When Minka Kelly and Derek Jeter suddenly spilt after three years together—after they appeared to be just fine in public a month ago—it took everyone by surprise.
Perhaps even Minka, too.
The duo issued the standard breakup statement: it was amicable, they'd remain friends, blah blah blah, we've heard it all before. But of course, there's always more to the tale, and the case of the baseball hottie and his gorgeous actress girlfriend is no exception.
So what's one insider claiming is the reason behind the split?
A source close to Minka tells E! News that although it never really got ugly between the two, Derek preferred how the relationship was before Minka started hitting it really big with The Roommate and Charlie's Angels. In other words, he liked the Friday Night Lights-era Minka. And with his honey's career skyrocketing, the Yankee captain just didn't want all the attention, all the time.
"They kept their relationship very, very quiet—there are no rumors of cheating, nothing. And Minka is handling this the way she handles everything, she's a down-to-earth, real person, a sweetheart, and this took her by surprise," says our source, who has worked with the actress on numerous occasions.
"This is Derek's doing for the most part. If you look back at his relationships, as some of the girls started to rise in fame, that's when they broke up. Vanessa Minnillo, Lara Dutta, they all start out with sexy photo shoots and then all of a sudden they blow up and it starts going awry. He has a history of it, and he's just repeating it with Minka."
And our source tells us although the duo were extremely in love, Minka wasn't pressuring her baseball honey to marry her.
"They both wanted different things," the source said. "There's a lot of pressure on both of them right now. He's the Yankees captain, everything lies on his shoulders. Minka's feeling a lot of pressure with Charlie's Angels. As both started to feel the pressure of their jobs, the relationship just came second."
But as for those rumors about Minka's possible hookup with her Charlie's Angels costar Ramon Rodriguez, who plays a young Bosley in the show, our source insists they're "just friends."
Not to say the Derek-Minka love affair is over forever. Our insider tells us "both are open" to the possibility of reconciliation down the road.
We'd love to see it.