Fans: Jeter Shouldn't Let Greed Tarnish Legacy

To Derek Jeter, $50 million is an insult.

To local fans, it's nevermind the $50 million – they'll gladly take what Jeter makes for a base hit.

While the prospect of seeing Derek Jeter wearing anything but pinstripes sounded like an absurd scenario just a few weeks ago, local Yankee fans are trying to wrap their heads around the concept of a captain-less Yankees squad come opening day.

Anything is possible, and most league insiders still think Jeter and the Yankees will reconcile before long. But with the Yankees imploring Jeter to take a reality check instead of the $150 million check he's reportedly demanding, others think there's a good chance Jeter will walk away from the only team he's ever known.

If Jeter thought he'd get any help from appeals to nostalgia and his loyal fanbase, he's likely to be disappointed. The Yankee captain is a certain first-ballot Hall of Famer, a New York icon and a long-time golden boy. But he's already the highest-paid shortstop in baseball history, he's amassed a personal fortune estimated in the hundreds of millions, and he stands to make millions more off endorsements alone when he retires.

Oh, and about those at-bats – Jeter makes more than $80,000 each time he steps to the plate and loops a single into the shallow outfield.

"$15 million a year, cry me a river," said Horatio Perez, who walked out of Modell's in Port Chester Monday. Perez was referring to the most recent official offer from the Yankees, which Jeter turned down.

There are a few reasons why, despite the great memories and championships, fans can't seem to muster any sympathy for Jeter. There are the baseball reasons – he's limping toward 40, his range at shortstop has been suspect for years, and he's coming off the worst offensive season of his career. Then there are the common sense reasons – the country is still in a full-blown recession, lots of people don't have jobs, and anyone who scoffs at $50 million is far removed from reality.

And while Jeter's agent and the Yankeeskees exchange public barbs, teammate Mariano Rivera is happily taking another short-term deal. The 40-year-old Rivera said he's not insulted because he knows his body – and his extraordinary fastball – could give out at any time.

"They should let him go and use the money to get some pitching and whatever else they need," said Neil Aprea of Thornwood.  "I mean, I love Jeter, but they're giving him way more money than he's worth."

Aprea's father, who is also named Neil, describes himself as a die-hard Yankee fan. He said he expects Jeter to report to Yankee Stadium for spring training next year, despite the uncertainties as the two sides show little signs of budging on Jeter's contract. The reason, he said, is simple – Jeter's valuable to the Yankees, but to other teams? Not so much.

"I understand you try to get as much money as you can," the elder Aprea said. "But I look at it the other way. Look at the money he makes. Am I gonna bleed for this guy?"

Jeter's already left a lifetime of memories in the Bronx – the 1996 championship in his rookie year that brought a title to the Bronx for the first time in decades; the home run that just barely sailed into Jeffrey Meier's glove to put the Yankees past the Orioles that same year; the dynastic Yankees of the 1990s and championships aplenty; and the 2009 campaign that saw the Bronx Bombers reclaim the World Series trophy.

Jeter is on the precipice of 3,000 hits, and for years it's been a given that he'd reach that milestone in a Yankee uniform. But at a time when many fans can't even afford to attend games, even loyal fans seem ambivalent if the shortstop dons another team's colors next season.

"If I was to get paid that much money for any one accomplishment of mine, I'd be sitting pretty," said James Dariano of Dobbs Ferry. "But how much more are ticket prices going to go up because of that?"

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