Derek Sanderson Jeter is an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive. Profoundly inspirational Derek Jeter quotes will get you through anything when the going gets tough and help you succeed in every aspect of life.
Famous Derek Jeter Quotes
There may be people who have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do – and I believe that. – Derek Jeter
You don’t just accidentally show up in the World Series. – Derek Jeter
The last thing you want to do is finish playing or doing anything and wish you would have worked harder. – Derek Jeter
If you’re going to win games, you’re going to have to come up with the big hits. That’s the bottom line. – Derek Jeter
I think it comes easy to work hard. I was always taught, don’t short-change yourself. Keep working to get better. – Derek Jeter
The first thing to know about playing baseball in Michigan is, Michigan’s really cold. – Derek Jeter
Defense usually doesn’t make many headlines, but it goes a long way towards winning baseball games. There are a number of ways to make an impact during the course of a game, and playing solid, sound defense is one of them. – Derek Jeter
Our fans don’t want to see us win the Wild Card. They want to see us win the division. – Derek Jeter
The Yankees have twenty-five heroes. – Derek Jeter
The guy’s (Shane Spencer) ridiculous. No one hits home runs like that. I’m telling you, man, it’s ridiculous. – Derek Jeter
The Yankees have strict rules. You can have a mustache but no other facial hair. – Derek Jeter
When it was time for parent-teacher conferences, I remember that I was always embarrassed about what my parents would hear about me! – Derek Jeter
Athletics keeps us healthy, gets us up and running around. It also gives you an opportunity to meet a lot of different people, which is very important. – Derek Jeter
It doesn’t feel different being here (at the All-Star Game) I feel like I’m on an All-Star team everyday. – Derek Jeter
For me, when I was a kid, volunteering was the last thing I was thinking about. When I see kids doing it now, it amazes me. It’s very impressive, it gives them something productive to do as opposed to getting in trouble. For them to take time out at such a young age is remarkable. I think all kids should take a little time out to volunteer. – Derek Jeter
I’m a New Yorker now, and believe me, there’s no comparison between the Big Apple and Kalamazoo, no similarity at all. New York City’s hectic, always in fast-forward, and Kalamazoo’s more laid-back, smaller, slower. – Derek Jeter
So many people are insanely busy nowadays, and it’s easy to say, ‘Ah, I’ll workout tomorrow.’ But you have to set aside a time and stick to that schedule. – Derek Jeter
I want to play every day. This year will be absolutely no different. – Derek Jeter
The great thing about being a Yankee is that youre always a Yankee. – Derek Jeter
I looked up to my parents because they were very successful in what they wanted to do. I was lucky; I didn’t have to look far for role models. – Derek Jeter
I think sometimes people need to get used to an idea. – Derek Jeter
I think when things linger, that’s when they become a distraction. I don’t want any distractions. – Derek Jeter
It doesn’t seem like the season really gets under way until you have your home opener – Derek Jeter
If I put my name on something, I’m going to be involved. I’m not just going to put my name on it and not pay attention. – Derek Jeter
I went to school on Senior Skip Day. – Derek Jeter
I like to dance and sing when there’s no one around, but, if I’m out, I’m really shy about it. So it takes a lot to get me going, but I enjoy being around music. – Derek Jeter
I think there’s something wrong with me – I like to win in everything I do, regardless of what it is. You want to race down the street, I want to beat you. If we’re playing checkers, I want to win. You beat me, it’s going to bother me. I just enjoy competition. – Derek Jeter
What kind of influence did my parents have on my life? Well, they had the most influence. These are the people who are closest to me. My parents are very positive people. They’ve been supportive. They’re always there. – Derek Jeter
The draft is a crapshoot, so I’ve been very fortunate to be drafted by the Yankees, and to have spent my whole career here. – Derek Jeter
Yankee Stadium is my favorite stadium; I’m not going to lie to you. There’s a certain feel you get in Yankee Stadium. – Derek Jeter
I’ve been lying to you guys for a long time, saying I wasn’t nervous and there’s no pressure. There was a lot of pressure to do it here. – Derek Jeter
Sneak out when things go good. It bothers me when people have good games and stand in front of their locker waiting for the media, then they have bad games and sneak out the back. – Derek Jeter
I try to sign for as many kids as possible. Kids come first, and I’ll always sign for a kid before an adult. – Derek Jeter
I can see how people work out to feel better. – Derek Jeter
It took him 75 steps to get from third to home. I thought we were going to have to go out there and help him. A lot of players start thinking double then maybe wind up with a triple because the outfielder slips. – Derek Jeter
God, I hope I wear this jersey forever. – Derek Jeter
I will never brag about myself, but my family, I can go on forever. – Derek Jeter
MVP, you could have picked a name out of a hat… we have a group of MVPs. You don’t rely on one guy. You have to get contributions from everyone. – Derek Jeter
You know what I want to do? Wake up one weekend and not have to go anywhere and do nothing. – Derek Jeter
Nine games? It’s too long. – Derek Jeter
Handle yourself like a professional on the field and you have one goal-and that’s to win. – Derek Jeter
As long as I’m having fun I’m going to play. – Derek Jeter
The only legacy I want is to be thought of as a winner. – Derek Jeter
If I’m shifted two steps toward third base and the ball goes up the middle, people say I have no range to my left. That’s why those statistics aren’t accurate. You’re changing for every batter, sometimes with every pitch. You really can’t make one statistic for every shortstop. You have to go by what you see. – Derek Jeter
You gotta have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we’re playing a game. It’s a business, it’s our job, but I don’t think you can do well unless you’re having fun. – Derek Jeter
One of the best things about being a Yankee is that you have guys like Whitey Ford, Phil Rizzuto, Ron Guidry and Reggie Jackson wandering around the locker room offering you advice. – Derek Jeter
The one thing I always said to myself was that when baseball started to feel more like a job, it would be time to move forward. – Derek Jeter
I never think about my own stats, as long as I’m contributing to the team. – Derek Jeter
A lot of teams, I think, are just happy to make the post-season. Here, you have to win. – Derek Jeter
I get nervous watching teammates. I get nervous for them. Late in the game, pressure situation, I’m nervous for them. – Derek Jeter
I go into every game thinking I’m going to be the hero. I have to, or I wouldn’t enjoy it. – Derek Jeter
I want to own a team one day. You know, that’s my next goal. – Derek Jeter
I love it when people doubt me. It makes me work harder to prove them wrong. – Derek Jeter
This is why you play – to get an opportunity to play in the playoffs. – Derek Jeter
You have to be confident, if you’re not confident you might as well go home. – Derek Jeter
Work hard, love what you do, put your best foot forward and never forget the kid in you. – Derek Jeter
When I was younger, I was always taught not to make excuses. – Derek Jeter
It doesn’t take any talent to play hard. – Derek Jeter
Surround yourself with good people. People who are going to be honest with you and look out for your best interests. – Derek Jeter
In my opinion, I’ve had the greatest job in the world. I got a chance to be the shortstop for the New York Yankees, and there’s only one of those. And I always felt as though it was my job, was to try to provide joy and entertainment for you guys, but it can’t compare to what you brought me. So for that, thank you very much. – Derek Jeter
The longer you wait to decide what you want to do, the more time you’re wasting. It’s up to you to want something so badly that your passion shows through in your actions. Your actions, not your words, will do the shouting for you. – Derek Jeter
You’re playing a game, whether it’s Little League or Game 7 of the Word Series. It’s impossible to do well unless you’re having a good time. People talk about pressure. Yeah, there’s pressure. But I just look at it as fun. – Derek Jeter
Your image isn’t your character. Character is what you are as a person. – Derek Jeter
My office is at Yankee stadium. Yes, dreams do come true. – Derek Jeter
You know, what is team chemistry? My opinion is when you have enough people who care about winning and enough people who losing affects. That’s what chemistry means to me. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to win, but you’re going to have enough people on the same page. It’s almost impossible, I think, to get everyone on the same page, but it’s gotta mean something to you. – Derek Jeter
I’m not perfect; no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. I think you try to learn from those mistakes. – Derek Jeter
My parents always felt if I worked hard enough I could make any dream come true. – Derek Jeter
So is work ethic. You do things over and over again, and when you get in a situation you like to think it comes natural. I think there has to be a mind-set that you’re not afraid to fail. I’m not afraid to fail. I’ve done it quite a bit. The calmer you are, the more the game slows down for you, and I think part of that is controlling your emotions. – Derek Jeter
I’m not one to sit around and be satisfied about something. I can always get better. – Derek Jeter
Everyone fears rejection. – Derek Jeter
When you put a lot of hard work into one goal and you achieve it, that’s a really good feeling. – Derek Jeter
I think everyone is ticklish. You just gotta find the right spots. – Derek Jeter
My best vacation is somewhere I could hide, somewhere warm and not a lot of people around. – Derek Jeter
During the off-season, I go to the movies almost every day. – Derek Jeter
I always take criticism as a challenge. It’s the way I’ve always looked at it. – Derek Jeter
I’m not a hermit, but I definitely stay in a lot more than I used to. There’s more attention now then there ever was. You walk down the street with someone and it’s a story. It becomes national news, you know what I mean? So, I still do things, but I stay home a lot more. – Derek Jeter
Sometimes people complicate things by thinking too much about what someone might think of what they said or did. – Derek Jeter
My heroes, my dreams, and my future lay in Yankee Stadium. And they can’t take that away from me. – Derek Jeter
My dreams do not end with playing Major League Baseball. – Derek Jeter
Obviously, you’re known for what you do. But you still want to be known as a good person. You’re a person a lot longer before and after you’re a professional athlete. – Derek Jeter
I’d like to get a degree. You ever see the movie ‘Back to School?’ I’ll go back with my kids. – Derek Jeter
If you’re going to play at all, you’re out to win. Baseball, board games, playing Jeopardy, I hate to lose. – Derek Jeter
Don’t get me wrong; it’s not like I didn’t go out and have fun. But there’s been a lot of players that come to New York and get caught up in the lifestyle, and before you know it, they’re sent away to another team because it affected their performance. – Derek Jeter
We just want to win. That’s the bottom line. I think a lot of times people may become content with one championship or a little bit of success, but we don’t really reflect on what we’ve done in the past. We focus on the present. – Derek Jeter
I’ve found that it’s easier to stay in shape than it is to get into shape. – Derek Jeter
You’re a person a lot longer before and after you’re a professional athlete. People always say to me, ‘Your image is this, your image is that.’ Your image isn’t your character. Character is what you are as a person. That’s what I worry about. – Derek Jeter
You forget about it whether it was 15-2 or 3-2. It’s still a loss. It doesn’t matter what the score was if we win tomorrow. – Derek Jeter
You can’t be sensitive, because you’re going to get criticized. I don’t care who you are, you’re going to get criticized. – Derek Jeter
Any player that says they don’t want to go to an All-Star Game is lying to you. It’s something everyone wants to be a part of. – Derek Jeter
I always have tried to treat people with respect, the way I want to be treated. – Derek Jeter
I wish I trusted people more. But when I meet someone, the first thing is, ‘What does this person want?’ And I put up a defense mechanism. But I’ve always been that way. – Derek Jeter
I attribute much of my success in New York to my ability to understand and avoid unnecessary distractions. – Derek Jeter
I think, a lot of times, players get in trouble when they’re asked questions and they think they have to find a way to answer it. If you ask me a question and I say, ‘I don’t know,’ there’s really no follow-up. – Derek Jeter
I’ve never been an actor on Broadway, but it feels like you’re on a stage when you play at Yankee Stadium. And that’s the feeling I’ve always had. – Derek Jeter
I’ve been playing baseball since I was 5 or 6 years old. I’ve been on a schedule, pretty much, since I was in eighth, ninth grade. I look forward to not doing that. – Derek Jeter
I like to hit the gym early in the morning. I feel better throughout the day when I get in a workout first thing in the morning. – Derek Jeter
It’s never over. You don’t want to be in the position to be down four runs in the ninth inning, but it’s not over until the last out. – Derek Jeter
I have the greatest job in the world. Only one person can have it. You have shortstops on other teams – I’m not knocking other teams – but there’s only one shortstop on the Yankees. – Derek Jeter
That’s how you win – pitching and defense. – Derek Jeter
I can have fun anywhere, as long as I’m with good people. But in the offseason, I like to go somewhere warm, a nice spot in the Caribbean. – Derek Jeter
I’m very, very competitive. If my grandmother asks to race me down the street, I’m going to try to beat her. And I’ll probably enjoy it! – Derek Jeter
I’ve always been very aware of what I’m saying, but I’m also aware of what you’re saying. I always want to make sure that my point is clear. – Derek Jeter
I’ve always had an interest in business, and my interest in business has really expanded over the years. – Derek Jeter
The big difference for me is that, as I get older, I find it’s a lot easier to stay in shape than it is to get back in shape. – Derek Jeter
You can’t quantify everything a player does to win games. – Derek Jeter
I always appreciated the ex-players. Being a Yankee, you get spoiled. Old-Timers Day, all these guys coming back, spring training, being around them, you get a chance to get to know them. So I always think you learn a lot by listening. – Derek Jeter
The number one priority is playing baseball. There are so many people in New York trying to get you to do this and get you to do that, which is fine, but you have to take care of yourself. – Derek Jeter
I always used to get in trouble for talking too much. When it was time for parent-teacher conferences, I remember that I was always embarrassed about what my parents would hear about me! – Derek Jeter
You tell me you want to race down the street, I’m going to try to beat you. My grandmother asks me to race down the street, I’m going to try to beat her. And I’ll probably enjoy it. Competitive to a fault, sometimes. – Derek Jeter
I remember going from rookie ball to A, to double A, then to triple A. At every level it seemed like the game was faster. The bigger the situation, the more the game speeds up. That’s all mental. It messes people up. – Derek Jeter
Through time you learn from your experiences. I think I’ve learned to deal with people a little bit better over time. That in particular has developed a little bit. – Derek Jeter
I get asked enough questions, I try not to ask too many questions. – Derek Jeter
I try to stay as private as possible; I know that’s difficult, especially playing here in New York, but I make an attempt at it. – Derek Jeter
The thing that means the most to me is being remembered as a Yankee, because that’s what I’ve always wanted to be, was to be a Yankee. – Derek Jeter
Walking around sometimes, I would love to just be able to watch people, see how they act. Sometimes I would love to be invisible. – Derek Jeter
You hear about women buying shoes? I buy DVDs. I definitely have a problem. – Derek Jeter
I hate the treadmill. I hate it. You really don’t have to be on it that long, something like 20 or 30 minutes. It’s all about getting your heart rate up. – Derek Jeter
I’ve always been very cautious with what I do. You know, that started at a young age. I always had the approach or the mentality I never wanted to embarrass my parents. – Derek Jeter
There are feelings there, but I think I’ve just been pretty good at trying to hide my emotions throughout the years. I try to have the same demeanor each and every day. – Derek Jeter
I don’t really see myself getting a Twitter account. Nothing against it. I get it. I especially get it for businesses. – Derek Jeter
You have to assume that everything you do is public knowledge. Everything. Because now everyone is a reporter. Everyone is a photographer. – Derek Jeter
I’ve always been uncomfortable, so to speak, when the focus is on me. – Derek Jeter
My dad had been shortstop when he was in college, and you know, when you’re a kid, you want to be just like your dad. – Derek Jeter
No former player has owned a team in baseball. – Derek Jeter
We wrapped up our division at the All-Star break. – Derek Jeter
We’re familiar with them and they’re familiar with us, so the best team over the next five games will win. – Derek Jeter
We know we can’t rely on scoring all those runs. We know it’s great to have some guys that are swinging the bats well, and we’re going to score. But it’s not going to happen all season. – Derek Jeter
Wakefield was probably as good as I’ve seen him. His ball was moving all over the place. We could have been out there for another three hours and I don’t think we’d have gotten any more hits off him. – Derek Jeter
We have no excuses. We got all the breaks to get to this point. We had our chance. – Derek Jeter
We’ve won it before, and anything short of that is failure. You don’t work the whole off-season, spring training and six months of games to finish second or third. If you don’t win, you should feel it’s a failure. – Derek Jeter
I always try to take from past performances. You never try to get too high or too low. Just play every game, just treat every game like it’s the same. – Derek Jeter
I just think that your private life is private. What I do is obviously public, I get that. I get the fact that people are interested. I’m interested in a lot of people as well. I’ve just chosen to stay as private as possible. – Derek Jeter
Winning is one of the most special moments. Every time I take the field it’s a special moment. The fans are the ones that make it special. Because that’s what we do it for. – Derek Jeter
If you play well on the field, everything will take care of itself. – Derek Jeter
