MLB ALL-STAR GAME

July 11, 2000

Derek Jeter

DEREK JETER: Well, it's a great stadium, obviously. You can see very well at the plate. But, you know, we played some very important big games here against the Braves, obviously in the post-season, regular-season, now this game here. So I don't know. I don't know what to tell you. I guess it's just good fortune.

DEREK JETER: Well, you know, everyone -- I mean talking about my team personally, everyone's talking about how much we're struggling, yet we're still tied for first place. It's not easy to win. We made it look kind of easy three out of the last four years. But it's very difficult to do year after year. We haven't been as consistent as we'd like, but we're still tied for first, and we've been playing a lot better the last couple of weeks; so hopefully, we'll carry it over to the second half.

DEREK JETER: I told you. I was thinking about bunting, but Randy Johnson's not the guy to bunt off of. I wanted to put the ball in play, so I was swinging early on the count.

DEREK JETER: Yeah, most definitely. When you face guys like that, you try to swing and get out of there as soon as possible.

DEREK JETER: I basically had the same game plan against everyone. I'm a free swinger. I think it's known around the league, maybe both leagues. Like I said earlier, like he had mentioned, I struck out in my only two All-Star at-bats. I wanted to at least put the ball in play. But when you're facing three guys like that, you want to swing early in the count. If you fall behind, you're in trouble.

DEREK JETER: You know, I don't know. I have no idea. We haven't faced him since maybe '96, when he was with Seattle. The last couple years, we always seem to miss him. You know, he was throwing -- he threw me a first pitch fastball that I fouled off, then a slider. And the second one I hit off the end of the bat. I don't know, it might have been a change-up.

DEREK JETER: I don't know. Maybe it was a fastball. I was just hacking.

DEREK JETER: It was a great. That's a great story, for him to come back and have the year that he's having this year, then to get a chance to start in the All-Star Game at home. He got a warm reception both from the fans and the players. He's a great person as well as a great player.

DEREK JETER: A cutter. I mean he does it every time I face him. I try to lay off of it. I didn't hit it well, I just hit it in the right place. He's a tough pitcher. Alomar and I were talking about it after our at-bats. He throws the ball, it seems like it's going to go down the middle, and it runs off your hands.

DEREK JETER: Most definitely. You get butterflies before the game. It's a situation where you have the best players in baseball here. You want to have fun, but you also want to do well. But the No. 1 priority I think is just to come out here and give the fans a good show.