Derek Jeter Has One Good Game, New York's Sportswriters Swoon

New York's affection for Derek Jeter is no secret. He is everything that horrible, evil Alex Rodriguez isn't. He's a winner. He tags Jessica Biel. He had the good sense not to get married, because bro, who gets married, bro? Lame. Derek Jeter is the subject of more NYC man crushes than Judy Garland.

Problem is, he's not all that good anymore. His defensive prowess has been proven, time and again, to be significantly overrated. Though the man crushers are able to dismiss those findings as "too statistical," they're having a difficult time standing up for Jeter this year. His offense is down with his defense. The Yankees are thoroughly mediocre. That's hard to rebuff.

Last night, though, Derek Jeter did something wholly impressive, and the crushers are back out in force. While these two pieces are merely minor offenders, the New York Post's Larry Brooks really carries the torch:

Who else? It doesn't matter. For as the season has evolved, the criticisms of Jeter have mounted. He's been called the worst shortstop in baseball off a statistical study. He's been called the most overrated player in baseball in a poll of opponents who must suffer from Big Apple envy. And through it all, Jeter acts as if it all just rolls off his back the way his prerecorded name rolls off the lips of Bob Sheppard every time he steps into the box.

See that? Because he's unflappable. Of course he is. Unlike, for example, that losing, Madonna-chasing-distraction-of-a-Hall of Famer third baseman Alex Rodriguez, who Brooks takes a shot at in his next graph. (He calls A-Rod an attention-seeking missile. Of course he does.) And then, the final overture:

The inning ended on that patented play, Jeter spinning, leaping and throwing on the money the way Namath always did. Pettitte waited on the field for his teammate. "He said, 'Nice play,'" Jeter recalled. "He was pretty quick [with that line]." Not as quick as Jeter, who, on this night, was exactly what the Yankees needed. Which, just the way it's been for 13 seasons, was simply Jeter being himself.

The formula here is blatant: Writer sets up Jeter's struggles as a battle against "critics," (critics Jeter doesn't care about, because he's Jeter). Then, he talks about why Derek Jeter is still TEH AWESOME, despite the fact that Derek Jeter is merely above average now. Then he closes with something arbitrary and small sample-ish that proves why Jeter still roolz, even if it's disingenuous and silly.

None of this helps explain the game. It just allows everyone to pretend that this is still 1999 and Derek Jeter is still beyond reproach, no matter what you haters leave DEREK JETER ALONE!

Seriously. The man shouldn't be this unlikable. It's not even his fault.