DE-rek JE-ter!!!

One of my favorite movies is a baseball/coming-of-age flick called The Sandlot. There is a scene in it where the film's hero, Benny Rodriguez has a dream where he meets Babe Ruth. The Great Bambino says to Benny, "Heroes get remembered, but legends never die."

We have seen baseball legends before. Babe Ruth, obviously coes to mind. Moments where "heroes" cross the threshold to "legendary status" are always memorable: Reggie Jackson's three home runs in 1977 or Curt Schilling's performance with the bloody sock. Both of these players were great before. But it took moments like the ones we witnessed above that made them legends.

Last night Derek Jeter crossed that threshold.

He'd been an outstanding ballplayer before. Jeter's performance in clutch situations goes beyond his peers. The diving into the stands, the throwing out of Jeremy Giambi, the first inning home run against the Mets, and others, had already put DJ in elite company.

But five-for-five? Not that was something else. Look at the numbers: two singles, two doubles, one home run, three runs scored and one run batted in. In addition he made one of the two key fielding plays for the Yankees, turning two to end a potential rally.

Only five other players got five hits in a postseason game. Of them, only one other did it in five at-bats. However, Jeter also now has seven consecutive postseason hits, going back to last year. No one in history has hit as many in a two game stretch (8) as he has now done.

Jeter capped off what was his best season by kickstarting his team in dramatic fashion. The Yankees won 8-4 and look better than they have in years.

And they have an immortal at short.