Joe Girardi was asked before the game if he was considering moving Derek Jeter, hitting nearly 50 points below his career average of .314 and mired in an 0-for-12 slump, down in the Yankee lineup.
"I don't really see it happening,'' Girardi said. "We still see him as a top of the order guy.''
And while the manager acknowledged the dropoff in Jeter's batting average "is significant,'' he didn;t think his performance warranted a swing makeover by hitting coach Kevin Long, a la Curtis Granderson. "It's not like he's hitting .230 or something,'' Girardi said. "I know we’re used to seeing him hit .310, .320., but some years just aren’t as good as others. But when you have a bit of a down year and you;re older, peoples' eyebrows raise.
"But I gotta tell you, in tough situations I like having him up there.''
In his first at-bat of the night, Jeter rewarded his manager's faith in him with a single, breaking his hitless streak and setting up the first run of the game on Mark Teixeira's double.