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Baseball Hall of Famer and former New York Yankees shortstop, Derek Jeter, just graduated from college 33 years after dropping out in 1992 to enter the MLB draft.
On Sunday, Jeter posted on Instagram to share that he had received an honorary degree from the University of Michigan over 30 years after he first attended the school.
“Took longer than I planned since enrolling at Michigan fall of ‘92 to make it to graduation!” he captioned the post, which featured various images of him on campus while being presented with his degree. “Thank you @uofmichigan for the honorary Doctor of Laws degree and inviting me to give the commencement speech. Congratulations to the Class of 2025. Go Blue!”
Jeter’s family was also in attendance to commemorate the occasion, including his wife Hannah Jeter, sister Sharlee, and his parents, Sanderson and Dorothy Jeter.
Colleges and universities often give out honorary Doctor of Law degrees to people who have made valuable contributions in their given field. No academic achievements are required in order to receive one.
In addition to receiving his degree, Jeter also served as the commencement speaker for the University of Michigan Class of 2025 on Saturday at the school’s stadium in Ann Arbor.
According to MLive, the Baseball Hall of Famer’s speech largely focused on passion. “Passion. Passion for what you do. Passion for who you are. Baseball was my passion from the time I was little. Find yours,” he told the graduating class.
“Fall in love with something — anything. Because when you do, you work harder to achieve it. It will drive you. You have to feel that dream in every muscle, every bone in your body because with every dream, every dream you have, you’re going to have to sacrifice your comfort, sacrifice your ease.”
The former shortstop was born in Pequannock, New Jersey, but grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan, after his family moved there. After spending one semester at the University of Michigan, Jeter was drafted by the Yankees as the sixth overall pick. He made his MLB debut in 1995.
Jeter played for the Yankees for all 20 seasons of his career until his retirement in 2014. He is the team’s all-time career leader in hits (3,465), doubles (544), games played (2,747), stolen bases (358), times on base (4,716), plate appearances (12,602), and at-bats (11,195).
His accolades include 14 All-Star selections, five Gold Glove Awards, five Silver Slugger Awards, two Hank Aaron Awards, and a 2009 Roberto Clemente Award.
He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2020.
English (US) ·