The Captain

March 28, 2011
This solid chronological account of Jeterâs life begins with his parentsâ biracial marriage and Jeterâs boyhood prediction that he would grow up to play for the Yankees, then follows him through a 15-year career that to date has included 11 All-Star selections and five World Series titles. OâConnor (Arnie & Jack) nicely details Jeterâs high and lows, with his in-depth accounts of the 1992 draft, in which the senior from Kalamazoo (Mich.) Central High School somehow went to the Yankees as a #5 pick. He then recounts Jeterâs on-field and off-field struggles during his first minor league season, giving readers a rare glimpse of the superstar at his most anxious and vulnerable. While OâConnor doesnât shy away from charting Jeterâs various romances, exploring his feud with Alex Rodriguez, or documenting the shortstopâs inability to forgive even the smallest slight, there isnât much new information or controversy, so those looking for the inner-torment of Joe DiMaggio, the braggadocio of Ted Williams, the social activism of Hank Aaron, or the controversy of Jose Canseco are out of luck. Still, OâConnor peppers the bio with enough hidden gems about the notoriously private ballplayer to make this the most thorough and intriguing work on Jeter so far. And OâConnorâs ability to reconcile Jeter the man with Jeter the ballplayer means that even Red Sox fans may enjoy this bio.