Jeter, with spectacular range and head's up play, has been one of the best defensive shortstops in the game for several years now. His signature move deep into the thirdbase-shortstop hole to snare a grounder and then the Jordanesque leap in the air and rifle throw to first base to get the runner has been showcased in World Series and pennant playoff games. The leap is Jordanesque; the leap with the powerful off-balance mid-air throw is Jeteresque.

But what he does better than any ballplayer I've ever seen in the 41 years that I've been watching baseball is going deep into the outfield, back to the plate, to catch pop flies -- maybe the most difficult play for an infielder to do. In fact, when Jeter came up to the Yankees as a rookie in 1993, it was his spectacular forays into shallow outfield that first made Yankee fans stand up and take notice.

And then there are the highlight-reel plays -- "the catch" against the Red Sox during the 2004 season, where he saved the game in extra innings with a back-to-the-plate, full-speed catch of a shallow fly ball, and then crashing into the stands. Or "the relay", when he came out of nowhere against the Oakland A's in the 2001 pennant playoffs to snare that errant throw to the plate, and backhanded it to Posada for the out to preserve the 1-0 lead. Or there was "the perfect relay" against the Mets in the 2000 World Series, when he fired a bullet to home from deep outfield to nail the runner and turn the game and series to the Yankees' advantage.