Why Derek Jeter Is Greatest 37-Year-Old Shortstop in Baseball History

In the history of baseball, there is no 37-year-old shortstop better than Derek Jeter.

Allow me to explain.

Shortstop and catcher are the two most physically demanding positions in baseball. The abuse and beatings these athletes put their bodies through on a daily basis is something most of us will never fully understand. 

So, it should come as no surprise that as these players get older, especially after they celebrate their 35th birthday, oftentimes they change positions in order to prolong their careers.

When talking about the greatest shortstops who ever played, there is a fairly concrete group of players who enter the discussion: Ernie Banks, Cal Ripken, Jr., Lou Boudreau, Alex Rodriguez, Ozzie Smith, Honus Wagner, Robin Yount, Derek Jeter, Luke Appling and Arky Vaughan.

Out of that group, how many were still playing shortstop when they celebrated their 37th birthday?

The answer?

Three: Wagner in 1911, Smith in 1992 and Jeter. 

Out of that trio, who had played the most games as a shortstop at the end of the season that they turned 37?

Including postseason games, Wagner appeared in 1,298, Smith in 2,230 and Jeter in 2,547 (and counting).

That is a lot of baseball and an unbelievable amount of wear and tear on someone's body. 

Jeter has played more games at shortstop than any of those he would be compared with and has done so with a sometimes reckless abandon in order to get the job done.

While some may consider Wagner to be a better offensive player then Jeter, there is no disputing that Jeter's defense is superior to Wagner's—Wagner was an atrocious defensive shortstop. While his .931 fielding percentage through 1911 was considered to be excellent at the time, Wagner committed more than 50 errors in five different seasons, and  49 errors in three more, numbers that certainly don't show that solid defense is being played.

There is no disputing that Ozzie Smith is the greatest defensive shortstop who ever lived, but "The Wizard of Oz" doesn't come close to Jeter swinging the bat, with a .264 average and .664 OPS through the 1992 season.

So, we are left with one player who may have swung a better bat, one player who was smoother with the glove, but nobody who did everything well and took as much physical abuse as Derek Jeter.

Jeter is the whole package, and he's done it the right way—with class and respect for his opponents, the fans and the game itself.

There's Derek Jeter, and there's everyone else.