Wild Thought: Happy Ending For Alex?
In speaking with some fellow Yankees fans, I’m starting to notice that some folks are already starting to build a great deal of sympathy towards Alex Rodriguez with respect to his recent PED situation. They are saying things like “He’s not the only one who used PEDs” and “He’s taking the heat for all 104 players who tested positive in 2003 and that’s not fair” and “He made a mistake and apologized – so now it’s time to move on and support him.”
And, this leads me to today’s wild thought.
Suppose that this sympathy movement continues to swell, and, by the time Opening Day comes along, A-Rod’s status with Yankees fans migrates from victim or bad guy to that of hero – via a huge sympathy wave. And, as a result, when Alex takes his first At Bat in the new Yankee Stadium, he gets a standing ovation that lasts for two minutes.
Would such an event signal to the world that Yankees fans don’t give a rodent’s rectum about what may have gone down in the past with Rodriguez? Yeah, I would think so…and then some.
Of course, life on the road would be a different story for Alex. But, then again, if he gets “the works” as a visiting player, that could bring cause for Yankees fans to turn it up another notch, at home, in terms of supporting and applauding him. So, in a way, could the whole PED test situation turn out to be a (if you pardon the pun) a “positive” thing for A-Rod when he’s in New York?
Or, is that just a thought that’s way too wild?
not too wild a thought– maybe the standing ovation wont be 2 minutes, but i could see the crowd getting behind him.
Steve: I have been reading your blog everyday for about two years and I think you do a great job, though we often disagree. this is my first reply to one of your posts.
keep up the good work!
Or, is that just a thought that’s way too wild?
——–
It worked for Barry Bonds…
It worked for Barry Bonds…
———–
The city of SF loves Bonds, even though everyone else more or less hates him. If the same thing happened here, I’d be fine with that.
Quite frankly, a little love for A-Rod here in New York is way, way overdue.
I didn’t think the issue was going to be Yankees fans from the start. He’s still on the team so we want to see him do good so we can win, but if he plays worse than usual, then he might get boo’d more often, but that wouldn’t be anything new.
The media, other fans, and the pressure he puts on himself is what is going to make or break him.
I really, really, really don’t think he should get a standing O on opening day at home or anything close to it. If he performs then we should cheer, but I don’t think we should feel sorry for him. He did this to himself. You don’t cheat on a test in school and then complain when you are the only one who gets caught.
if i had tickets, i’d stand for him. let’s play some dam baseball already!
~~Quite frankly, a little love for A-Rod here in New York is way, way overdue.~~
Huh? IIRC, he was cheered, wildly, in 2007. I know that, in the games I went to, he got the biggest hands of anyone on the team when he came to bat.
You don’t cheat on a test in school and then complain when you are the only one who gets caught.
———-
Very true. But you don’t also get booed because your name’s not Derek Jeter. New York has been unfair to A-Rod. It may be counterintuitive but I think A-Rod still deserves a little goodwill.
Huh? IIRC, he was cheered, wildly, in 2007. I know that, in the games I went to, he got the biggest hands of anyone on the team when he came to bat.
—————
What about 2004, 2006 and 2008? Why do other Yankees get unconditional love but A-Rod has to have MVP seasons to get a crumb of affection?
~~Why do other Yankees get unconditional love but A-Rod has to have MVP seasons to get a crumb of affection?~~
Because A-Rod has no rings, has been a terrible October performer for the Yankees, and gets paid more than anyone in the game.
…I’m not saying that’s fair, or my reason not to love him no matter what, but, I would guess that’s why some do not.
MJ…A-Rod has been cheered plenty of times and I don’t think he’s been treated unfairly by the fans. That is your opinion.
Players got boo’d or cheered based on expectations. If you are the “best player in the game” or one of the best then you should be doing things similar to other great players and A-Rod doesn’t always do that. When Manny, Pujols, etc have guys on base in front of them, they make other teams pay more often than not and I don’t feel like A-Rod does that.
This is just one example and not the end all be all of stats but it might explain why some fans are not happy with A-Rod(as of 8/27/08):
Check out some of the other top players and how they are hitting with RISP this season(AVG/OBP/SLG/OPS):
ALBERT PUJOLS: .311/.524/.567/1.091
MANNY RAMIREZ: .342/.490/.579/1.069
JUSTIN MORNEAU: .371/.481/.621/1.102
KEVIN YOUKILIS: .363/.433/.605/1.038
DAVID ORTIZ: .352/.451/.670/1.122
JOSH HAMILTON: .325/.383/.636/1.019
VLAD GUERRERO: .295/.406/.527/.933
MARK TEIXIERA: .306/.458/.507/.965
RYAN BRAUN: .308/.361/.569/.930
LANCE BERKMAN: .371/.513/.603/1.116
CARLOS QUENTIN: .322/.441/.574/1.015
GRADY SIZEMORE: .305/.472/.621/1.093
RYAN HOWARD: .298/.418/.536/.954
Now look at A-Rod and Jason Giambi:
ALEX RODRIGUEZ: .246/.400/.413/.813
JASON GIAMBI: .203/.342/.314/.656
Because A-Rod has no rings, has been a terrible October performer for the Yankees, and gets paid more than anyone in the game.
———-
To each his own. I love him because he’s an incredible player to watch. His private life doesn’t color my opinion of him in any way and the fact that he has no rings isn’t a good enough reason for me not to like him.
I don’t think he’s been treated unfairly by the fans. That is your opinion.
————-
It certainly is my opinion. I suppose if you think 2006 was “fair” then that’s your opinion. For the life of me, I can’t remember a player that endured as much undeserved negativity as A-Rod in 2006 though.
It certainly is my opinion. I suppose if you think 2006 was “fair” then that’s your opinion. For the life of me, I can’t remember a player that endured as much undeserved negativity as A-Rod in 2006 though.
———————
Yeah, I feel so bad for A-Rod or any other player who gets paid millions to play a game that most of us would die to play for when there’s people around the world starving, homeless, poor, etc. I’m sure A-Rod will be just fine. Fair or not. I would trade places with him any day. Let’s not turn him into a martyr here.
maxw – thanks! Nice to see your 1st post.
(Sorry it took so long to show. 1st time posters, any post with a URL, or a post with more than one smiley always seem to get held in moderation/SPAM review…)
Yeah, I feel so bad for A-Rod or any other player who gets paid millions to play a game that most of us would die to play for when there’s people around the world starving, homeless, poor, etc. I’m sure A-Rod will be just fine. Fair or not. I would trade places with him any day. Let’s not turn him into a martyr here.
———–
I’m not saying I feel bad for him or that A-Rod’s problems are worse than those of the homeless, starving, etc. Let’s not go all hyperbolic here.
You simply said “fair” and I questioned whether A-Rod was treated “fairly” in 2006.
Yeah, I feel so bad for A-Rod or any other player who gets paid millions to play a game that most of us would die to play for when there’s people around the world starving, homeless, poor, etc. I’m sure A-Rod will be just fine. Fair or not. I would trade places with him any day. Let’s not turn him into a martyr here.
——————-
Antone, you seem to be missing the point completely. I don’t think anyone feels particularly ‘bad’ for A-Rod because he gets booed. The point is that he has been treated unfairly by the NY fans. He has singlehandedly carried the team to the post-season a number of times and gets very little love for it.
Sure, he gets paid the most money. But Giambi had a huge contract too, and I would say A-Rod has earned his money far more than Giambi. Would people boo Giambi just because he didn’t hit a HR?
And that stat that you cherry picked is absolutely ridiculous. Vlad Guerrerro is a notoriously bad post-season performer… worse than A-Rod. However, fans don’t boo him.
The difference with A-Rod, and where I and many others feel that he is treated unfairly, is that the instant he doesn’t perform he gets booed. Even though he hit the GW hr the night before, he could still get booed. This doesn’t happen to other stars (even those getting paid similar to A-Rod.) Baseball is a sport of failure, plain and simple. More often than not, A-Rod (or anyone) should be expected to fail in a ‘clutch’ situation. However, A-Rod is the only one that gets consistently booed, even though he has been *by far* the Yankees best offensive player since he arrived in NY.
Thought this might be a good time to revisit a WW Golden Oldie…
http://waswatching.com/2007/04/04/yankees-fans-who-boo-a-rod/
Thought this might be a good time to revisit a WW Golden Oldie…
————-
“It’s because they’re stupid. That’s why everybody does everything.” – Homer J. Simpson, December 6, 1998
lol
I think a lot of that prognostication turns on whether the other 103 names are made public before spring training. Forgiveness is easier when the media isn’t shoving the story into our faces, and the media’s fixation on A-Rod will go by the wayside when the other names are disclosed.
[...] Wild Thought: Happy Ending For Alex? / NO SURPRISE RANGERS USED ROIDS [...]