Jeter Is in Swing Of Things
Finds spring groove
Daily News, March 12, 2000
By Anthony McCarron
TAMPA - A few days ago, standing between two running buses parked outside the visitor's clubhouse at the Indians' training complex, Derek Jeter talked about how unhappy he was with his spring at-bats.
Derek Jeter is congratulated by Chuck Knoblauch (11) after blasting a two-run homer in the first inning yesterday.
"How do you feel at the plate?" he was asked.
"How do I look?"
A reporter frowned and shrugged.
"That," Jeter said, "is how I feel."
Things have changed drastically in the last few days, so much so that the batter's box is like an easy chair to Jeter. He was 4-for-4 yesterday with five RBI, a mammoth homer and two runs scored before leaving the game against the Braves in the top of the fifth inning. The Yankees won, 23-7, against a team made up mostly of Atlanta farmhands.
Though talks on a long-term deal for Jeter don't seem to be near the top of organizational to-do lists, a few more games like yesterday's might have George Steinbrenner running down to the clubhouse between innings to hammer out a pact.
The outburst improved Jeter's spring batting average from .304 to .407. He is 11-for-27 with one homer and six RBI. His first-inning home run yesterday hit a clock on the bottom part of the Legends Field scoreboard.
"I hit that one pretty good," Jeter said.
The shortstop's turnaround is partly the result of easing back into the routine of playing baseball every day and partly due to his devotion to waiting on pitches instead of pouncing on them too early.
"Derek is aggressive and one of the things that gets him off his game is jumping out at pitches," Yanks' batting coach Chris Chambliss said. "We've just talked recently about him taking his time, slowing down. That allows him to see the ball better."
"At this point, you don't really worry about how many hits you have," Jeter said. "It's more being comfortable. I don't know that I've struggled, we've only played a few games, but in the last couple, I've been making good contact.
"It's all how you're swinging and what you're swinging at. It just takes time. You could work out all off-season, hit all off-season, take as many ground balls as you can, but it's different once you get into a game. It's different facing live pitching."
Jeter, 25, joked yesterday that he's "getting old," so he knows what he needs to do to prepare for the season. This off-season, the tireless worker put on what he estimated as 15 to 20 pounds of muscle. His exercise regimen had him lifting weights four times a week and doing a program of isometric strength training another day.
Most of the work was done to develop his trunk and legs.
"At times, I've neglected my legs when I'm hitting," he said earlier in camp. "I've only used my hands, my upper body. If I get my legs into the swing, I'll be that much more powerful."
Jeter took just two weeks off after the World Series last year before coming to Tampa for workouts at the Yanks' minor-league complex a few blocks from Legends Field.
"Your legs give you your hitting base," Chambliss said. "It's hard to make a fundamental hitting mistake when they're under you. On the other hand, strong legs take the pressure off of your back and you can get maximum bat speed.
"Although power is not something you want Derek thinking about, the stronger legs should make him an even more dangerous hitter."