May 14, 2017. Mother's Day. The New York Yankees retired Derek Jeter's No. 2 and unveiled his Monument Park plaque in the same pregame ceremony -- one afternoon, two honors, the last single-digit number in franchise history finally taken out of circulation. Jeter picked the date himself. Then, a few hours later, the Houston Astros hit two home runs before most fans had found their seats for game two and beat the Yankees 10-7. Only in the Bronx does a legend's coronation come with its own freakin' punchline.
Two Honors, One Ceremony
This wasn't a Paul O'Neill situation, where the plaque came first and the number retirement showed up eight years later. Jeter got both at once, and he's the one who decided when. He told Yankees Magazine it was his call to put the ceremony on Mother's Day: "I thought it would make it even more special... I thought it was a great opportunity to do something special for my mom." (Most guys just pick whatever open date the schedule guy hands them. The Captain scheduled his own tribute around his mother.)
The day started in Monument Park itself, where Jeter and his family unveiled the plaque as fans chanted his name, then Jeter rode a cart around the warning track while Sinatra's "My Way" played over the PA -- which is either the most on-the-nose song choice in Yankee Stadium history or exactly right, depending on how much patience you have for on-the-nose song choices. His grandmother, parents, sister, nephew, and pregnant wife Hannah all stood with him (their daughter, Bella Raine, would arrive that August). Roughly 20 former teammates, managers, and coaches showed up, and Joe Torre called Jeter the greatest player he ever managed. Jeter kept his own remarks short: he thanked the late George Steinbrenner and the Steinbrenner family for a career spent entirely in pinstripes, then landed on the line that stuck -- "Family is forever, and I'll be eternally grateful to be a part of the Yankees family."
The plaque itself doesn't waste words either. It calls him "the cornerstone of five world championship teams" and notes he retired with a franchise-best 3,465 hits -- sixth all-time in baseball -- across more seasons (20) and games (2,747) than any Yankee who ever put on the uniform. Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle -- Jeter's granite slab sits with theirs now. That's the whole point of the place.
The Number He Didn't Even Want
Here's the detail that gets buried every time this day comes up: Jeter didn't pick No. 2. He wanted No. 13, his father's old number from college, but Jim Leyritz already had it in 1995. Manager Buck Showalter made the call to hand a 20-year-old rookie a single digit instead -- which, at Yankee Stadium, isn't a decision managers make lightly. "When you project a single digit at Yankee Stadium," Showalter reportedly said, "you'd better be right." He was right, obviously, though nobody could've known that in 1995.
It almost didn't stick. The following spring, after Showalter got fired, the equipment staff tried switching Jeter to No. 19 -- someone literally posted a card with "19" above his locker. Jeter said no. Kept 2. When asked years later why he wanted to stay, his answer was pure Jeter deadpan: he figured it was just the smallest jersey in the equipment room and probably the only one that fit him. (The most decorated shortstop of his generation, and his origin story for the most retired number in team history is basically "it was the only shirt in his size.")
Then Baseball Happened
The Yankees had already split the day's doubleheader before the ceremony -- winning game one 11-6 after Saturday's rainout forced the twin bill. Game two is where the Astros ruined the mood. George Springer led off with a home run that landed in Monument Park, freshly occupied by Jeter's brand-new plaque. Josh Reddick went deep on the very next pitch. Alex Bregman capped a six-run first inning off Masahiro Tanaka with his first career grand slam, Springer added a second leadoff homer in the second, and Tanaka got pulled down 8-0 before he'd finished two innings -- career highs in runs and homers allowed, on Jeter's own day. Final: Astros 10, Yankees 7, in front of 47,883 people who'd shown up for a coronation and watched Houston throw a parade through it instead.
There's a bitter footnote nobody had in 2017: that Astros team went on to win the World Series that October, then got exposed a couple years later for the trash-can sign-stealing scheme MLB later documented. That system ran out of Minute Maid Park and didn't get going until roughly two months into the season, so it wasn't in play on a May afternoon in the Bronx -- Springer just hit the ball a long way. It still sours the memory of watching that particular team throw a parade through Jeter's day. (The universe has a sense of humor. It's usually a mean one.)
None of it took anything away from the ceremony. Jeter's number sits where it belongs, next to the only teammates who really understood what it took to get there -- Rivera's 42, Pettitte's 46, Posada's 20, Bernie's 51, all retired before his. He became the 22nd player in franchise history to get the honor, and the last one to ever wear a single digit for the Yankees. Every number 1 through 10 is retired now. There's nowhere left to go but up on the wall.
| Ceremony Date | May 14, 2017 (Mother's Day) |
| Number Retired / Plaque | No. 2 -- both honors, same ceremony |
| Attendance (Game 2) | 47,883 |
| Doubleheader Result | Yankees won Game 1, 11-6; Astros won Game 2, 10-7 |
| Career Line (NYY) | .310/.377/.440, 3,465 H, 260 HR, 1,311 RBI |
| Yankees Tenure | 1995-2014, 2,747 games |
| World Series Rings | 5 (1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2009) |
| Franchise Ranking | 22nd player with a retired number; last single-digit number retired |
No. 2 Gets Assigned
Jeter wants No. 13, but Jim Leyritz already has it. Manager Buck Showalter hands the rookie shortstop No. 2 instead.
3,000th Hit
Jeter reaches 3,000 career hits with a home run, part of the resume that would later fill his Monument Park plaque.
Final Home Game
Jeter closes out his career at Yankee Stadium with a walk-off single in his final at-bat, setting up the retirement ceremony to come.
Rainout Sets Up the Stage
Saturday's Yankees-Astros game is rained out, forcing a Sunday doubleheader that puts the ceremony right in the middle of two games instead of one.
No. 2 Retired, Plaque Unveiled
Between games of the doubleheader, the Yankees retire Jeter's number and dedicate his Monument Park plaque in a single ceremony on Mother's Day, by his own request.
Family is forever, and I'll be eternally grateful to be a part of the Yankees family.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Yankees retire Derek Jeter's number 2?
The Yankees retired Jeter's No. 2 on May 14, 2017 -- Mother's Day, a date Jeter chose himself -- in a pregame ceremony that also unveiled his Monument Park plaque. It happened between games of a doubleheader against the Houston Astros.
Why did Derek Jeter wear number 2 instead of a different number?
Jeter actually wanted No. 13, the number his father wore in college, but Jim Leyritz already had it when Jeter reached the majors in 1995. Manager Buck Showalter assigned him No. 2 instead. The Yankees tried switching him to No. 19 the following spring, but Jeter refused and kept the number for his entire 20-year career.
Did the Yankees win the game when Derek Jeter's number was retired?
No. The ceremony fell between games of a doubleheader forced by a Saturday rainout. The Yankees won Game 1, 11-6, but lost Game 2, 10-7, after George Springer, Josh Reddick, and Alex Bregman (a grand slam) tagged Masahiro Tanaka for a six-run first inning.
Is Derek Jeter the last Yankee to wear a single-digit number?
Yes. With No. 2 retired, every single-digit number in Yankees history -- 1 through 9 -- is now retired, and no player will ever wear one again for the franchise.
Jeter picked Mother's Day to honor his own mom, and the Yankees still managed to make the day about Jeter -- 47,883 people in the building, a plaque next to Ruth and Gehrig, and a number nobody will ever wear again. The Astros got their runs in later that night. Nobody remembers the final score. Everybody remembers "My Way" playing on the warning track.