Derek Jeter

Before he became one of the New York Yankees’ greatest players, Derek Jeter was the nationally recognized star of the Kalamazoo Central High School Maroons.

After batting .557 with seven home runs as a junior in 1991, Jeter followed up with a .508 average, four homers, 23 RBIs and 12 steals in 23 games as a senior and was named the American Baseball Coaches Association High School Player of the Year, the USA Today High School Baseball Player of the Year, and Mr. Baseball for the state of Michigan. Committed to the University of Michigan, he was drafted sixth overall in 1992 by the Yankees and turned pro.

Jeter made his MLB debut at age 20 on May 29, 1995. The next year, he was up in the Major Leagues for good, winning the 1996 American League Rookie of the Year Award after batting .314 with 183 hits in 157 games. He followed up by hitting .361 in the postseason as the Yankees won their first World Series since 1978.

It was the first of five rings for Jeter, who played in the postseason in his first 12 seasons and in 16 of 20 seasons. In 2000, he was named the World Series Most Valuable Player after batting .409 with two doubles, one triple, and two home runs as the Yankees defeated the New York Mets, 4 games to 1.

Overall, Jeter was named an American League All-Star 14 times and won five Gold Glove Awards and five Silver Slugger Awards.

Jeter’s career totals of 2,747 games played, 3,465 hits, 1,923 runs, and 260 home runs top all other Major Leaguers from Michigan.