The 5 Most Important Yankees In September

Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

#4. Derek Jeter

The Yankees’ Captain has been showing every bit of his 40 years, and rust throughout the season. While the farewell tour has been nice, #2 has been struggling in the #2 hole all season long, and it’s crippled the entire Yankees’ lineup. In 550+ plate appearances, Jeter is hitting only .261, his lowest total since his age-36 season in 2010 when he hit .270. He’s never hit for much power, and this year is no different, having only 3 long balls.

Since he hits behind either Jacoby Ellsbury or Brett Gardner in the lead-off spot, and in front of Carlos Beltran in the Yankees’ lineup, Jeter needs to find “it” one last time. His career is down to less than 20 games, and a big reason this lineup has struggled all season, is because manager Joe Girardi doesn’t dare disrespect the Captain by dropping him in the lineup from his beloved #2 spot in the lineup. Since that isn’t going to happen, just as it hasn’t happened all season to this point, the onus is on Jeter to produce, even if it’s for the three final weeks of the season. He has to move runners over, strike out less, and draw more walks–basically, be the solid #2 hitter he’s always been. Be productive Captain. That’s all your team needs from you. The rust should be gone. Leave it all out on the field, once last time.