A-Rod’s Independence Day
Posted by Steve L. on September 10th, 2012 · Comments (10)
Since July 4th of this year, in his last 101 Plate Appearances – albeit someone disconnected due to a stay on the disabled list – Alex Rodriguez has the following BA/OBA/SLG line: .326/.376/.554
Whenever I see A-Rod bat like this, to be candid, I cannot help myself and wonder “Is this production assisted by some form of performance-enhancing substance?”
Should it be “Shame on me” for thinking this way? Or, is it always open season to consider this about Alex given his history? What do you think?
Not sure that PED’s are a fair leap. I doubt that PED’s can turn performance off and on that quickly. Speed? Sure. You take a hit and you are “up for the game” in 10 minutes.
Could just be that the guy has become very streaky as he’s aging. Lost for a few weeks at a time, then he gets hot, then he loses it again. Maybe it’s outside distractions? Maybe, and this would fit with what people that have played/coached around him have said to me, his ego/confidence waxes and wanes and his fragile mind causes performance swings.
Hope he figures it out. With Tex on the shelf, we need him to find a power stroke and have the team ride it for a few weeks.
Grandy showing a pulse. Swisher has flatlined….. “Clear!”
I think this is equally suspicious…
Say there is a 37-yr-old shortstop whose hitting is in obvious decline. He disappears midseason to his home in Tampa for several weeks, only to return at a level of play comparable to his peak years of 10 years ago.
If his name didn’t happen to be Derek Jeter, wouldn’t at least a shadow of a doubt cross your mind?
@ Ben M.:
Only difference is that Jeter was never nailed in the past for PEDs like A-Rod. That’s the catch here. If A-Rod was never found to use them in the past, then, yes, it’s totally unfair to suspect him of it now…just as it would be unfair to suspect Jeter.
Steve L. wrote:
Given all the whining and hand wringing over the years during the “PED Era”, I find it hard to believe that it would be unfair to suspect Jeter. Maybe he hasn’t been caught yet, maybe he’s taking something undetectable.
Not saying that this is true, but it’s spurious logic to say that it’s unfair to suspect Jeter because he hasn’t failed a test. Many players haven’t failed a test, yet they’re under a cloud of doubt. And of course when it was scrubs that were busted, we didn’t hear much of anything.
Rodriguez used PEDs. He opened himself up for these questions for the rest of his career. Is it overly cynical to for someone to think that about him if he goes on a little hot streak? Maybe, but it’s certainly fair. Ortiz, Rodriguez, heck even Ryan Braun – all opened themselves up to it.
Nothing wrong to speculate here…A-Rod has earned it, after all.
Do ya care though? It’s just good to see him hitting again.
@ Raf:
I mentioned Jeter because that ESPN fellow Skip somebody mentioned him after Melky got popped. Jeter had to acknowledge that now everybody questions everything.
I heard Steve’s buddy Cashman say on Michael Kay’s show that he was not surprised about Melky, nor Bartolo Colon. So you have to figure that GM’s around the league are playing the same game we are.
Steve L. wrote:
No, not “shame on you”. But it’s more likely to a regression to the norm, especially given that it’s such a small sample size. He was hitting bombs all year, just far less frequently than he used to. The power was there. He’s just making contact more often over this stretch of 20-25 games.
Meanwhile, Russ Martin is finally starting to regress to his norm, too: .302/.362/.509 in his last 15 games.
PED use? Possible; not likely. Note: his BABIP over this stretch is .302, as opposed to .204 over the first 4 1/2 months of the season.
(Martin since the All-Star Break: .248/.327/.431, more than acceptable for a starting catcher these days. BABIP: .252, as opposed to .193 before the Break.)
Took him long enough to get rolling.
I thinks it’s totally unfounded to drag Jeter into this. It will jade me forever if he pops positive. But until such time as he does, he’s done everything required to expect to be treated as honorable, and not a cheater, on the ball field.