ESPN - Derek Jeter Reflects on His Legacy lyrics

BOONE: All right take me back to your first All-Star game, and your memories of that time. JETER: 1998 in Colorado, yeah. The memories I have is that I was scared to d**h. You know, I was sort of hesitant to speak to anyone. There were a lot of guys in the clubhouse that I grew up watching and admiring and respecting, and now you're in the same locker room. I don't even know if I said anything. BOONE: All right. Fast-forward now. [What are] your thoughts on your last All-Star game and what you hope to gain most out of this experience? JETER: You know, the thing I enjoy most about the All-Star games is getting the opportunity to meet the guys that you play against who you don't have a chance to converse with during the game or the course of the season. So, I've always enjoyed getting to know guys. And I've always gone out of my way to introduce myself and talk to them a little bit. BOONE: Mariano went through this last year; last All-Star game last year. What have you taken from him and all that he went through and kind of applying that? JETER: Absolutely nothing. You have to speak to him about it, because I was injured at the time. I was in Florida. I saw highlights of the game. I didn't watch the game. It's kind of difficult to watch games when I'm not playing. But it's a little bit different. You know, Mo's last All-Star game, he was in New York. So I never come in anything with any expectations. I just want to come in; enjoy myself; have fun, and whatever happens happens. BOONE: A lot of your peers, your friends, ex-teammates-- I've been asked a lot-- define Derek Jeter's career; what makes him so great. What do you view as your overwhelming strength as a player? JETER: Well, one, I wouldn't call myself great. The thing that I've prided myself on in my career is consistency. You know, I feel as though I have a job to do each and every day, every year. And I take a lot of pride in being consistent. I want the organization to pretty much know what to expect when I take the field. You know, this is my 18th full year; parts of 20. But for the most part, they've known what to expect. BOONE: Am I right to think, I've always viewed you-- and I've only played with you a few months, but I said, he is genuinely the most confident player I ever played with. Do you see yourself in that way, and where did that come from? JETER: I have a lot of confidence. You know, I think you have to have a lot of confidence in your ability. I think the stronger you are mentally, I think the better you are going to perform. So, I've always had confidence. Any time I'm in a situation, I tend to look back and think back to times that I've had success. And I think that's helped me out throughout my career. So yeah, I think that's a fair a**essment. BOONE: You play a physically demanding position: shortstop. And you've been relatively healthy throughout your career. What do you attribute that longevity to? JETER: Hard work. I work extremely hard. You know, last year I missed pretty much the entire year, and I think I was told up until that point that I missed 80-something games due to injury in my career. So I've been blessed. I've been fortunate to avoid major injuries. I dislocated my shoulder once, but other than that it's been minor things. But I work extremely hard at it. I don't take too much time off during the offseason. You know, I have my routine. I stick to it, and I'm pretty disciplined. So I think I attribute to that. BOONE: Speaking of the injury and missing so much time last year, how difficult has it been to kind of re-find that form, if you will, into this year? JETER: Well, it took a lot longer than I thought. You know I figured a few weeks after Spring Training, and I'd be right back at it. It took a while. You play this game-- I mean, you know as well as anyone-- you play this game every day for a reason. You need to get out there, you need to get into the flow of the game and have a feel for it. I missed that last year, so it's taken me a while, but I think I'm getting better and better as the season goes on. BOONE: All right. I'm going to get you a little reflective a little bit. Yankee Captain: Derek Jeter. When I say that to you, what do you think of? JETER: My job. You know, it's my job. It's been my job for a while, and you know, I take a lot of pride in playing for the Yankees, putting this uniform on, and getting to know my teammates. It takes a lot of time to get to know people. And, you know, I think in order to lead people, you have to get to know them. And I've always tried to take the time to do that. BOONE: All right. When you close your eyes at night, and think of that last regular season game this year at Yankee Stadium, do you have a picture or vision of what it will be like? JETER: I don't. I don't want to have one. You know, I just want to go with the flow. I don't have any expectations. I don't know what it's going to be like. And hopefully we're heading to the playoffs, so I never know when my last game is going to be. But I'm trying not to have any preconceived notions of what may happen. BOONE: Have you enjoyed, have you allowed yourself in any way to kind of step back and enjoy some of the tributes-- that are more to come-- Have you enjoyed going through that? JETER: You know, I have. They've all been unique to where I've been. You know? They've all put some nice twists on it, whether it's the paddleboard in Anaheim or the 2 from the scoreboard of Wrigley Field. I mean, the list goes on and on. But they've all been unique and special and much appreciated. BOONE: [What's] the biggest challenge you think you've faced in retirement? JETER: Hmm. I don't know. I don't know. I mean, I don't want to make plans right away. This will be the first time I'm not on a schedule. So, you know, I'm going to try to travel around and do some things, but I'm trying to stay away from schedules for a while.