Like absolute pitch, it is one of those abilities which attains a totally unnecessary mystique. Luckey Roberts had a really freakish span of nearly two octaves but did it mean his musical output was proportionally better ? No, of course not. Stephanie Trick has small hands but plays stride, including the big Waller solos, beautifully. Also, don't forget that split tenths, either upwards or downwards, are in their nature much more rhythmically interesting than banged down straight tenths anyway.
Don't hurt your hands by trying to stretch them. Use your mind to invent ways of playing, perhaps using varied voicings and jumps, which produce musical results for you. Chances are the results will be effective for everybody else as well.