The New York Yankees have named shortstop Derek Jeter their leadoff hitter for the upcoming regular season.
Johnny Damnon had been batting leadoff for most of the spring, but manager Joe Girardi recently used Jeter as the leadoff man to see how things would go.
Jeter is a .315 career hitter batting leadoff with 56 homers.
Damon was alright with the move.
“I’m OK with it if it makes our team better. We know Derek’s on-base percentage is a bit higher than mine. Hopefully, we can tinker with this thing, and my production in the two-hole could increase with someone on base quite a bit.”
Jeter doesn’t think the move is a very big deal.
“The only difference is that your first at-bat, there’s no chance of anybody being on base. That’s pretty much the only difference. The situation dictates — whether you’re hitting first, second, third or fourth — there’s still ways to win games. I don’t think it makes any difference.”
The Yankees will open their season against the Baltimore Orioles on April 6th in Camden Yards.
Yanks name Jeter their leadoff hitter (MLB)
