Major League Baseball team captains

In baseball, a captain is an honorary title sometimes given to a member of the team to acknowledge his leadership. In the early days of baseball, a captain was a player who was responsible for many of the functions now assumed by managers and coaches, such as preparing lineups, making decisions about strategy, and encouraging teamwork. In amateur or youth baseball, a manager or coach may appoint a team captain to assist in communicating with the players and to encourage teamwork and improvement.
Major League Baseball's official rules only briefly mention the position of team captain. Section 4.01, which discusses the submission of a team's lineup to the umpire, notes that obvious errors in the lineup should be brought to the attention of the team's manager or captain.
In Major League Baseball, many teams no longer designate a player as captain. Jerry Remy, who was named as captain of the Los Angeles Angels in 1977 at age 24, explains, "there's probably no need for a captain on a major league team. I think there are guys who lead by example. You could name the best player on your team as captain, but he may not be the guy other players will talk to or who will quietly go to other players and give them a prod."
Of the three current team captains in Major League Baseball, only Boston's Jason Varitek wears an NHL-style "C" on his jersey.
Three Major League Baseball teams currently have captains:
*Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
*Jason Varitek, Boston Red Sox
*Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox

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