That team as you know won 114 games in the regular season and 125 total with the World Series crown. If it was about numbers, surely that team wouldn't have gotten anywhere. Baseball is a game that is about way more than just your numbers. I'll even give you the benefit of the doubt in saying that Jeter hits .270 again (more of a stretch considering his career average is .314. That's still plenty above average in the league. However, Derek Jeter hitting .270 probably still means that if Derek Jeter is up in the 9th, it DOES scare teams. Ryan was honest about that. Hell, Manny Ramirez just got kicked out of baseball and he was hitting like .190 at the time, but I'd still be fearful of him coming up in a key spot. Some guys just have that "it" factor and Jeter is one of them. On top of that, he dictates the personality of the Yankee clubhouse as its captain. Not too many have had that prestigious honor and he's earn the right to wear the C (metaphorically). If the Yankees compete well this year and Jeter is a part of that in making plays and getting key hits, his manager, his team, and his fans will not look to see if his batting average is below his career numbers. It's about winning in New York and if Jeter's Yankees (yes they are HIS Yankees more than any other player) are winning, nobody is going to worry too much about Jeter's numbers.