Please! I wanna like Derek Jeter! I do! by Joe Posnanski

[rolliefingers]

The Jeter hating reminds me of people, and they do exist, who will say "I used to love that song but then it got too popular".

And by the way....I know people who hate Cal Ripken because of the way he was deified too.

Good point. I'm not much for deities of any kind, and I do admit that it irritates me when people become so popular that it becomes almost a slur to criticize them in any way. Maybe I'm just a hater, but I can't help but want to take guys like that down a notch.

I have no real reason to dislike Ripken or Jeter, but both have become such icons that I can't help but vomit in my mouth a little when people glorify every little thing they do as proof that they're a supernatural baseball intelligence.

As for your music analogy, you're looking at one of those people who tends to like a song a little less if it becomes too popular. Know why? Because you start to have to hear it all the damn time, whether you want to or not. Same with Ripken and Jeter. They are "Since U Been Gone" or "Soulja Boy" (or whatever the kids are listening to these days ).

I just don't like being told what to think, I guess.

[beaner]

Well since you don't dislike the Yanks, I wouldn't expect you to dislike Jeter. If you were a normal O's fan, you'd dislike Jeter.

I agree that my lack of pure hatred for the Yankees certainly allows for a little more tolerance of the Jeter love. Most have admitted on the thread they they have no real reason to hate Jeter other than his immense, yet unecessary popularity.

[beaner]

Good point. I'm not much for deities of any kind, and I do admit that it irritates me when people become so popular that it becomes almost a slur to criticize them in any way. Maybe I'm just a hater, but I can't help but want to take guys like that down a notch.

I have no real reason to dislike Ripken or Jeter, but both have become such icons that I can't help but vomit in my mouth a little when people glorify every little thing they do as proof that they're a supernatural baseball intelligence.

As for your music analogy, you're looking at one of those people who tends to like a song a little less if it becomes too popular. Know why? Because you start to have to hear it all the damn time, whether you want to or not. Same with Ripken and Jeter. They are "Since U Been Gone" or "Soulja Boy" (or whatever the kids are listening to these days ).

I just don't like being told what to think, I guess.

The music analogy Steve brought up is perfect. I felt a little let down by REM when "Stand" came out to be honest. It was almost like they said, "let's write the worst possible song there ever was, the public will LOVE it." Sure enough, it was on the radio every 15 seconds and REM shows went from people that knew every word to every song to people sitting on their hands until they played "Stand". Bad times!

I'm not sure how my post relates to Jeter or Ripken, since neither were really "hidden gems", but whatever.

[mweb]

I agree that my lack of pure hatred for the Yankees certainly allows for a little more tolerance of the Jeter love. Most have admitted on the thread they they have no real reason to hate Jeter other than his immense, yet unecessary popularity.

Jeter being one of the stars of the Yanks over the past 12 years or so is a pretty good reason to hate him. Top that off with Yanks fans and the media going way over the top in their praise for the guy, and it's very justifiable to hate him as a player. When us as baseball fans are inundated with excessive praise for the guy and flat out lies that make him seem much better than he is, it's only natural to be quite annoyed.

That stuff isn't his really his fault, but it still provides inspiration for hate. Not for him as a person though, just as a player.

[beaner]

Jeter being one of the stars of the Yanks over the past 12 years or so is a pretty good reason to hate him. Top that off with Yanks fans and the media going way over the top in their praise for the guy, and it's very justifiable to hate him as a player. When us as baseball fans are inundated with excessive praise for the guy and flat out lies that make him seem much better than he is, it's only natural to be quite annoyed.

That stuff isn't his really his fault, but it still provides inspiration for hate. Not for him as a person though, just as a player.

This does seem to be the prevailing theme here, nothing Jeter really did to deserve all of the hate. Of course, him being a very good baseball player doesn't really justify the immense love that the media has for him either, so maybe it balances out.

[mweb]

This does seem to be the prevailing theme here, nothing Jeter really did to deserve all of the hate. Of course, him being a very good baseball player doesn't really justify the immense love that the media has for him either, so maybe it balances out.

Well that's often how it is with sports. A lot of hatred of players comes from them being on a rival team, having some annoying qualities, and/or getting hyped up too much. You've probably hated some Duke players because of those reasons.

He does seem quite cocky though, and I didn't like the way he handled some things with Arod, who many people also hate without many or any reasons that you would consider good. I also think Jeter could diffuse some of the BS credit he's gotten over the years, he has to know some of it is nonsense, yet he accepts it anyway. I'm on a couple sports teams, and if someone gives me credit or praise I think I'm unworthy of receiving, I'll say so.

[beaner]

Well that's often how it is with sports. A lot of hatred of players comes from them being on a rival team, having some annoying qualities, and/or getting hyped up too much. You've probably hated some Duke players because of those reasons.

He does seem quite cocky though, and I didn't like the way he handled some things with Arod, who many people also hate without many or any reasons that you would consider good.

Absolutely, I'm sure Bobby Hurley didn't deserve half of the venom I had for him. On second thought..

[mweb]

Absolutely, I'm sure Bobby Hurley didn't deserve half of the venom I had for him. On second thought..

So at least you're not being hypocritical at all.

I also added some reasons to dislike Jeter in my last post.

[CrimsonTribe]

I love Jeter, think he's a great ballplayer. Is he overrated? Sure, but he's still a great player who is good for the game. He's never been in any trouble off the field, and I just don't understand all of the hate. If he didn't play for the Yankees, he'd be a guy everyone would respect and appreciate. We're all supposed to be Baseball fans, and this guy is a hell of a Baseball player regardless who he plays for.

Jeter is a terrific baseball player, but if he didn't play for the Yankees he wouldn't be deified like he is. If he wasn't deified there wouldn't be so much hate. Basically, the bad comes with the good.