Ever wondered how it feels when one gets picked during a draft? Years of blood, sweat, and tears finally seem worth it. For a young player, this is the pinnacle of success, a major life-changing moment. But what does the player experience at that moment? The New York Yankees’ legendary captain Derek Jeter has answered this question. Jeter also shared how he was forced to make huge choice between the Yankees an and the University of Michigan.

While Jeter continues to call himself “fortunate” there was a moment when he was close to being drafted into another team. Imagine the past when Jeter wasn’t wearing the pinstripes? However, while Captain Clutch escaped that twist, there was an important decision that he was forced to make. 

During an appearance on The Deal, Jeter and his fellow Yankees legend Alex Rodriguez talked about their baseball careers. Their journeys couldn’t have been any more different. While A-Rod was a national sensation and the no.1 pick, Jeter had to wait till 6th before his draft. But the fact that it was the Yankees that picked him made the wait worth it. However, it made leaving the scholarship at the University of Michigan even more difficult.

“I had signed to University of Michigan, drafted by the Yankees..Yankee fan growing up; only team I ever wanted to play for. So in that sense, I was very fortunate. Education was huge in my family. My dad got his Ph.D. in Sociology at Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo, Michigan…It was a really big decision,” Jeter said. 

Jeter revealed that the Yankees had agreed to let him pursue his degree. The Hall-of-Famer attended some lectures in his first offseason. So how did the journey go? “I’m still a freshman. So you seen that movie Back to School, Ronnie Dangerfield? That’s gonna be me,” Jeter joked. Rodriguez revealed another interesting tidbit a few moments later.

When Derek Jeter almost became an Astro 

Rodriguez was following Jeter even before their draft pick. So naturally he was interested about where Jeter would go. During the interview, A-Rod revealed how the Yankees got lucky about Jeter. “Derek was born to be a New York Yankee…But what was interesting is leading into that draft, Houston had the number one pick. And there was a lot of talk that Derek would be one in Houston,” Rodriguez shared. 

The Astros ended up picking Phil Nevin. Later A-Rod revealed that even the Cincinnati Reds were close to picking Jeter in the fifth pick but they went for Chad Mottola. Suddenly the Yankees had a shot and they took it. It was an unexpected result as Jeter’s hype suggested he’d be picked sooner. 

However, even imagining Jeter in anything other than the pinstripes seems preposterous. Throughout his career, he had become synonymous with the New York Yankees. As a part of the core-four, Jeter was the cog that kept the machine running. While he may be “fortunate,” the Pinstripes too were quite lucky.

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