New York Yankees

NEW YORK -- Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees made history with style as he belted a home run to left field for career hit No. 3,000 at Yankee Stadium.

Jeter's the first player to achieve 3,000 hits in Yankees pinstripes. Afterward, the Yankees played taped tributes to Jeter from current and former teammates as well as some of his most memorable hits and defensive plays.

Jeter's four hits today match his 2011 season high. That bodes well for Yankees fans worried about Jeter's slowing bat speed after a sub-par first half and disappointing 2010 season.

With 3,002 hits, Jeter has passed Roberto Clemente for 27th place on the all-time hit list. Almost immediately after Jeter's historic hit, the club started hawking commemorative Jeter merchandise on their high-definition digital scoreboard in center field.

That nothing much changed about Jeter all these years, in style and comportment, is an achievement worth celebrating as much as 3,000 hits.

Jeter played his first major league game in 1995, the year after the web browser was introduced. If anything, Jeter is underrated as an all-time great. No other shortstop has more hits while playing the position or has played more games there for one team than Jeter.

Among the five shortstops who have played the most games at the position overall -- Omar Vizquel, Luis Aparicio, Ozzie Smith, Jeter and Cal Ripken Jr. -- Jeter has the highest OPS and the most championship rings. That Jeter is known as a "clutch" player -- "Captain Clutch," in the Marvel Comics style of sports coverage -- is a vanity born from enough postseason narratives.

Joe DiMaggio, for instance, somewhat regarded as the Yankee progenitor to the Jeter Way, never played a game broadcast in color or a World Series broadcast coast-to-coast until his final season, 1951. I hit .180 for two months [in 2004]. Even if you didn't get any hits, you have to say, 'Well, I hit the ball hard,' or, 'Well, I layed off a tough pitch.' Even his approach to hitting is old school. 

Jeter, for instance, does not seek much statistical or video information. It's something Don Mattingly, the former Yankees player and coach, first noticed about Jeter. The sports world is drastically changed from 1995, when Jeter collected the first hit of his major league career.

Reuters) - On a team famous for its home run hitters, Derek Jeter made it cool to hit singles and used that talent to become the first New York Yankees player to reach the milestone mark of 3,000 career hits.

Besides a career .312 batting average and a franchise-leading 330 stolen bases, the 12-time All-Star has 236 career home runs, hitting double digits 15 times, and drove in 70 or more runs in 11 seasons. CLUTCH PLAYER

Jeter's ability to rise to the occasion brought him nicknames such as Captain Clutch and Mr. November, which he earned in dramatic fashion during the 2001 World Series.

The game went into the 10th inning tied 3-3. At midnight, the Yankee Stadium scoreboard read "Welcome to NOVEMBER BASEBALL" -- the first MLB game played in November.

Statisticians argue about how to measure clutch hitting. Jeter excelled by delivering at his usual high caliber regardless of the stakes.

After playing the equivalent of a full season's worth of playoff games, Jeter has a .309 batting average, .377 on base percentage and .472 slugging average in the postseason.

On defense, Jeter won five Gold Glove awards for his sure-handed consistency. New York won the game 1-0, went on to win the series and reached the Fall Classic.

In a 2004 game against Boston, Jeter showed his unbending resolve in the 12th inning with the score tied 3-3, Red Sox runners on second and third and Trot Nixon at bat.

Nixon hit a foul pop down the left field line. "The Dive" ended the inning and the Yankees won it in the 13th.