If by respected you mean respected for his character, I think Babe Ruth was not in the same category as Jeter and Rivera. On the other hand as an all-around great ballplayer, meaning hitting and pitching, no one comes close to Ruth; furthermore, he still holds some single season batting records.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.