Some marketing experts believe Yankees SS Derek Jeter will "remain the face of baseball even in retirement," according to Steve Keating of REUTERS. Horizon Media Senior VP/Research Brad Adgate said, "He is well poised to be a product endorser for the years ahead. The most compelling reason is the guy's squeaky clean lifestyle, very mainstream. ... It is hard to think of anybody who has so many assets in his back pocket for product endorsements than Derek Jeter." Keating noted while Jeter's portfolio "includes lucrative deals with Nike and Gatorade, he ranked only 35th on the Forbes list of the Top 100 earners in sport" for '14. Jeter has "not fully tapped his potential as product pitchman according to some marketing experts," but the future HOFer "could explore more of these opportunities in retirement." San Diego State Univ. marketing professor George Belch said, "If you lined everything up one might say this is recipe for just a massive endorser but it just never seemed to play out for him" (REUTERS, 9/23). Majestic Athletic President Jim Pisani, whose company is the official on-field uniform provider for MLB, said that his outfit "has made nearly 100 graphics to go on Jeter products this year, part of what has made Jeter the most merchandised athlete in a single year in sports history." ESPN.com's Darren Rovell noted more than 25 licensees have "made Jeter gear with his specially made 'Final Season' logo." New Era, which makes MLB's official caps, has "produced more than 200 Jeter products." New Era Cap President Pete Augustine said, "As soon as he announced this was going to be his final season, we could see the market was hungry for it. We've never seen this much interest from a player perspective, and I'm not sure we ever will." Fanatics.com said that sales of Jeter merchandise on its website this season "are up 1,000 percent over last year." Jeter gear has been "purchased by fans in all 50 states and more than 30 countries this season." MLBAM VP/Corporate Communications Matt Gould said that Jeter is the "most popular player, in terms of sales, in a retirement year, besting teammate Mariano Rivera, who retired last year" (ESPN.com, 9/23).
FULL COUNT: In N.Y., David Li notes the Yankees through Steiner Sports are selling Jeter's "used cotton footwear to star-struck fans for an eye-popping $409.99 each." The "knee-high socks ... include a hologram for authentication." It is "not clear how many have been sold, but there are only 19 left." Game-worn uniforms -- with "dirt and grass stains included -- are going for more than $25,000." Game-used bases signed by Jeter "go for $10,000 to $12,500," and a signed lineup card "has an asking price of $10,000" (N.Y. POST, 9/24).
SWING AND A MISS? In N.Y., Keith Kelly notes Jeter's "fledgling imprint, Jeter Publishing, at Simon & Schuster, was one of the unsuccessful underbidders this summer for former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly’s book." The book "was sold earlier this month to another new imprint, Hachette Books." It does "not appear that Jeter had a formal sit-down with Kelly, since Kelly was making the rounds to a handful of publishers in late July while Jeter was busy taking his farewell tour." Meanwhile, Jeter's first book, "The Contract," hit shelves yesterday. It had "already surged to the No. 1 children’s baseball book on Amazon and was ranked No. 61 overall in the children’s market" by late yesterday afternoon. His "big coffee table photo book, 'Jeter Unfiltered,' hits Oct. 28" (N.Y. POST, 9/24).
