Benchmark

Derek Jeter took batting practice and gobbled up a few ground balls, too. He also did some running and spent the whole game pestering everyone in the dugout.

“He is bored to death and he’s dying to get back out there,” Joe Girardi said. “You just take it day by day to see how he’s progressing, and now we are trying to increase his activity.”

It worked wonders in the Bronx.

“It’s great to hear,” said Jon from Highbridge. “Alberto Gonzalez is doing a great job, but the team just doesn’t seem complete without Derek at shortstop. Everyone around here hopes he gets back real soon.”

Jeter agrees.

“I don’t like not playing,” he said. “If it was up to me, I’d play. But I understand you have to be smart.”

Jon focused on that as he sipped coffee in Joyce Kilmer Park this afternoon.

“I know the Yankees have to be smart about this,” Jon said. “A few extra days in April can make all the difference because it’s a long season. But it’s still tough for people in this neighborhood to live without Jeter. He’s the benchmark for the Yankees and the Bronx.”

And he’ll be off the bench soon enough.