Derek Jeter didn’t play in the Yankees’ 7-4 win over the Red Sox Saturday, and manager Joe Girardi warned he won’t be afraid to rest the shortstop — regardless of the opponent — even if the game is in The Bronx.
“First of all, it’s April [12],” Girardi said before the game. “I have to manage him with the focus of winning games and keeping him healthy, not of him being on a farewell tour. I wasn’t hired to put on a farewell tour.”
At times last season — especially toward the end of the season, when the team’s playoff hopes became bleak — it had a feel of a Mariano Rivera farewell tour, but that clearly isn’t on Girardi’s mind now.
With a day game after a night game, Girardi defended his decision to rest Jeter, even if it might upset some fans who want to see the iconic shortstop one more time before he retires.
“There’s not a whole lot I can do about that,” Girardi said. “When you start running guys out there too much, you risk injury and I’m sure people would be a little bit more upset if he was out two weeks or a month or something like that.”
It was the second time of the season Jeter wasn’t in the starting lineup. Dean Anna filled in at shortstop in his absence.
“I understand fans want to see him play,” Girardi said. “I get that. I want to see him play. I’d love to run him out there 162 times, but I’ve got to do what’s best for him and our team. And when you have a day game after a night games or you walk into a hotel room at 6 o’clock in the morning, you’ve got to be smart about it.”
So far, Jeter has been fairly productive following his nightmarish 2013 season, when leg injuries resulting from his fractured left ankle limited him to 17 games. While his defensive range is more limited than it was before, Jeter is hitting .286 and has six hits in his previous 17 at-bats.
Girardi scoffed at the notion of going out of his way to get Jeter into games, even when he doesn’t start.
“Then you start to run out of infielders and get in a situation that sounds like to me it’s a farewell tour,” Girardi said. “It’s not the last week of the season. And these games are obviously very important to us. They’re important today, tomorrow [and] next month. And I have to manage that and I’m sorry if people came to see him today, but I have to be smart about it.”