LOOK: Here's what scouts were saying about Derek Jeter when he was in high school
One scout said Derek Jeter has 'got some hot dog in him' back in high school
By
Mike Axisa
•
2 min read
Sunday night at Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees will retire No. 2 in honor of longtime captain Derek Jeter. It was never a question of "if" the Yankees would retire Jeter's number. The only question was "when." Here's how you can watch the ceremony.
Jeter played his entire 20-season career with the Yankees, as you know. The team acquired him with the sixth overall pick in the 1992 amateur draft out of Central High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The five players taken ahead of Jeter? Phil Nevin, Paul Sheuy, B.J. Wallace, Jeffrey Hammonds, and Chad Mottola.
Thanks to the incredible Diamond Mines database at the Hall of Fame website, we can go back and see exactly what scouts were saying about Jeter when he was in high school. Here, for example, is a scout who said Jeter has "got some hot dog in him" and a "tendency to coast."
It's kind of weird to see Jeter described as a "hot dog," isn't it? He never did anything like that on the field as a big-leaguer. No bat flips, no slow home-run trots, nothing. Jeter went about his business in the most professional way imaginable. He was so by the book it was almost boring.
Here are two more scouting reports, these from the same Cincinnati Reds scout on different dates. The first was based on a game in April, the second on a game in May. The Reds held the fifth overall pick in 1992 and select Mottola one spot before the Yankees selected Jeter.
The Reds scout dropped a Barry Larkin comp on Jeter and hey, that turned out to be pretty accurate. Larkin himself is a Hall of Famer. Jeter will be one day as well. Jeter was also said to have a "good face," which is an old-school baseball scouting term that means he looked the part of a big-league ballplayer. He was confident in his ability but not cocky.
As great as he was, Jeter was a bat-first player who wasn't much of a defender at shortstop, even at his peak. He was a below average defender who made up for it with his bat. One scout went as far as to say Jeter would have to move to the outfield down the road. That never happened.
The final scouting report is my favorite. It notes Jeter had a "hi butt" in high school, which refers to a long-legged player. That was another reason many expected Jeter to wind up in the outfield long-term. You don't see many shortstop with long legs.
Silly scouting jargon aside, the scouting reports were all effusive in their praise for Jeter. Scouts loved his athleticism, his raw hitting ability, and his makeup. Jeter was unquestionably one of the top prospects in the 1992 draft, so much so that he was in consideration for the first overall selection, which was owned by the Houston Astros.
Instead, Jeter lasted until the sixth overall pick. The rest, as they say, is history.
