A year and a day after he was officially enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Derek Jeter returned to the place he called home for 20 years to be honored for his Cooperstown induction. 

Though he hinted to the crowd at a packed Yankee Stadium that he will be around more often, Jeter later clarified he did not mean it in any official capacity. 

“I know you guys haven’t seen a lot of me over the last few years, for various reasons,” Jeter told his adoring fans as he finished his speech that concluded the pregame ceremony Friday night. “But I really, truly do look forward to hopefully seeing a lot more of you here in the near future.” 

Asked about those comments shortly after, Jeter said he “wouldn’t read too much into it.” 

“I did miss the place,” Jeter said after repeatedly hearing his name chanted and then throwing out the first pitch. “This is home for me. I was here for 20 years, across the street and in this building. So 20 years, playing pretty much every day, this is where I feel most comfortable. Of course I missed Yankee Stadium. 

“But I had my head down while I was in Miami [as CEO of the Marlins]. I was focused on what we were trying to accomplish down there. Now that that is behind me, I’m looking forward to hopefully spending a little bit more time here.” 

Before Friday, Jeter had returned to Yankee Stadium for the 1996 team reunion in 2016, his No. 2 retirement ceremony in 2017 and earlier this summer for a limited viewing of his ESPN documentary. But otherwise the former captain had largely been missing from his longtime place of work since his retirement in 2014. 

“My family’s always going to come first, no matter what,” Jeter said. “Now if you take away full-time [Marlins] commitment every single day — I’m still really busy — but I will have … some more time.” 

After retiring following the 2014 season, Jeter got back into the game in 2017 when he was part of the group that bought the Marlins. He was named the CEO, overseeing day-to-day operations of the rebuilding club with a limited budget. 

But in February, Jeter announced he was stepping down as CEO and would no longer be a shareholder in the team, citing a differing “vision of the future” for the organization. 

Still, Jeter said Friday he would like to get back into baseball in an aspect to be determined. 

“I think I’ve gained a lot of knowledge, I’ve learned a lot,” Jeter said. “What that is, time will tell. Whether it’s sharing information with individual players, groups of players, an organization, or directly with fans, I think there’s a lot of options there. So time will tell. But I love this game and I’m interested in seeing it continue to grow.” 

On Friday, Jeter was able to share the Yankee Stadium experience with his wife, Hannah, and their three daughters. The eldest two stole the show during his speech, wandering behind Jeter, waving and asking him about the ice cream he promised them, he later said. 

Also in attendance were Jeter’s former teammates, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, Tino Martinez and CC Sabathia, plus former manager Joe Torre. 

After the former Yankees and Jeter’s parents, sister and nephew were welcomed onto the field, a video narrated by Billy Crystal played before Jeter and his family made their entrance. 

The only boos came for Hal Steinbrenner — who was also booed during Paul O’Neill’s number retirement ceremony last month — as he walked out to present a check to Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation, and when Jeter thanked general manager Brian Cashman. 

“I see you guys are ready for the playoff push,” Jeter told the fans upon hearing the boos. 

“Yeah I was surprised,” Jeter said afterward. “Yankee fans, we’ve all been spoiled, right? … Yankee fans expect excellence. Never satisfied, which is a good thing. But Yankee fans boo because they want to cheer. That’s the way I look at it.”

After a career spent chasing rings and records, Jeter also praised Aaron Judge for his current pursuit of Roger Maris’ AL record of 61 home runs.

“He’s carrying the team,” Jeter said. “It’s pretty remarkable what he’s been able to do here under the spotlight of New York.”