Derek Jeter: Why He's the First Player in Pinstripes History To Reach 3000 Hits

The most overrated player in baseball as proclaimed by his peers, Derek Jeter is about to reach a milestone that no other player who has been fortunate enough to wear a Yankees uniform has ever done before.

Not Ruth, Berra or Mantle. Not even Gehrig, Dimaggio or Mattingly. Of the 20 Hall of Famers who represent the New York Yankees in Cooperstown, not one of them has reached the 3,000 hit plateau.

In the 142-year history of Major League Baseball, 27 players have at least 3,000 hits in their careers; 24 of them are in the Hall of Fame. With names like Brett, Cobb and Rose, not one of them is a Yankee.

You may be wondering, “How is it that such a storied franchise with 27 World Championships and 20 Hall of Famers does not have one 3,000 hit member?” While it is oddly curious that 2011 is the first time a Yankee will do this, the answer is simple.

After Jeter, the Top Five Yankees hit-leaders round off with Lou Gehrig (2,721), Babe Ruth (2,518), Mickey Mantle (2,415) and Joe DiMaggio (2,214).

If you’re looking at the back of an old DiMaggio baseball card, you might notice three years missing from his stat line. Like many American men at the time, DiMaggio enrolled in the military following the 1942 season to fight in World War II.

Averaging 170 hits per season, DiMaggio still would have fallen 276 hits short of 3,000 had he kept that pace throughout those three missing seasons.

The amount of injuries DiMaggio sustained throughout his career could possibly be an even bigger factor that hindered him from reaching 3,000. He only played more than 145 games twice in a season, something Jeter has done 14 times.

Though he is a member of the coveted 500 home runs club, Mantle fell a few seasons shy of 3,000 hits. Mantle struggled with alcohol abuse throughout his entire career. In his 18 years, he only played in more than 145 games one more time than DiMaggio.

With a combination of his drinking problem and his lack of offseason training, Mantle found himself often injured. Last week was the first time since 2003 that Derek Jeter found himself on the Disabled List.

Who is the only person in MLB history to hit over 700 home runs and win over 90 games as a pitcher? George Herman Ruth, that’s who.

Ruth spent a majority of his first six professional seasons with the Red Sox as a starting pitcher. In his first six seasons, Ruth only hit 55 home runs; he hit 54 in his first season with the Yankees. In his limited at-bats, Ruth only managed to get 355 hits with the Red Sox; he had 376 by the end of his second season with the Yankees.

The final Yankee-great in comparison to Jeter is the Iron Horse, Lou Gehrig.

A healthy Gehrig could have played well into the 1940s, but an unhealthy Gehrig who was dealt with what is now known as Lou Gehrig’s disease (or ALS), had his career shortened eight games into the 1939 campaign.

We have all heard the “luckiest man on the face of the earth” speech. Gehrig knew his body was deteriorating from a rare disease and wanted to go out on his time. Had he been able to play just two more healthy seasons, he surely would have eclipsed 3,000.

Derek Jeter has been graced with two things no other Yankee-great has had: health and long-term consistency.

Jeter has played an average of 154 games per season in 16 seasons entering 2011, while averaging 184 hits. While some are quick to call him overrated, they could not be any more wrong. In fact, Jeter may possibly be the all-time greatest player on the all-time greatest franchise. Let the debates begin.