Derek Jeter spoke on his cell phone while Jorge Posada flipped through the radio dial as the two Yankees drove to the Stadium yesterday. Jeter wasn't paying attention until he heard his last name and the words "shot" and "hospital" come over the airwaves.
"We went back to the station, but they weren't talking about it anymore," Jeter said. "I figured it was about somebody else. I figured, wow, someone with the same last name as me was shot. I didn't know it was me."
When the All-Star shortstop arrived at the ballpark, reporters were waiting to greet him and make sure radio reports that he had been shot and rushed to a hospital were inaccurate.
"Man, I hope no one is planning to shoot me and they just let it out early," Jeter said, only slightly amused by the scare. "I was asleep today, man. I didn't get up until 1 o'clock. I wasn't shot today, as far as I know. ... I better call my mom, huh?"
The AL's leading hitter entering yesterday's action, Jeter joked he had a built-in excuse if he went hitless against the Braves. He went 3-for-4 - including his team-high 15th home run - as the Braves shocked the Yanks, 10-7.
Jeter has been involved in his share of gossip, and usually is able to laugh off the romantic links or nightlife sightings. "But I haven't been shot yet. This is a first," Jeter said. "Did I live?"
Chili Davis overheard the conversation and chimed in, "Hey Jetes, I got a buddy who was a bodyguard for Prince. You need him?"