CHICAGO -- When Derek Jeter next plays shortstop, he will tie Luis Aparicio for the second-most games in major league history.
Jeter will then have played 2,583 career games at the position. He will not catch Omar Vizquel, who appeared in 2,709 games at the position. It is mathematically impossible unless Jeter changes his mind about retirement.
Unlike Vizquel, though, Jeter has never played another position. (Though, this year, with the Yanks shifts, it almost seems like he has.)
With the Yankees facing a righty Hector Noesi on Friday, there is a chance Jeter could sit so he can be ready to to go up against lefty John Danks on Saturday.
Jeter has been much better against lefties than righties for a long time. This year is no different as he entered Thursday hitting .321 against lefties and just .237 against righties.
Jeter, who always loved to swing early, is having much more success jumping on pitchers quickly. Entering Thursday, he was hitting .388 (19-for-49) within the first two pitches of at-bats. After that, he drops to .208 in 101 at-bats.
Pitching Matchups: Friday, Hiroki Kuroda (3-3, 4.61) vs. Noesi (0-4, 7.31). Noesi was in the Michael Pineda trade. He was let go by the Mariners and then the Rangers this year before hooking on with the White Sox.
Saturday, Vidal Nuno (1-1, 5.82) vs. Danks (3-4, 5.64). Sunday, Masahiro Tanaka (6-1, 2.39) vs. Andre Rienzo (4-0, 4.00).
