High-stakes game gets underway
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- March
- 14
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Last night, the writers who knew what Alex had said on WFAN were waiting to speak with him after the game. Another Yankee wandered over to me and asked what was going on.
I explained and the guy laughed. “Hey, if he wants to win the MVP and help us win the Series, more power to him,” he said. “He can do whatever he wants then.”
What a lot of the A-Rod Forever crowd doesn’t understand is that this has nothing to do with the Yankees or Jeter or Torre or the media. It has everything to do with Alex Rodriguez, Inc.
Given what the market was like last winter, what would a player like Alex be worth next winter? Starting the bidding at $33 million a year for seven years. But Alex wouldn’t want to make it look like he ran away from New York, because that would hurt his marketability. So now he drops it on your doorstep.
I tried to get along but they booed me. I tried to be honest about Jeter but they booed me. I had no choice.
Given that rest of the country pretty much hates New York, that will play well.
Alex the third baseman is a heck of a player, one of the top 10 ever when it’s all said and done. But Alex the businessman? That dude is Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan rolled into one. Mike and Mad Dog were 50,000 watts of exit strategy.
Alex can backtrack all he wants. He knew what he was saying, he knew how many people were listening and he knew it would blow up. Like that player said to me, if it plays out that way, he can do what he wants.
But it better play out that way. Because if Alex strikes out a lot again and can’t throw the ball to first again and goes 1-for-17 in the playoffs again, then he will have to stay and try again or admit defeat and move on.
Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal gets it.
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on Wednesday, March 14th, 2007 at 11:48 am by Peter Abraham.
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Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
Josh Thomson
So A-rod is a marketing genious..lol,Think Boras is behind the exit strategy?
“Starting the bidding at $33 million a year for seven years. ”
based on what? this is absurd. you are exposing yourself a little here b/c this sounds like you have no idea what you are talking about.
alex got $25M per year when he was 26. he was a also a SS.
there is no way any team is going to pay alex $33M for his age 36-39 seasons. that would be sheer lunacy.
and even after 7 years, his contract is still an outlier.
alex would likely be exchanging more guaranteed years for a LOWER annual salary.
but i guess you can drum up the numbers to try to support your agenda.
I don’t think Ken Rosenthal “gets it” at all.
If ARod just “shuts up and plays”, the media (especially the beat writers) would rip him everyday for not speaking to them. Yes, that would really go well this year, wouldn’t it?
You are correct, this is all about preparing an exit strategy. Why not? The guy gets treated like crap in this town. So, he should just stick around for more? Nobody, even the supposed “tough” athletes in NY would put up with what ARod puts up with. Its not worth it.
If he has a bad year, its “bad for business”. I agree 100% with that premise.
Conversely, he seems to be willing to take that on and challenge himself. As a Yankee fan, I wish he did this earlier in his tenure in NY and he would be a lot happier.
I could care less when he opts out after this year. If he has a great year, he has the hammer. If he doesn’t, he has less leverage. That’s the way the baseball business works.
In essence, he is acting as if he is playing with a “one year deal”. If that makes him play better, that’s all I care about.
The analysis from sportswriters and commentators I can do without because most of them speak from an area of bias, as in, what makes my job easier.
ARod is great copy for slow spring days. As long as it doesn’t become a team distraction, which it did last year, it means nothing.
Hopefully, ARod is smart enough to have learned that lesson. If he isn’t, then its going to be a long season for him.
FWIW, I think the guy is going to have a monster, monster season and leave NY with his head held high. The media? They will all be like Lupica, who is still writing Pat Riley hate stories ten years after he left for greener pastures. They will just substitute ARod’s name for Riley’s in their hate columns.
hmmm: If Gil Meche got what he got from the Royals, what is Alex worth?
Boras will start high. Look at what he got Zito. You have to consider the market in 2008, not what it was years ago.
hmmm if thats your real name.
Alfanso Soriano
8 years/$136M
JD “DL” Drew
5 years/$70M
Carlos “Im a DH” Lee
6 years/$100M
If you think Arod of a Arod year wont get paid you are kidding yourself. Do you forget about how 6 teams were asking and offering to trade for him?
You are clueless about anything that has to do with AROD Pete. But you are determined to be that way.
Moving on.
In a Boston article, Alex said “it became so much about what I said and not how I played”, or something that effect. If he is still hounded for this interview I hope he remembers that.
I agree 100 percent with “hmmm.” This winter, Rodriguez will be seven years older than he was when he got $25 million a year, and four years removed from playing shortstop. His is still the highest annual salary in the game. The market rebounded this winter, but it’s still not as insane as it was when he got his quarter-billion (which was extreme even then). No team will offer him more per year than he’s getting. If anything his market value has tumbled since his move to New York. He’s over 30, after last year he looks like he’s lost it in the field, and he’s developed a reputation for causing problems both on the field (erronious as it may be) and off. He’ll get a chunk of change if he opts-out, but it’ll be a smaller chunk than he’d get otherwise.
And if Rosenthal is your measuring stick, you should have no beef with Mike Geffner, oops I mean the foof that asked players what turned them on.
Why start at $33 million, why not $40 or $33.8? I could care less.
Jeff A.: the highest annual salary in that bunch is Soriano’s $17 mill per year. That’s just 68% of what Rodriguez gets per year.
The real question will be, how high will the Yankees go to keep him? There is no question, he is going to command big money on the market. I don’t care how some fans feel about him, he won’t field an offer under $160-$175 million MINIMUM this off-season.
Will the Yankees go the distance to keep him? That’s the big question. A big season from ARod makes that decision a tough one.
I, for one, hope he gives the Yankees something to think about because it will mean that the team will have a very, very good season.
I disagree with Ken Rosenthal (lol this isn’t the first and won’t be the last time I’m sure) and I’m sure he won’t lose any sleep over that.
If Arod “pulls a Manny” and simply refuses to talk to anyone I do NOT seeing that being tolerated in NY like it is in Boston. I can not see the fans and media joining an “thats Arod being Arod” parade. Thats crazy.
Peter your postings on Arod say much more about you than they do about Alex. He’s been treated shabbily by many of the fans and by much of the folks that pass for journalists in NYC.
33M is obviously pushing it, but that was probably intentional. But with Soriano at 17M/year, 25 for A-Rod is certainly not out of the realm of possibility, and it’ll be for more years than he’s got left on his current contract.
The market is way up from when he signed the big contract, and his age is up as well, but his physical condition and ability have not fallen off at all. He won’t get 10 years, but he’ll get plenty of $$$. The new market will pretty much adjust for any decreases he’d see because of age.
I’d guess most likely we’ll be looking at 22-25M or so for more years…
If Rodriguez opts out, it will be for one of two reasons: 1) he wants out of the Bronx 2) he want’s an extension. Checking his contract, he’ll have just three years left after 2007, but he’ll be getting $27 mil per year in each (that’s a full $10 mil more than Soriano’s average annual salary). His choice will be to keep that $27 mill and play out his contract, or opt out and sign a longer-term deal for a lower annual.
Look out your windows for flying farm animals. Fatso and Puppy Dog are defending ARod.
The market is at least back up where it was when he signed that big contract.
Pete,
Stick to your guns. If your BS meter is going off then you’re onto something. I think that the media and savvy fans give A-rod a hard time because they think he’s fake. He could be the messiah in a World Series, but it won’t buy him love in the eyes of Yankee fans. Rather than embrace him, they’ll say, “Thank you. You’ve done what got paid to do. Good luck in the future.”
There are fans who fawn over A-rod and hiss at those who are critical of him. They like A-rod because of his numbers not because he’s a good guy. They say things like “how’re you gonna replace his right hand power?” and “we want him to break the home run record in pinstripes”. They totally ignore the fact that A-rod is very flawed as a human being and his insecurities hurt himself and his team. He won’t last 2 years in New York, let alone the 10 years he’ll need to break the HR record. At some point it’ll come to a breaking point and someone will stop the insanity.
I don’t think that interview was at all a “dog fight,” but 2 guys that were much more cordial to him than they were with Cashman. They asked the tough questions, but seemed a lot less in his face about them. Did you hear Russo’s tone when he repeated the Jeter question? Not very strong tones when he repeated himself…
They seemed more like fans of his.
“Boras will start high. Look at what he got Zito. You have to consider the market in 2008, not what it was years ago.”
i am.
the year Alex signed you had these contracts signed:
Jeter – 10 years $189M
A-Rod – 10 years $252M
Manny – 8 years $160M
this current off-season PALES in comparison to that off-season. Zito, Soriano, Wells…they all got less than these deals.
this off-season was a large increase from previous years, b/c there was a huge correction in 2003-2004. it was up from a few years of being down.
you think a team is going to pay A-Rod, who now plays 3B, $231M for 7 years?
that’s nuts.
you are just parroting the conventional wisdom: salaries are going up, look at Gil Meche!!!
it’s more complex than that.
Pete, quit it with the conspiracy theories and get back to covering baseball
A very flawed human being? That’s just too funny. I guess that’s your “savvy fan” perspective.
Yes, the guy is VERY flawed because he carries himself like a gentlemen, plays hard, and does it without the benefit of steroids.
He didn’t carry the Yankees to a World Series so that makes him a “very flawed human being”. Then, you put “savvy Yankee fan” in the same sentence.
Post of the day. lol
Ken Rosenthal should have groupies.
It’s not quite as high as it was and nobody’s giving anyone 33M to play baseball for the next several years. The team that can best afford ARod is the one that already has him. Used be great when reporters reported news instead of trying to generate it.
a-rod is probably doing the yankees a favor if and when he opts out and hits the market. cashman has proven over the past year he’s trying to cut the payroll to something manageable, maybe in the $160M range. the yanks are in the mid-180s right now (that’s a guess). take away the $16M they owe a-rod each year and we’re getting closer to $160M.
mike lowell’s in the last year of his deal with boston and could be had for maybe $5M next year. he’ll knock in 80 runs in this lineup, 40 less than a-rod. and you get gold glove defense. think of lowell as scott brosius.
the other big contract up for grabs is abreu’s. do we sign him for market value? i’m not sure. tabata’s probably two years away. melky could play RF next season if necessary.
what i’m saying is this: the days of all-stars at nearly every yankees position are coming to an end. cashman’s got a financial plan in mind. he wants to develop young arms and get rid of big contracts. it’s nothing personal with a-rod or abreu, just business. that’s all.
Peter,
Your proving yourself to be a real scumbag with this latest entry.
Phil: I generated news? Alex did the interview, my man. Was I supposed to ignore it?
Ouch.
To be fair, I think Pete’s right about the exit strategy. Meanwhile, just because you disagree with him, doesn’t mean you have the right to attack him personally. This is a blog, it’s a place where a reporter like Pete can editorialize a bit more than in his print work. Engage his points if you disagree, but don’t get personal.
This is pathetic, what is it with NY sportswriters and their obsession to give A-Rod a bad name? What did A-Rod say that was so bad? Can someone tell me why this is a big story in the media? He is being honest and the media fools are grilling him , but then again if he went on the radio and said he loves Torre and he loves Jeter and has no problems with anyone you would be grilling him too, the guy can’t win with this foolish NY media, it is pathetic.
I should add that, just beause you have an exit strategy, doesn’t mean you have to use it. It’s all negotiation. Like Pete says, it’s good business in the same way that it’s good business for the Yankees to wait until the fall to offer extensions to Mo and Jorge. There’s really no difference here.
Yikes people! Can’t we all just get along again??
“a-rod is probably doing the yankees a favor if and when he opts out and hits the market”
not at all. the yanks pay A-Rod $16M. it’s a steal.
A-Rod, I thought handled himself great yesterday. Nobody knows whats going to happen at the end of year because he doesn’t know it yet. There is alot of baseball to played b/w now and Oct.
i could not agree w/ SJ44 and Chris NY any more. if i were arod, i too would be keeping an eye on the door. he IS treated shabbily in NY. he is constantly subjected to jeter this, jeter that, etc. he cannot win. he hits almost 40 HRs per season w/ greater than 110-120 ribbies as well. not good enough. i forget where i recently read an article about another great third baseman from a different era (Mike Schmidt) who was also greatly unappreciated. only towards the end of his great career did he receive the respect and admiration that he should have had all along.
arod is right. if the fans were to accept me for who i am then sure i would want to stay. if not? bye bye. c-ya. who needs the aggravation. i changed jobs last year b/c i was not happy. i felt as if i was under a microscope. every little thing i did was subjected to scrutiny or so it seemed. i changed positions. now? i am happy b/c it is like i am home. i am a member of the team. the first job? screw them. i made a choice and so can arod.
baseball the business? screw that. i would be in it for the money as well. look at the knucklehead brandon (ha) arroyo. re-signs w/ the bosux for under market value b/c he loves boston and the future general manager of the kansas city royals OR tampa bay devil rays OR colorado rockies OR pittsburgh pirates theo not-really-the-wonder-boy epstein who got LUCKY in 2004. what happens after he does that? bye bye and off to cincinnati (another future home for theo) in exchange for the not so wily mo pena. if soriano can get $17 plus mill/year until he is 38 (!!!), while happening to be almost the same age as arod and be 2/3’s the player, then arod will clean up this coming winter. he is by far a better player than sori. 5-tools! 6-7 y at 30+ mill/y. guaranteed! the cubs, angels and dodgers. i would pick the angels. remains in the AL w/ a kick ass organization and supposedly fantastic owner. yanks would be stupid to let it happen because they are only paying arod 15 mill/y w/ texas’ monetary contributions. craft a deal to keep the current deal while extending it for a few seasons for a great player. he WILL have a monster season, and cashmoney will do what needs to be done to keep arod (smart business move and keeping texas’ $$$ at the same time).
classic news media, ESPECIALLY IN NY, is to harp on the negative. and in parting, whatever position that idiot lupica takes i will be sure to take the opposite. he forgets his place… stick to the sports and spare us the politicking. the media should just stop searching for a story and let the season play out. enough about arod already, please.
I just like how he stood up when he was done with the interview and Russo flinched as if he were thinking, “Wow he could really kick my ass.”
If Arod opts out, who do we have to replace him?
Mike Lowell is a short term option, he’s definitely on the downside of his career. He’s 34 and batted only .250 after the all-star break. He’s very good defensively, however he was subjected to the steriod rumors when he came to the BoSox last year about 15 pounds lighter.
Are there any other 3rd baseman available for next season?
If Arod wants to leave, it’s his choice as dictated by his contract. However, if he doesn’t, he under control of the Yankees for the next couple of seasons. It’s hard to replace someone who averages you a 300 BA-40 HR-120 RBI for the past 3 years, albeit his shaky defense and supposed lack of clutch hitting.
Another hit piece…get over it dude.
Replacing Arod with Mike Lowell would be a travesty.
this is regarding my post in the mussina thread:
some of you must be the most daft people i’ve ever come into contact with.
i’ve said time and again the BOTH the red sox and the yankees have question marks. (you do understand what the word both means, right? evidently not.)
i’ve said that NEITHER team looks like a clear favorite to me at this point. (and, again, we have a working knowledge of the word neither, i hope?)
i suppose it is pretty doomy and gloomy to point out what TORRE AND CASHMAN (two people who i’d classify as pretty big yankee fans) have said about igawa and pavano, isn’t it? i’m sorry, i should have quoted some of the more respected minds on this blog, as i’m sure they no far better than the manager and general manager.
the majority of the people who post here are good-natured baseball fans. but those of you who consider anything aside from 100% certainty that the yankees will win the series this year to be “doom and gloom” or “negativity” or “red sox fanhood” are ****ing idiots.
SJ44,
The savvy fans I referred to are those in the stands who boo Alex. So, no, I’m not a savvy fan.
Someone is flawed if they put down others to make themselves look and feel better (putting down Jeter in Esquire article & Dan Patrick interview).
They’re flawed if they don’t accept responsibility (put the impetus on the fans)
They’re flawed if they crave attention (Alex has admitted he likes the media attention. He should have said he likes complete adulation instead).
They’re flawed if they presume that they’ll receive personal accolades “win 2 mvp’s [in New York]“.
They’re flawed if they say things like “I can’t help that I’m good looking and smart”.
I did not make these things up. I’m just trying to say that many A-rod fans only look at his numbers. Which is fine, but I think his ego gets in the way of a lot of things he and the Yankees are trying to accomplish. It’s like having a billion dollar aircraft with a loose screw. It may fly or it may not.
Pete shares an opinion and sticks his real name and face on it. Then, a bunch of people hiding behind screen names start calling him names, etc.
There’s an expression for this practice and it rhymes with “Shicken Chit.”
Sharing opinions is cool. That’s what comments in blogs are for…but, Cliff is right. If you want to attack Peter from behind a curtain for his having an opinion, that’s just as gutsy as a sucker punch when you do it under an assumed name.
I’d be more impressed if you could cite some examples to show that Peter is wrong. Yet, I don’t see much of that. Why?
this is a great blog with a lot of interesting posters. too often, though, we get caught up in the same thing we complain about with the media. we argue about stuff that doesn’t matter.
a-rod matters a lot. but only on the field. same for jeter and all the other yankees. why we get so worried as fans about media coverage and perceptions is beyond me. they have a job to do. they are just a piece of the puzzle. what happens on the field is real. that’s all.
Is A-Rod getting advice from Boras, or Borat?
If I were him I’d do a reverse Schilling and throw in a few Bosox references….just for fun.
I wonder how many HRs he’d hit in Fenway?? Might just knock that stupid wall down.
Yeah. Blame A Rod because the a small segment of fans are jerks and will boo him no matter what he does. I dont blame him for opting out. Why would he stay?
Peter, you and some of the other guys on the beat pretty clearly decided that a chunk of a radio interview taken out of the larger, very positive context of the interview could be spun into a storm. And all over the net we’re seeing that now. I watched the interview live yesterday and got no impression that he intended to do anything other than have a great season and stay. It seemed like you guys wer in default spin mode.
Pete – stick with your beliefs about ARod – I completely agree with you, and I thank you for printing exactly what you heard, not just what fans want to hear. You are a talented writer and you a doing great work.
(1) ARod WILL get some sort of raise this offseason no matter what happens.It’s not a secret. Brian Cashman presumably understands that, as do the teams that would approach ARod if he was to become a free agent. It’s certainly his right to use some leverage in his negotiations. This is a business and ARod is the one selling his skills and services. Mo, Bernie, etc. all have done the same.
(2) There is nothing wrong with ARod’s commentary. Most people would have answered it that way – if every failure of his is treated as catastrophe, he SHOULD leave NY for his own sake.
(3) How is he SUPPOSED to react when he gives a fair response and then has a horde of reporters down his throat afterwards? Most people, in his position, would try to soften what was said.
(4) As it stands, I don’t think that anyone would say ARod is treated well by fans or newspapers. How the heck is he supposed to feel about playing here for 4-5 more years?!
well, Annie Savoy agrees with you Peter. that should tell you a bit about your position.
Doesn’t take responsibility? Have you heard the guy talk this season? He has said he has “stunk” in the post-season.
How many ways do you want him to say it?
How many guys on this team have accepted responsibility for losing? When last I checked ZERO.
Craves attention? Aside from Randy Johnson, who doesn’t crave attention as a professional athlete? If you think that’s “flawed”, then 99% of the players in the game are “flawed”.
He is not “presuming” he is going to win 2 MVP’s. He said it would be a “great 4 years”, if he won a World Series AND win 2 MVP’s.
I don’t care if you hate the guy. But, if you are going to be an amateur psychologist and decided he is a “flawed” person, at least be accurate when you quote him when you give your “analysis”.
Mike Lowell instead of ARod. Now, I have heard everything. lol
Thank God none of you are the Yankees GM.
It just says a lot more about Annie perspective on things, I think.
Yikes, what an unholy mess.
Dear Steve Lombardi,
1) Pete gets paid to put his name and face out there. Don’t expect me to give him nobility points for that.
2) As I posted at your blog moments ago, if A-Rod “shuts up and played” what would all the beat writers have to write about?
3) Cliff who agreed with hmmmmm, is pretty obviously Cliff Corcoran from Bronx Banter. So there goes your shiken chit device.
4) A-Rod will not get $33 million dollars per to play for anyone next year.
5) If you want me to start including head shots with all my posts I’d be more than happy too.
6) If Alex wants to opt out next year and blame it on the fans who cares. It’s not like in my performance review at work my boss is going to say, “Well Steve, you’ve done good work this year, but you were partially responsible for drumming A-Rod out of town, so we’re gonna have to let you go.” That whole thing is a lot of nonsense.
7) If A-Rod isn’t comfortable in New York, who cares if he leaves. In the grand scheme of things, am I going to lose any sleep because another grown man wanted to change jobs? Not a wink.
Here’s my take on things:
1) First, Peter is doing his job. He has the right to his opinions, as well as the right to publish them. Nobody has to agree with his viewpoint on everything. Whether or not Pete “likes” ARod is his choice. If we are fans of ARod and Pete isn’t, so what? Pete COVERS the Yankees, while we are the fans. Furthermore,I totally agree that for a guy that flip-flops so much himself(ARod), it can be entirely natural for the writers covering him to do the same.
2) Re: Rosenthal – “Shut up and play” is a harsh statemnt just begging to be picked apart in just the same manner as the quotes that come out of Alex’s own mouth. Yes, Alex needs to learn when to speak and when to keep quiet. He can very easily make it clear he has no comment on things when he doesn’t. As for Ken’s comment about Alex not being able to handle “fastball questions” after 14 years of playing – when the hell was Alex signed by a team to field questions from reporters? He was signed to play baseball, which he does damned well. No player has a “responsibility” to be able to handle press questions in any particular manner. Some are good at it, some aren’t. Alex needs to decide when he is not able to handle it, but that doesn’t simply mean “shut up and play”. Does Rosenthal “get it”? Partially.
3.) Re: the infamous opt-out clause and ensuing controversy – I truly believe that Alex does indeed want to stay in NY. Whether or not he does in fact stay remains to be seen and is dependent on factors that Alex basically lined out in his comments. Good for him – can’t fault a guy for being honest. Alex basically said what I have thought about his situation all along – if he has a good season, he’ll stay. If he has a crummy season full of controversy, booing, and pressure, he’s gone. Yes, he’s planning an exit strategy with those comments – but that does not equate to actually MAKING an exit. Good for him – it’s Marketing 101, and I would do the same thing. I think his statements basically boil down to this: I love it here, I want to succeed here – but if people are insistent upon making that difficult for me to do, I’m gone. The anti-ARod people love to talk condescendingly about Alex being needy, thin-skinned, and needing to be coddled. Respect is obviously just as important to Alex as it is to the rest of us that are out in the rat race, something I doubt many would deny about themselves. As for me personally, you can give me all the money in the world at a job, but if you don’t respect me and make me feel comfortable at a job I come to everyday, I’ll say screw you too.
What really bothers me is when people are so utterly convinced that ARod will either leave or stay. Rosenthal says authoratively, “trust me, he WILL bolt”. F$#@ you , Ken – you don’t know that. Just the same, nobody can say he will stay for sure. If anybody wants to take the stance of “shut up and play”, I say “shut up about ARod and let him play” as well – I’m confident his results would be tremendous if that were to happen.
Peter-You continue to embarass yourself on this issue.
Mel:
You are reading my mind. I’m with you and Pete. And Annie.
Hey, Pete: can we all agree to get off this A-Rod Train to Nowhere if we do a poll? Can someone come up with ten questions that capture this whole thing and then we’ll move on? Here’s a suggestion: Yes or No:
1. Is A-Rod a phony?
2. Is A-Rod misunderstood?
3. Is it mostly all the fault of Jeter/Joe/The Media/bad fans?
4. Is it mostly A-Rod’s fault?
5. Is A-Rod entitled to gobs of love AND the rest of his $252 million?
6. Should A-Rod perform regardless of the fan reaction?
7. Are the Yankees better off without him?
8. Will he opt out?
9. If he opts out, will he get more than $16 mil/yr
10. If he doesn’t get a World Series ring is his legacy tarnished?
kerouac,
I agree with you. For me, it’s frustrating to have to see stories that read more like a high school drama than the game of baseball.
Athletes are generally flawed and average people, despite the fact that, as fans, we inherently raise them up on pedestals. Why is it that the media seems to expect ARod to operate on some plane higher up than human nature? Just drop it, stop asking him questions that will necessarily draw “questionable” commentary, and play ball.
*applauds Wolf*
Well said. Everything I wanted to say, but much better and using less keystrokes, lol.
Jeez, guys, lay off PeteAbe. This is his sandbox. There are plenty of other places you can slag on his opinions without doing it here.
Phil Hughes Live Interview with Mike and Maddog. He’s talking right now.
My problem with the situation is that if he truly wants out, why not let the Yankees trade him? I’m sure Cash would love to spin him of for a package heading Brandon Wood or something similar.
SJ44,
I did hear him take responsibility for his stinking up the place. That was nice to hear.
But he’s not taking responsibility for his decision to come or go. “It’s up to the fans.” Then it should be put on the ballot in the next New York City election. “Should Alex Rodriguez stay or go? You may only mark one choice” Come on. It’s your life, Alex.
Egomaniac. I don’t need to be any kind of psychologist to see that. Go back and listen to yesterday’s interview. How many times did he say MVP? At least 5 or 6 times.
And, I don’t hate the guy. I want him to do good. But more than that I want him to be happy and I don’t think he is. I just think he needs a reality check. He’s starting to see what everyone has seen for the past 2 years and it’s not going to be pretty. This was just round one and Alex is going down fighting.
Steve
It’s hard to refute speculation and innuendo with fact and based on what I read, Pete offered me no fact to refute just speculation and innuendo.
Pete
As you suggested, I made a point to read your article and not just the blog this morning. Based on what was reported in the article, the title “A-Rod hints he might opt out…” could just as easily have been “A-Rod hints he might NOT opt out…” My choice of headline would not have “sold” the story as well. If you believe that Alex’s words have a calculated value, I can’t help but wonder the same thing about yours.
Hey Murphydog:
1. Is A-Rod a phony? No.
2. Is A-Rod misunderstood? Yes.
3. Is it mostly all the fault of Jeter/Joe/The Media/bad fans? Yes.
4. Is it mostly A-Rod’s fault? No.
5. Is A-Rod entitled to gobs of love AND the rest of his $252 million? No to the first part, yest to the second part. But the two are not dependent on one another.
6. Should A-Rod perform regardless of the fan reaction? Yes.
7. Are the Yankees better off without him? No.
8. Will he opt out? No idea (but I lean toward no).
9. If he opts out, will he get more than $16 mil/yr? Yes. (but less than the $27 mil/yr he’s getting now)
10. If he doesn’t get a World Series ring is his legacy tarnished? No.
If A-Rod ends up leaving NY, I really hope he takes every single NY sports media guy with him.
dan, you’re right about athletes being inherently flawed, same as the rest of us.
as yankee fans, we are flawed too, in the sense that we think this team needs to have superstars at every position. baseball doesn’t work that way. put yourself in cashman’s shoes. does he model his team after the 1996-2001 yanks or the rotisserie club steinbrenner ordered him to augment from 2002-2006?
cash is back on the right track, getting away from signing aging stars. it’s nice to have won 9 AL Easts in a row but maybe one of these years we have to step back while we’re rebuilding. that year may not be far off.
are we too spoiled to deal with rebuilding?
Man, hell hath no fury like an A-Rod apologist’s scorn.
Just to rehash, since the Delicate Artist has come on board we’ve discovered the following heretofore unrevealed truths:
1. Derek Jeter, a perennial winner, good citizen and universally recognized stand-up guy who (with the exception of that knucklehead Chad Curtis) has never had a problem with a single teammate is actually petty, vindictive, and a bad captain.
2. Joe Torre, who’s spent 40 some odd years in the game without making an enemy, and has won four titles while while keeping a cool hand on the wheel, is actually an unsupportive backstabber who flushes post season games in order to snub players he doesn’t like.
3. Pete Abe, our esteemed host and a man previously believed to be uncommonly reasonable and fair-minded, is actually a “clueless”, “pathetic”, “sc**bag”.
4. Yankee fans, who with a couple of rare exceptions tend not to boo their own, are actually jealous, bigoted idiots, driven to a rage at the notion of a goodlooking Hispanic making good in the world. They’re also too stupid to realize that their cherished favorites (Rivera, Posada and Williams) are also Hispanic!
5. The players who feuded with the Great One in Seattle and Texas, and the Red Sox players who mocked him in Spring Training ‘05, and Ozzie Guillen who mocked him last Spring, are also backstabbers, jealous, bigots, or all of the above, and are part of the conspiracy.
6. Above all else, His High Holiness bears no responsibility whatsoever for the illwill and disdain heaped upon him everywhere he goes.
Long live King Alex! Death to those who don’t bow before his glory!
One phrase keeps “spinning” around and around in my mind:
“Damned if you do. Damned if you don’t.”
So goes all things arod.
Peter, keep up the good work. i was trying to explain myself before, but couldnt find the words, but i guess thats why you are the baseball writer and i’m not.
Between you and Ken, and i’m sure many others who have the access to whats going on here, I’m glad you guys can see through the mess for what its worth, and I appreciate your honesty and take on the situation and the player.
…and to Wolf, just my opinion, but i think people comment on the fact that ARod is leaving for a number of reasons, but maybe most comfortably because of who his agent is, how much money he would be leaving on the table if he didnt, and betraying the other players of the baseball union who are depending on a player like Alex to reset the market so that all salaries are readjusted. if he doesnt opt out and get a new contract, he’ll be leaving a minimum of $70 million guaranteed dollars on the table, and even if he is the richest man in sports, its about the $$.
randyhater,
Boy, you really know how to put things in perspective! How long before someone comes with a clever counter-proclamation?
Cliff: Thanks for playing along. We don’t entirely agree but I hear you and I appreciate you being rational – unlike some others around here. Randyhater: Quite a summation, my brother. You nailed it.
I’m not looking to start anything political, but, besides Lightening-Rod there are only two other people I can think of that inspire this kind of passion: George Bush and Hillary Clinton.(I picked one from each side of the aisle so I’m being fair and impartial).
Mike, i really think arod wants to be here now, and wants to win here, which is why he wont approve a trade.
but if he changes his mind, he’s got the opt out and he doesnt have to agree to be traded anywhere, because he’s free to go wherever he chooses (and i personally think it’d be his last big screw you to the fans for boo’ing the great ARod).
Ok Peter we get it, you don’t like A-rod. I love your blog but this is clearly an issue where your bias shows. I listened to A-rod’s interview yesterday and thought it was the most up front and open he’s been in the past 3 years. All the yankee fans I’ve talked to have agreed that he seems like an actual person in the interview rather then his usual robotic self.
I don’t know why I’m even commenting here its a waste of time. You clearly dislike A-rod and spin everything he says to fit your opinion of him.
“4. Yankee fans, who with a couple of rare exceptions tend not to boo their own”
says the guy named randyhater.
and those rare exceptions include Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter.
Pete
What really bothers me, is, that so many of you guys seem to be happy if Arod opts out of his contract.
However, there are only two people who should be happy if arod opts out:
Boras and Hicks.
If ARod leaves New York, all writers would have to start looking for baseball related stuff to cover. It is maybe to easy to fill the pages with some ARod bashing.
And to all you ARod haters who call yourself Yankee Fans: It is impossible to replace him. The last time I checked, Albert Pujols plays First Base.
Yes I agree with Patrick, I love reading the blog but it gets really annoying to come on here during the day and read the same A-Rod bashing stuff on here. Okay Pete, we get it, you don’t like A-Rod. There is no need to bring the bias onto the blog and your articles, enough is enough.
So A-Rod doesn’t take the media out to dinner like Matsui, that doesn’t give you the right to unfairly criticize him when it is obvious you wouldn’t even be talking about this if it was anyone else on the team. Johnny Damon you glow about him because he is friendly and talks to you guys. I haven’t heard any reports that A-Rod has declined to do interviews, infact just the opposite I think he goes out of his way to make sure the media is allowed to talk to you, yet hes hammered by YOU and other NY Media members for talkin too much.. makes NO sense.
Lets turn the tables a little bit, if A-Rod was like Manny Ramirez and didn’t talk to anyone during the season, never gave a reporter a single quote you guys would be grilling him too, correct? Obviously you would be because he isn’t giving you any stories to write about him. He can’t win with you guys because for some reason you don’t like him. What you are doing is professionally irresponsible and there is really no need for it.
I’d like to point out, regarding the fact that the Yankees are only paying 16M of that salary… that also puts the Yankees in the best position to give him the extension and whatever money the market dictates when it comes time to opt out or threaten to opt out or however it goes down.
No-one, including A-Rod, knows now or will know what he’s going to do until he does it (which will depened on several variables including this year’s performance, the market, the Yankees stance and offers, etc….).
But go on ahead and speculate and rip the guy apart for what you THINK he’s going to do…. and you might as well start yelling at Clemens for not making up his mind either.
[...] Original post by Peter Abraham [...]
Two comments:
1. Peter– I’m a big fan, but there is no chance a 32 year old 3B who is average at best defensively (who might have to switch to 1B eventually) will make 33 million/season. Those days are over. You are dead wrong on this one.
2. You also said that you agree 100% on what Rosenthal wrote– does that you you can guarantee that A-Rod is gone after this year?
The only person who has actually spoken to A-Rod in person on this blog is Pete – - at least so far as I know. Pete’s the only one who has this additional perspective. C’mon. Be fair about this. A person’s own BS meter is a very valuable thing. Numbers cannot even come close to giving you the information you get from spending a little time with someone and their environment.
I just want to say that those who think ARod is replacable are fooling themselves. Does he deserve to be booed for being bad defensively in 1 of his 3 seasons and unclutch in 2 of the 3 post seasons and absolutely perfect in every other conceivable way? Perhaps. Perhaps $25 million demands complete and utter perfection.
But when he has come out and said, to paraphrase:
1) that the booing actually does get to him even though many fans think that he should suck it up and it shouldn’t(implying his 2007 performance will be better the less he is booed)
and
2) that the booing may lead to him leaving at the end of the year (regardless of whether or not this is genuine or a business move, the fact remains that he will leave if he is treated like crap again)
When you consider those 2 things, why in the world would you boo, if you consider yourself a fan of the team, aka someone who wants what is in the Yankees best interests? Booing will make him and vicariously the Yankees worse, and booing may chase him out of town where he is a complete steal at $16 million per year, and there is no one in his league available as a replacement.
Whatever you think of him, if you actually physically boo him, in my opinion you are not a Yankee fan for those reasons.
Wow Pete…if only DJ had come to bat for Alex like Steve just did for you…no, wait.
Apart from the few name callers, how exactly are we bashing you Pete? You (the media) do it to Alex all the time, you parse everything he says. Some disagree with you and take you to task for the the spin you put on things and you get all sensitive. Was is with you?
SlickBomb, I don’t disagree about the 33M, but you’re on crack if you think A-Rod’s so terrible he needs to switch to 1B. He was gold glove caliber at 3B his FIRST TWO YEARS THERE, had one obviously shakey year there when he had his head up his a$$ because he’s a head-case. But at least give the guy this year before sending him off to 1B……..
He was a gold glove SS and people constantly say he’s a better SS than Jeter, suddenly “average” year and he’s off to 1B soon?
Nonsense. He’ll have a great year at 3B this year too, because he’s a 5 tool player and the best in the game.
I just wanted to be the 76th comment on this post. I didn’t even bother reading the other 75.. considering i probably could guess what they are about.
Lets talk about something else.
Anyone watch The Wire on this blog? Here’s a link to cheer you up if you do – if you have watched up to the end of season 2 – .
Quite possibly the greatest Wire scene. ever. In the honor of St. Patty’s day on Saturday…. ENJOY!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URupBZbfbJg
Yankees fans don’t boo their own?
Tino when he replaced Mattingly
Giambi when he replaced Tino (4th and 5th game of the season)
Jeter when got off to that rough start a couple of years ago
Randy Johnson at times the last couple of years
Maybe a Journalist can take the high road and write a good story about the guy. Be one, out of the 20 other NY papers that actually defend the guy instead of slamming him every second. Maybe then, some fans can stop booing possibly the best player my generation has seen.
sorry Jamie, you missed it, #82 I think..
1. . Derek Jeter, a perennial winner, good citizen and universally recognized stand-up guy who (with the exception of that knucklehead Chad Curtis) has never had a problem with a single teammate is actually petty, vindictive, and a bad captain.
Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t Derek voted the most overrated player or something by his fellow players in some lame SI or ESPN survey? I think this was before A-rod came to the Yankees. But it seems to say that there are a LOT of players out there who are resentful/jealous of Jeter, without Arod having anything to do with it. Jeter garners a lot of jealousy and resentment from players and fans alike all by himself purely by being who is, a good citizen, perennial winner etc etc. I know a LOT (not 200 though, haha) of fans from other teams who can’t stand him for all those reasons, irrational as that sounds. I even know one yankee fan who thinks that! Astounding.
2. Joe Torre, who’s spent 40 some odd years in the game without making an enemy, and has won four titles while while keeping a cool hand on the wheel, is actually an unsupportive backstabber who flushes post season games in order to snub players he doesn’t like.
I’ve seen Joe Torre accused of that and worse since 2001… and before Arod came to New York. There are as many fans out there, if not more who would like nothing more than to see Joe Torre gone – and have for a LONG time.
3. Pete Abe, our esteemed host and a man previously believed to be uncommonly reasonable and fair-minded, is actually a “clueless�, “pathetic�, “sc**bag�.
Well some people can’t make their points without getting personal or taking it personally. I agree with you that this is out of line. I still think Peter is reasonable. Besides that, he is very generous with this time and the information he shares on here. This blog is second to none for yankee information. His opinion on Arod doesn’t change that. He holds a different opinion on something than I do, and that’s fine. I can handle that. It doesn’t make him a bad person, I do realize he has a job to do and looks at things as a journalist, where as I tend to take things at face value.
4. Yankee fans, who with a couple of rare exceptions tend not to boo their own, are actually jealous, bigoted idiots, driven to a rage at the notion of a goodlooking Hispanic making good in the world. They’re also too stupid to realize that their cherished favorites (Rivera, Posada and Williams) are also Hispanic!
I’m not even going there, lol. Too loaded and inflammatory. From a person named Randyhater.. .. a guy who is no longer on yankee!! Might be time to let that hatred go, hey?
5. The players who feuded with the Great One in Seattle and Texas, and the Red Sox players who mocked him in Spring Training ‘05, and Ozzie Guillen who mocked him last Spring, are also backstabbers, jealous, bigots, or all of the above, and are part of the conspiracy.
Ozzie Guillen? The guy never met a microphone he didn’t like. He’s hardly the poster child for ethical, decent behavior, lol. Ditto with the Red Sox players.. Curt Schilling, are you kidding me? Lol. I’ll concede the point about Seattle and Texas players. I gather from what Peter says he’s not easy to deal with or *get*. Since when it that a crime though? I’m not friendly with all my co-workers, but we manage to work together just fine – even if I don’t *get* them.
6. Above all else, His High Holiness bears no responsibility whatsoever for the illwill and disdain heaped upon him everywhere he goes.
Again, not going there.. too patronizing and condescending to refute. That’s just opinion, I’ll leave it at that. Please note while not agreeing with you on some points, I’ve tried to be civil.
yikes! who knew a subject as innocuous as alex rodriguez would stir up controv– oh, wait…
i watch the wire. season two is my least favorite of the four (i thought it took to long to build up and the greek/union plotlines weren’t nearly as enthralling as the barksdale investigation). season four was just unfair good. no television show has a right to be that good. it was unbelievable.
Well Kasey I have never agreed with you on anything, do you agree with my selection of the best scene in the shows history?
here’s a funny question:
if A-Rod is worth $33M a year, why is he constantly bashed because he makes $25M a year?
if he opts out and gets more (and he’ll get ripped for that), it means he was underpaid. yet his contract was used as an excuse to rip him for years.
can’t have it both ways.
Whoa, I don’t read for an hour and the whole blog blows up. If Carlos Lee can get 100mil/6yrs and Alfonso “No Position” Soriano can get what he got then ARod will definately get over 27 for as many years as he wants. I guarantee Boras starts the bidding at around 30mil/yr so Pete wasn’t to far off. ARod is a great player and I don’t think Pete is trying to say he isn’t. What he is trying to get across I think is that he puts himself 1st above the team and acts like he hates all the attention but keeps bringing it on. He’s like Rocky Balboa, he never knows when enough is enough. He is one of the best players in baseball and he just doesn’t get how to act. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and the ARod crowd is pretty close to 50/50. Unless he has something important to say he should just shut-up and have a huge year. That will take care of everything.
How many people on this page have written this line? —> “Okay Pete, we get it, you don’t like A-Rod.”
No, you don’t get it. Pete does not fawn over ARod. That does not follow that he does not like ARod. Pete is a reporter. In my opinion, Pete is an excellent reporter.
But like every reporter his take on something has his own flavor, his own understanding of a situation. All news reportage has that to varying extents. When you disagree it is called a bias; when it mirrors your opinion it is called insightful.
I am taken aback, yet not surprised, by the personal character assassination of Pete and of anyone who dares to disagree with some fans’ opinions. The name-calling is really pathetic.
One writer said there is no need for Pete to bring his bias into the blog. Ummmmm, this is his blog. I for one value Pete’s opinion and I don’t always agree. But I still like to hear his opinion. I was absolutely in strong disagreement with him when he said it was time to trade Melky and his value would never be higher. I am still of that opinion. But there was no need to call names or denigrate his reporting skills nor any other personal characteristic. We just had different opinions.
Such is the case on ARod. I understand that some of you like him a lot. That is ok, but to call anyone of a different opinion to be a retard, a moron, stupid, or a Red Sox fan, is just wrong unless you are in a communist society which allows only certain thoughts.
Hey, we can have differing opinions. You know, sometimes when we hear opinions different from ours we learn something. It does not mean we must agree but it provides perspective.
Lastly, a recent writer above in his screed on Pete said “enough is enough.” I am surprised he did not demand his money back on this blog.
One more time, in summary: this blog is Pete’s take on news and events in the Yankee world. Personally I find what Pete offers to be invaluable. If you don’t, well, you have other options. Insulting Pete and others ought not to be one of your options.
The comments on this topic are just fascinating. It brings together the two things that Yankee fans like to complain about most: A-Rod and the media. Some fans, it seems, hate A-Rod slightly more than the media; for others, it’s the media pulling ahead of A-Rod. Me, I could care less. I think A-Rod brings a great of deal of on-field production, but can’t begin to quantify the “clubhouse effect” (if any) of his personality. Ultimately, aren’t there more things to be concerned with? The fact that 3/5 of our rotation has missed starts the last two seasons and the other 1/5 hasn’t thrown a pitch at the MLB level? Or that our bench, how shall I say it, sucks?
“I’d like to point out, regarding the fact that the Yankees are only paying 16M of that salary… that also puts the Yankees in the best position to give him the extension and whatever money the market dictates when it comes time to opt out or threaten to opt out or however it goes down.”
this is an excellent point. the yankees are in a very good position to give a-rod an extension b/c they have a $27M headstart on the other teams b/c of the money from Texas.
I want to see pete’s responses to these, but here goes:
1. Is A-Rod a phony? No.
2. Is A-Rod misunderstood? Yes.
3. Is it mostly all the fault of Jeter/Joe/The Media/bad fans? Yes (but then lot’s of HOFers haven’t been loved universally, see Ted Williams and Mike Schmidt)
4. Is it mostly A-Rod’s fault? No.
5. Is A-Rod entitled to gobs of love AND the rest of his $252 million? No and yes. But like the mighty Cliff said, the two aren’t related.
6. Should A-Rod perform regardless of the fan reaction? Yes.
7. Are the Yankees better off without him? No (and things don’t look good for their lefty heavy lineup without him).
8. Will he opt out? No (he won’t get the money elsewhere)
9. If he opts out, will he get more than $16 mil/yr? Yes (but not north of 20mil)
10. If he doesn’t get a World Series ring is his legacy tarnished? No.
Pete doesn’t like ARod, he has said so. He has also given good reasons for disliking ARod. Hell, I am one of the biggest ARod boosters on this site, and I don’t like him.
I think that’s one of the false premises at work in the ARod debate, that you either love him or hate him. I think he’s a pain in the ass, but I will gladly take his passive-aggressive interviews and strange comments in exchange for his elite-level production. It’s really a small price to pay.
It would be one thing if we had evidence that ARod’s personality somehow caused his teammates to play worse, but no one’s even suggested that.
Instead, he can have all the personal dramas he wants, but in the end he’s still going to give us over .900 OPS and well over 100 RBI while playing a fielder’s position.
I could have sworn that Yankee fans started booing Jeter a couple of years ago when he went a month batting .130 or so. Does anyone else remember that?
maybe I’m just saturated in the present, but who cares what he does come October? I’m more worried about what he does come April. And June.
as a Yankee fan, I’m concentrating on the guys getting #27.
after that, I’ll worry about it. Then.
Peter – thanks for stirring the pot on this one.
a question I have for you is: has anyone – blog post, or otherwise, ever said/wrote anything about you that made you question what you do for a living?
whether I agree with you or not, just thanks for giving so many people something to be so passionate about.
gotta love this game.
sammy, yup. and one of the YES broadcasters (I think Kaat or Singleton) said “that’s kinda like booing Santa Claus, isn’t it?”
I want to see pete’s responses to these, but here goes:
1. Is A-Rod a phony? Yes.
2. Is A-Rod misunderstood? Yes.
3. Is it mostly all the fault of Jeter/Joe/The Media/bad fans? No.
4. Is it mostly A-Rod’s fault? Yes, he talks too much.
5. Is A-Rod entitled to gobs of love AND the rest of his $252 million? Sure, why not? every man should make as much money as he can for himself and his family.
6. Should A-Rod perform regardless of the fan reaction? Yes.
7. Are the Yankees better off without him? right now, no. but for the future, i dont think anyone can really say.
8. Will he opt out? Absolutely.
9. If he opts out, will he get more than $16 mil/yr? Yes, and prob closer to $25/year than anyone realizes.
10. If he doesn’t get a World Series ring is his legacy tarnished? Truth be told, yes, ask Dan Marino.
i meant to get rid of the top “see pete’s response” line….
1. Is A-Rod a phony? Yes.
2. Is A-Rod misunderstood? Yes.
3. Is it mostly all the fault of Jeter/Joe/The Media/bad fans? No/No/Yes/Yes. Jeter has not thrown ARod under the bus, so it’s hard to blame him for anything. Joe’s comments to SI were out of line, and the infamous 8-hole incident was inexplicable, but much of the unpleasentness surrounding ARod is due to the tabloids’ love of sticking it to him, and many fans’ belief that he is somehow a bad player (and that the tabloids are right). I’d certainly prefer if, whenever ARod did or something stupid, Yankee fans adopted the same eye-rolling attitude attributed to Sox fans and Manny Ramirez.
4. Is it mostly A-Rod’s fault? No, because it’s his job to hit and field, not say the right things. His baseball ability more than compensates for his inane statements.
5. Is A-Rod entitled to gobs of love AND the rest of his $252 million? Well he’s entitled to whatever his contract says; last time I checked Cot’s Baseball Contracts, it includes money but not love.
He should be entitled to some love for the way he plays. Not for the way he acts.
6. Should A-Rod perform regardless of the fan reaction? Yes, but for a sensitive person, that’s easier said than done. That’s his problem to deal with though.
7. Are the Yankees better off without him? Obviously not.
8. Will he opt out? Yes, because some team will make him an offer he can’t refuse, and he will feel no compunction about leaving New York.
9. If he opts out, will he get more than $16 mil/yr? Yes. He will also get at least six years.
10. If he doesn’t get a World Series ring is his legacy tarnished? No. He will have racked up too many achievements for that to matter.
[...] Original post by Peter Abraham [...]
jeez, i can’t take all of this
whatever happened to Bubba Crosby jokes and discussing Pete’s driving playlists?
Ah I can’t wait to yell at some monkey suit wearing asshole for booing Underdog when he only goes 1-4 with an RBI and a BB.
Angel,
I’m sure there are plenty of players around the league (and their fans) who are jealous and resentful of Jeter’s success, but the notion that he’s vindictive and a bad captain started when A-rod got here and will end when he leaves.
Likewise, plenty of Yankee fans (myself included) question Joe’s in-game managing, but who besides A-Rod (and Raul Mondesi) thinks he’s unsupportive or a backstabber?
A-Rod makes enemies everywhere he goes and the idea that everyone in Seattle, Texas and here is wrong and he’s right seems unlikely to me.
Bottom line, despite the gaudy numbers, the guys never been a difference maker on a winning club, and the teams that have dumped him, notwithstanding what’s being predicted here, actually improved dramatically after he left.
Anyway, keep up the good work. It’s nice knowing some here still realize it’s all in good fun.
Randyhater,
You are wrong again. Very wrong indeed. You should have learned from your mistakes!
1. Joe Torre’s in-game management is horrible.(bullpen, bullpen, bullpen…)
2. A-Rod is definitely a difference maker.
3. The teams that have dumbed him actually didn’t really improved.
I mean they didn’t improve to become a better team. Just look at how the Rangers and Mariners are doing now. Unless you are telling me that not making the playoffs is an improvement.
I don’t buy any of it.
Thank you Peter for exposing underdog’s agenda. There’s no question underdog needs an alibi when he decides to leave NY (via waive of NTC or by opting out). Underdog wants to run away and pin the blame on fans and media rather than assume a shred of accountability.
I know you’re a Yankee fan Peter and you blog with integrity. You’re not in this for the popularity or the profit or the attention. You love the team and it shows. This article was written by a writer just as bright and astute as ever. The fans who can’t grasp your continued understanding of this team are in denial about Arod’s temporary status here. They won’t change their tone until he’s gone so don’t expect civility. But you nailed it Peter. Underdog is staging his own exit.
Another thing..fan reaction should not determine Underdog’s decision to depart because his performance is a precursor to fan reaction. That’s just the way it is here in NY. Fans are “tough” because we want to win, yet Underdog seems to melt in the most crucial situations. Fans didn’t boo him for winning an MVP…they booed him for choking in the playoffs when it counts. I know…it’s all our fault he failed to collect a single RBI in the last 12 playoff games, spanning 3 years of postseason baseball.
Blame us. Blame the media. It’s all a big conspiracy against the little innocent baseball hero named Alex Rodriguez.
PS
I’m dying to know the name of the player who commented on Arod’s opt out clause as if it were no sweat. LOL. Love my Yankees.
The fact that a complete and total retard like wangkee agrees with you, only proves how far from reality you really are PETE!.
This sh!t is really getting f’cking tiring. It’s bad enough I gotta deal with the retards like the wanker, but for a so-called smart “yankee” guy like yourself to fall for this bullsh!t is simply too much.
Obviously this underdog nonsense has an agenda. So at least now I know how full of sh!t you really are.
Here’s the “Underdog supporter” perspective:
http://www.nomaas.org/
Peter, pay no attention to David, he forgot to take his rabies shot.