As Derek Jeter’s 20-year-long New York Yankees’ career progressed, the shortstop set a brand new standard, with a very high bar for the term loyalty. Everyone loved Derek Jeter. From his teammates and the coaching staff to the Pinstripes ownership, Jeter was respected and adored by the Yankees.

And it was Jeter’s attitude and loyalty towards his own teammates and competitiveness against opponents that made him so special.

Notably, Jeter was part of a group dubbed the “Core Four.” The four players part of this group were Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, and Derek Jeter, who had spent a long number of years playing together.

Why did Derek Jeter call Andy Pettitte an idiot?

Analogous to that, in an interview with Drink Champs, the host asked Jeter to pick between two close teammates – Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte. Captain Clutch gave a very composed response and said, “I got to go with Andy because I’ve played with Andy since I was 18 years old.”

However, despite picking Pettitte, Jeter expresses his annoyance about Andy Pettitte leaving the ‘Core Four’. And moving to Houston Astros from 2004 to 2006. While talking about that, and the number of years he spent with the remaining members of the Core Four, the shortstop says, “Andy Pettitte was an idiot. And he left and went to Houston for a couple of years. Then he came back. Myself, Mariano, and Jorge are the only 3 athletes in any of the professional sports to play 17 years together. It would have been four of us, but it’s those three.”

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Moving on, Jeter justifies his selection of Andy Pettitte over Roger Clemens.

Roger Clemens played with the New York Yankees from 1999 to 2003, and once again in 2007, before retiring. Jeter moved on to speak about Clemens as a teammate. And said that he hated playing against Clemens, nicknamed “Rocket.” However, the dynamic changed entirely when they played on the same team.

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Jeter said, “He used to hit me all the time, tried to intimidate you. Play with Roger Clemens, he’s one of the best teammates you’ll have. I love rocket but I pick Andy on history, by far.”

Who is your favorite among the ‘Core Four’? Let us know in the comments.