Derek Jeter won't be playing baseball for the New York Yankees in two seasons. This is terrible news for Yankee fans, but with a silver-lining for those who enjoy a good excuse for a good cry. We saw them last year during Mariano Rivera's retirement. We don't want to see them again.

That's just one of the reasons I was critical (slightly less so now) of a man who hasn't made a bad decision since befriending Alex Rodriguez when he was on the Mariners and part of the Nomar-Jeter-Rodriguez shortstop triumvirate. Telling us before the season removes all doubt, destroys all hope. I'd rather watch him this year with the chance that he'd come back again next year -- and with that, the chance that he retires in the offseason without having fully appreciated his last season and without giving him a so-called proper send-off.

About two sentences into this report, I forgave Jeter and grudgingly understood.

What's long separated Jeter from other players is his continued love of the game. He was addicted to baseball early, and, unlike maybe most players, the urge hasn't waned. That's probably why he hasn't married and has never been close to a scandal besides the signed baseball incident. Remember the days when you were young and never got into trouble because you were only into sports? That's still basically Jeter's world, with only the occasional female distraction.

He is also obsessed with winning. When, following his 2009 World Series ring, New York reporters brought up the years between 2000 and 2008 during which he didn't win a ring, Jeter snapped something to the degree of, "thanks for reminding me," with none of his characteristic poise and humor. There's no such thing as winning in love. There's just love. That notion hasn't been a driving force for Jeter in his first 40 years of life. Maybe he'll explore the subject in his retirement.

Thus, making a decision before the season forces him to leave the game he wouldn't otherwise be able to -- or would be forced out due to reduced performance and/or injury. Because a close second to his obsession with baseball is the maintenance of his perfect image. He knows that if he says he'll do something, people expect him to do it. Today's announcement is a prescient move for Jeter, an advanced decision he knows he wouldn't be able to make a year from now.

So great is Jeter's love for the game (greater, I think, than even Mo's) that I wouldn't even be surprised if he has a big year and considers returning. That's where I hate his decision.

What if he's hitting .330 at the end of the summer, has the Yankees in first place, and then has the stadium collectively weep during his last regular season game, has Mariano Rivera relieve him at shortstop with two outs in the ninth of a blowout game so he can get a standing ovation, has Barack Obama throw the first pitch at Yankee Stadium wearing his jersey, and sees the demand for #2 tattoos single-handedly keep tattoo parlors in business? How can he return after people went through so much trouble to say goodbye? He can't, just like Mo knew that those tearful farewells were the final swooshes of his retirement signature. Jeter removed almost all doubt today. It hurts.