For Yankees, Thrilling Rally Ends Badly Derek Jeter injured his ankle in the top of the 12th inning. After another magical ninth-inning home run by Raul Ibanez sent Yankee Stadium into near delirium Saturday night, it seemed there was nothing that could dampen the euphoria that the 40-year-old designated hitter had unleashed once again. But three innings later the joy of that moment was shattered into a cold silence as Derek Jeter lay motionless on the infield dirt in pain. The Detroit Tigers had already taken the lead in the 12th inning of Game 1 of the American League Championship Series, but the far more sobering thought was that Jeter could not move. He was helped off the field, and X-rays confirmed the worst. Jeter broke his left ankle diving for a ground ball and will be out for the rest of the postseason. Brian Cashman, the Yankees" general manager, said the recovery period would be at least three months, but the injury is not believed to be career-threatening. More tests need to be done, and he wasn't sure if surgery was necessary. "The winter will take care of it, and he will be ready for spring training," Cashman said. Winter may be coming to New York earlier than expected. The Tigers scored twice in the inning and went on to win, 6-4, in 12 innings to capture the first game in this best-of-seven series. But the Yankees were more concerned about their captain, who has been on the field for all of their five World Series championships since 1996. If they are going to win their 28th World Series, they will have to do it without Jeter or another of their championship mainstays, Mariano Rivera, their longtime closer, who sustained a season-ending knee injury in May. "It was kind of a flashback to when Mo didn't get up," Manager Joe Girardi said. It brought me back there. Oh, boy. If he's not getting up, something's wrong. Jeter's only other long-term injury was a dislocated shoulder on opening day in Toronto in 2003. He played the last several weeks of the regular season with a bone bruise in the same ankle and then fouled a few pitches off the foot during the division series with the Baltimore Orioles. Girardi said he didn't think those ailments contributed to the injury, but Cashman through they might have. "It very well could be related," he said. It's been banged up, that foot, so I would think it is related, yeah. Jayson Nix, a capable infielder who has been swinging his bat well lately, will replace Jeter at shortstop, and Eduardo Nunez will be added back to the roster. Jeter was hurt diving to his left to snare Jhonny Peralta's ground ball in the 12th, with the Tigers already leading, 5-4. He caught it but then stumbled, and his left foot seemed to collapse under him. He lay on the dirt, grimacing in pain, quickly glancing down at his foot almost as if it belonged to someone else. The best he could do was flip the ball to second baseman Robinson Cano, and then wait for help as Yankee Stadium went silent. When Girardi and the trainer Steve Donohue came out to attend to him, it was already clear Jeter had sustained a serious injury. Girardi told Jeter that he would carry him off, but Jeter said, "Do not carry me off the field," so he put an arm around each man and limped off without putting any weight on it. As he was carried off, the fans chanted "Derek Jeter" in their familiar tone, saluting the 38-year-old Yankee icon who has played in 158 playoff games over 16 seasons. Later, Joe Torre, Jeter's manager for 12 years and in attendance at the game, joined Jeter in the training room. Dr. Christopher Ahmad informed Jeter of the bad news, and according to Cashman, Ahmad told Jeter that he could not play through the injury. "Doc had to emphasize that because of who he was talking to," Cashman said. The injury, combined with the loss, was especially hard to bear for the fans after they witnessed such a stirring comeback from a 4-0 deficit in the ninth inning.