Jeter's Swing Also Feeling Better
Newsday, June 1, 2000
by David Lennon
Derek Jeter lost roughly two weeks of his season because of a strained abdominal muscle. What he found during that time off in Tampa, however, has made his time on the DL a worthwhile sabbatical.
Jeter was hitting 10-for-17 in his first four games back, with two doubles, a home run and three RBI. He then went 1-for-5 in last night's loss to Oakland.
Jeter hates missing games more than grounding into double plays, but even he had to admit there was a benefit to being away. "Maybe it was a blessing in disguise," Jeter said. "You don't want to be hurt, but in retrospect, it may have helped." The night Jeter injured himself, his best friend on the team, Jorge Posada, said it could ultimately have a positive effect on the struggling shortstop.
Jeter had been hitless in four straight games for the first time since 1997, so there was evidently something wrong, and he managed to correct it with the help of Gary Denbo, the Yankees' Tampa-based hitting instructor.
Jeter said no one knows his swing better than Denbo, and the two figured things out. Part of the time was spent comparing tapes of him hitting this season as opposed to last year, and the difference was startling.
"Everything was wrong," Jeter said. "My set-up was wrong. My approach was wrong. When you have that time off, you can start over." Now it seems as if Jeter has pressed some kind of reset button, allowing him to pick up where he left off a year ago. Jeter had been hitting .266 before the injury, but is up to .301 since his return.