William Perlman/NJ Advance Media/USA TODAY Network

Yankees Legend Beats Mets Star In All Quarter Century List Decision

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Kristie Ackert | Last updated May 22, 2025 12:48 PM ET

When trying to decide who the best shortstop was in the first quarter of this 2000’s century, The Athletic’s Jayson Stark ended up in New York City with a tough choice. For his "All Quarter Century Team," the longtime MLB writer’s final choice was Derek Jeter — barely.

He admitted he came very close to choosing Francisco Lindor instead. The Mets’ current shortstop had the edge in WAR, according to both Baseball Reference and FanGraphs. His defensive metrics? Superior. His peak? As good as anyone’s in the modern era. At just 31, Lindor still has time to build a case that statistically dwarfs Jeter’s post-2000 production.

And yet, Jeter prevailed.

“I was surprised by how tempting it was to pick Lindor,” Stark admitted. But the intangibles — those infamous, hard-to-quantify Jeter-isms — still tipped the scale.

Even when trimming away his late-‘90s run, from 2000–14 Jeter had 2,658 hits, four World Series trips, a Hall of Fame plaque, and a .301/.366/.467 slash line in the postseason. All of it, Stark argued, felt too significant to set aside for the sake of modern metrics.

“This isn’t Hot Take Theater,” he wrote. “So overlooking all that didn’t feel cool.”

Jimmy Rollins earned consideration too, and even Alex Rodriguez entered the chat before being shifted to third base. But in the end, Stark did what so many voters, fans, and Yankees lifers have done before: defaulted to Jeter.

And while Lindor’s day might still come, especially if he plays another decade at this level, Jeter’s legacy once again proved too tough to beat, even in an era ruled by WAR, WRC+, and cold data.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: