No matter how satisfying something looks at the front, behind the scenes can portray a completely different story. The lowest of lows and highest of highs pose their challenges, as Derek Jeter found out the hard way. It was a dream for a young Jeter to play for the New York Yankees, which he finally achieved in the 90s. But the road to legend-hood took work.

Today’s former captain holds 5 World Series Championships, 14x All-Star selections, and a Hall of Fame title. Starting in the minor leagues, Jeter was just a scrawny kid with incredible potential. But it was of paramount importance how he used that budding talent, which the ex-shortstop questioned many times.

Derek Jeter Spent Endless Nights in Tears Over His Decisions

To a third party, whenever Jeter was on camera, he looked calm and collected. The epitome of cool, Captain Clutch expertly fielded questions about his personal life, never veering towards dangerous territory. Always all about baseball, no one could have guessed the amount of effort it took for him to not regret his decisions at first.

Athletes that are good from day one are rare; everyone goes through hardships as they stumble on the path they’ve set for themselves. In giving up college for professional sports, Jeter questioned his abilities and whether he could even play in the major leagues one day. In his book, The Life Your Imagine, the former Yankee opens up about his early years in the Bronx organization.

“But you never really know what is lurking in front of you if you’ve never experienced something before. You never really know how difficult that next step is going to be,” he writes on page 40.

“I knew it was going to be an adjustment from high school to pro baseball, but I hadn’t expected to feel as overwhelmed as I did. I hadn’t imagined that I’d wind up crying in my hotel room night after night because I was playing so poorly.”

Jeter eventually came out of this funk, sure, but at the time, it was all he could do to keep the seams of his life from bursting apart.

Captain Clutch Wanted to Escape Baseball Once

Just a page prior, the ex-shortstop dives into his time with the Class A Tampa Rookie League team, where he struggled immensely.

Not being able to hit leaves a ballplayer with too much to deal with, and for someone who was as highly touted as Jeter, the pressure was unimaginable. “I couldn’t escape from baseball. I felt like I had already failed,” he writes on page 39.

READ MORE – “Learn to Deal With Failure, Cause It’s Coming”- Yankees Legend Derek Jeter Once Gave Advise to Young Players on How to Become Better at Game

Nothing in life ever comes easy. Fortunately for Jeter, he had a competitive side that wouldn’t let him give up too soon.

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