Yeah, now I know nobody puts much stock in defensive stats(and, to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of them, myself), but I think it's worth pointing out that Derek Jeter was
dead last among qualified AL shortstops in range factor. Last. Even among unqualifed, he's still below everyone who made at least 50 starts at the position.
Now, granted, his RF has improved a good bit from where he was before, in
'01 or
'02 or
'03. Those seasons, he was also last, of course, but he posted a sub-4 RF, and basically, a sub-4 RF means you're barely covering half the area a gold glove shortstop should.
I don't think Jeter is the
worst defensive shortstop in the AL, but no real argument exists that he's the best, outside of "that one time he dove into the stands" or "he's handsome." RF isn't the only stat that has Jeter low. zone rating has him third to last, as does runs prevented, fielding win shares places him 10th in the AL among shortstops...basically, of the many defensive metrics out there, not a single one has him as a top five defender. So, he really has no business winning three Gold Gloves. Juan Uribe would have been my pick. He's a lot better with the glove than Jeter.