Derek Jeter

Jeter with the nice double play (flickr (Keith Allison))

Derek Jeter is a great baseball player and a great person to be around. Although he retired in 2013, he will always be a baseball legend. He is not just known for baseball, but is also known for his extremely kindness and respectfulness.

Derek had a happy childhood and was a great friend to everyone he knew. Derek was born on June 26, 1974. He grew up loving the game of baseball. When Derek was 7, he lived in West Milford, New Jersey and moved Kalamazoo, Michigan. In 9th grade, he played varsity baseball for his high school, Central Kalamazoo. He replaced a senior that played shortstop. As years went on, Derek and the coach's son were great friends. They were also the only two freshmen on the team. Derek's backyard was school property, so he and his dad would play catch a lot. Derek was going to go to Michigan for college and play baseball for the Wolverines, but he decided to go straight to the MLB draft. He was picked 7th overall. He was the 1st overall high schooler in the draft. This is when Derek's career starts as a pro baseball player.

Derek practiced very hard to get to the MLB. Because he lived very close to the school him and his dad would practice on school grounds. He worked so hard with his dad that he replaced the varsity shortstop. Derek contributed to so many opportunities to play baseball. When his dad created the Turn 2 Foundation he became a big part of it. He went to hospitals to visit the kids who needed help. Derek worked very hard to be where he is now.

Derek Jeter faced many challenges. One challenge was his sister getting cancer. She had prostate cancer. She had to go through chemotherapy. Derek also had to work through many injuries such as pulled groin, dislocated shoulder, and many more. Also when Derek was young his grandma died and then 6 months later his grandpa died. He faced many challenges on his way to the MLB like all the time he spent practicing trying to get to the MLB. And all the work he did in the minors. One of Derek's quotes is "Someone can have more talent than you, but there is no excuse for someone who works harder than you do." This means that you should always be the hardest working person for whatever you're doing. As you can see, Derek is a very hard worker and can work through obstacles on his life.

Derek did many things for his community. Derek won three community service awards. The first one was the "Good Guy" award. He won this because of his class on and off the field. The second award was the "Toast of Town Award" this award was for community service. These awards were both made by the BBWAA. Another record he set was the "Joan Payson Award" for community service. Jeter also won the leagues Best Prospect award. This means that Derek won the rookie of the year award. Another award he won was the leagues most exciting player. The league thought that Derek was a clutch player and fun guy to watch. The last award was the best infield arm award. Derek threw very hard to every single base. This is some of the many awards Derek won.

Derek has many qualities in baseball and life. One quality that he has is dedication. He dedicated to baseball by practicing with his dad on school grounds. He won the rookie of the year coming out of high school. Another quality is class. Derek after every game shook the other teams hand more than once. The last quality is Derek's toughness. When Derek broke his foot in a game he finished that game and had a home run. These are the main qualities that Derek has to become a successful man in baseball and life.

I can learn many lessons from this person. One thing I learned from Derek is that hard work can get you anywhere in life and sport, especially baseball with hard work Derek got to play in the MLB for the New York Yankee's. Also kids who love the game of baseball can learn how Derek played baseball. You could learn baseball at a whole new level. These are just some of the many ways you could learn some of Derek's lessons in life and sports.

Derek Jeter has not died, but he will always be a baseball legend. Derek inspired many young kids to play baseball. Derek is a very riveting and unique person to learn about.