A lot of A-Rod and a little baseball
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- February
- 12
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We just got done speaking to Joe Girardi and I’ll post the audio in a bit. There were 29 minutes of A-Rod questions. In summation: It be what it be and they’ll do their best to deal with it. Joe thinks he will still have a good season.
Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager.
As to baseball …
Jorge Posada is doing well but won’t catch games until mid-March. He’ll DH until then. The Yankees hope he can catch 100-110 games and he might get some extra time in April depending on his shoulder.
There is less concern for Mariano Rivera. He’ll need only 8-10 innings in the spring to get ready.
With spring training a little longer this year and given what happened with all the injuries last year, they’re going to cut back on all the running they did last season.
They expect either Melky Cabrera or Brett Gardner to play CF. “But a lot can change in Yankeeland,” Girardi said. Johnny Damon returning to center is Plan C at this point.
If the season started today, Xavier Nady is probably in right. But Nick Swisher will get a shot. “We have seven weeks to decide that,” Girardi said.
Hideki Matsui had his knees checked out today and they are fine.
Girardi was very candid in his session, even agreeing that he would not be the manager in 2010 unless the Yankees returned to the playoffs. “I don’t think about that, but you’re probably right,” he said.
UPDATE, 5:20 p.m.: Here is the Girardi audio from this afternoon. These are all the A-Rod questions.
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on Thursday, February 12th, 2009 at 4:45 pm by Peter Abraham.
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Sam Borden
Im getting out of the Northeast for a while, all this baseball talk is giving me spring fever. Just booked a 4 day trip down to Tampa.
Planning on meeting up with A-Rod and the boys at the Doll House.
Cash was just on with Mike and he said that, after speaking with Alex, he believes that Alex feels good about coming clean. Regardless of his evasiveness in details (which I don’t care about), this is vital. If Alex feels good, then it doesn’t matter what the mediots have to say.
Secondly, and almost as important, is the fact (and I believe Brian – he sounded genuine) that Brian has heard from many players and he believes they all sincerely want to stand by and support Alex.
Alex made a mistake that he is paying grievously for. However, he’s not in this alone and that fact should fortify him for the tough road ahead.
I’m NOT happy that Nady will have to have his job taken away from him. That means the Yankees think he is better than Swisher and if Swish doesn’t take the job away, then he is reduced to a bench player. Just terrific.
Tampa’s just lovely this time of year
100-110…That sounds about right. That gives Molina 52-62 games behind the plate.
19 of those games should be against the Rays.
I wish Swisher was the #1 and Nady #2, but it looks like Swisher will have to win RF.
All in all, good to see some baseball talk.
Anything regarding the work done with Cano or Gardner regarding hitting? What they are trying to teach the two. I would hope something along the lines of patience and selective hitting. Gardner should put the ball on the ground more also.
and, get this….how long did it take for Giambi and Pettitte to apologize the the manager? The first day they got into camp? Before? A day later?
Phil Hughes read:
http://www.nydailynews.com/blo.....ughes.html
“Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager.”
Hes obviously saving the apology for when he sees him in person. Give the guy a break Pete.
“Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager. ”
Why does he owe Girardi specifically an apology? He owes the entire Yankee organization an apology.
I think A-Rod should just apologize to the team for the overall distraction… I don’t feel it’s necessary to say sorry to the manager, he hurt himself with all of this a hell of a lot more than he hurt Joe G.
Imagine they don’t make the play-offs and the “Next Great Joe” is ousted?
Al:
They have talked every day, Girardi said. Andy Pettitte apologized to them right away last year. Joe said it with a little grimace, like he couldn’t believe it.
Girardi has been one of Alex’s greatest supporters, especially the last few days. Meanwhile his job is on the line and this will be a great distraction that falls in his lap to handle. You would think normal human decency would be to say to the guy something like “Hey, I’m sorry I caused you all this trouble.”
Get this: it’s a anti-ARod addendums to otherwise good posts that get the people so mad at ya, Pete.
I find it funny that Pete Rose is talking trash about A-Rod. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black.
In other news, Roy Oswalt has jettisoned himself ahead of Curt Schilling as #1 guy who should shut his mouth.
This guy is complaining about steroids, in particular 7 at-bats with A-Rod, that his ERA and, thus, numbers were compromised. He said he was cheated out of money.
You are making almost $20M a year!
Yea, it may be shameful, but whatever happened to player loyalty.
Speak out against the use of steroids, not one particular player and your disgust for him due to the fact he went 3 for 7 against you with a homerun.
Pull out some 90’s Maddux tapes…you want to talk about having a raw deal. Guy pitched in the heart of the Steroid Era and posted numbers that rival pitching’s greats.
Oh get this Jeter won’t talk to anyone till everyone is there.
He should have apologized to Girardi in one of those phone conversations.
Joe has taken more bullets for Alex than Joe Torre ever did.
Man, when will he ever learn?
So frustrating. He’s tone deaf to things he simply can’t be tone deaf about right now.
Pete and I have sparred in a friendly way about Alex. We have some differing viewpoints on him. No worries, it what makes the world go’round.
That said, he is 100% right on this one.
That’s a bad play by Alex. Hopefully, he does it before he gets there next week.
Its the right thing to do.
“Al:
They have talked every day, Girardi said. Andy Pettitte apologized to them right away last year. Joe said it with a little grimace, like he couldn’t believe it.”
You’re right Pete. I guess A-Rod has a lot of people to answer to and Girardi might be lower on that list.
Moose said it best, he isn’t upset that some hitters likely used roids against him, since he probably had guys on his team doing it.
Someone tell Oswalt to take a long walk off a short pier.
Pete,
Did Joe seem more open to the media then last year?
Also, I think the Yankees need to install the major league philosophy to Gardner, every time he hits the ball in the air he owes Joe 10 pushups. Just like Willie Mays hays.
SJ- Call him up and tell him to apologize to his manager!
I really hope sometime during the first month of the season, somebody breaks a story about A-Rod addressing the entire team in person at a team meeting to apologize for any past, present, or future distraction his mistakes and stupidity have caused. He takes full and total responsibility for the media circus and there are no hard feelings if guys want to say “no comment” or “i’d rather not talk about it”.
I think there is way too much emphasis put on these guys publicly coming out to support A-Rod. Who cares!?
You know what support is: Take the guy out to dinner after a rough game of booing and such or just do something to take his mind off of it. Be a real friend. If things like that aren’t getting done, the players can say they are behind Alex ’til blue in the face.
“Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager. ”
Why would A-rod apologize to Torre?
the whole key for the yankees is how well they contain the problems with arod.
yankee management and girardi, once they openly talk about the issue and answer the questions, need to discipline themselves to stay focused on getting the whole team ready. assume arod will be there at third base and get down to baseball.
there is something unfair on the surface that the yankees have to go through this ,but other teams who all have players on the list don’t. you don’t see a lot of smiles coming out of early yankee workouts. down the road at early workouts in ft meyers all you see is smiles from red sox players and management.
instead of having a pity party, the yankees should decide as a team to get pissed off at the double standard and take it out on the league on the field. giradi’s job is setting an aggressive positive attitude.
it was understandable that cashman was disappointed today , but very quickly he has to snap out of it and kick into a more positive gear .the team needs his leadership.
I wonder how Oswalt feels about Clemens and Pettitte?
Seems he isn’t running his mouth about two guys who got caught using PED’s, were using in Houston, and helped them get to the World Series.
Another guy who should just keep his mouth shut.
“I can’t forgive you for things you haven’t done yet”
–Elvis Costello
In 1971 Joe Torre batted .363, in 1972 Joe Torre batted .289…let’s all call for an investigation
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/T/Ptorrj101.htm
And here we go again. For what exactly would a-rod apologize? “Man, im so sorry for being the most productive/consistant player on the team. I feel for u man that u had to manage a scrub like me. All the other managers thank they’re lucky stars they arent u”
Just when i thought we were done w the a-rod bashing
Or Tejada?
I wonder if Oswalt will sit Tejada down and give him a stern explanation of his view on PED’s.
Play the game, collect your check and let other teams and their players take care of themselves.
I think everyone agrees that ARod is a doofus.
Maybe ARod is waiting for Valentine’s Day and is going to give Girardi a fruit basket.
Randy,
I think one thing that will help is the WBC. Arod will be gone until March 24 once he leaves for the WBC.
That will make the camp more “normal”.
They will have a freak show day when he reports next week.
After that, I think it will be business as usual pretty quickly.
Too many guys on the team want to win this year. That takes precedence over Arod.
Once his reporting day gets over with, I think the guys will make sure it doesn’t become a distraction.
Laura,
If you were a manager of a major division in a big company, and one of your key guys messed up royally. The right thing to do would be for that person to apologize to you. It’s common decency and it helps the team or unit continue to work towards a common goal.
I guarentee u girardi does more steroids than a-rod.
AROD fan-
you apologize for the distractions. you apologize because Girardi now has a press conference filled with questions about A-Rod and steroids. you apologize for lying to the team about your steroid use.
But, basically, you apologize because he is your manager/coach of the team that pays you and deserves an apology for the garbage you brought to the field.
Girardi was bad enough with reporting BASEBALL info to the media. Now he has to deal with rumor, innuendo, and guys feelings?
Was Pettite using steroids in Houston?
That’s not Arod bashing. That’s common courtesy.
Really, Pete isn’t bashing him. He’s stating something that even someone like me, a friend of guy, shakes his head and says, “man, when is the light going to go on”?
He is supposed be at a fundraiser tomorrow night I will be at. I hope he still plans on coming and I hope he does it sans entourage.
If he does, there will be people there that really care about him, want nothing from him, and will give him good advice.
Will he listen? No idea.
Has hero worship caused some of you people to lose your humanity? My God.
Girardi is a nice man with a young family whose job is on the line. He has done nothing except support Alex. Now this falls into his lap and he has to deal with it more than anybody else. You would think Alex could say, “Hey, I’m sorry about this.” That would seem like the least you would do.
But, I guess not. I’m “bashing” him. I just don’t get, I really don’t.
A-rod fan,
Why all the anger? Just because we’re not ‘a-rod fans’ doesn’t mean we’re wrong. Or that we don’t want him to succeed.
Nobody’s even bashing him. If you’re going to be hyper-sensitive about stuff that’s happening to Alex as a direct result of his very own actions, then you shouldn’t even go online. This place is probably mellow compared to the rest of the web.
Arod fan,
I don’t think you want to put your hard earned money on that on bet.
As others have said, its common courtesy.
The manager of the team just had to answer non-baseball questions about you for 29 minutes.
That’s called a “distraction”. For that, he deserves an apology. The sooner, the better.
So why doesnt s. Roberts apologize to girardi and yankee fans for the media circus.
sj-
good point about the WBC being a creating a good break from 24/7 arod.
the extreme testing of the WBC ( i’m assuming it’s olympic standards) will also prove that arod is playing the game naturally. that can’t hurt.
Does anybody believe that certain guy fastracked to stardom lack certain socialization skills/experiences that prepare you for life.
Arod fan,
Because (cover your eyes, Pete), the media think they’re the moral compass of the free world.
And I thought doctors had a god-complex!
“If you were a manager of a major division in a big company, and one of your key guys messed up royally. The right thing to do would be for that person to apologize to you. It’s common decency and it helps the team or unit continue to work towards a common goal.”
Maybe he wanted to do it face to face. We don’t know. I just get so tired of people looking for something to slam A-Rod about. It is amazing how large the target is this guy has on his back.
Any Girardi audio, Pete? And how did Feinsand score a great spot? Did he bring Girardi some crunch granola?
“And I thought doctors had a god-complex!”
that was before they found out how much bankers were making
Pete, were you always a Girardi supporter? Weren’t you one of the lead attackers last year? Why all the support all of a sudden?
As for Oswalt, it kills me how these players dont know when to just shut up. Roy loses all credibility attacking a-rod and ignoring pettitte, clemens, tejada….. All guys who played on his team.
Laura,
That may be true. But if I was talking to Girardi everyday, planning how we’re going to attack this, I’d end every conversation with, “Joe, sorry about all this”. I’d say it until Joe said, “Alex, no need to say anthing”
will the wbc actually help arod though? i think the last thing arod needs is constant media attention, he’ll just start talking and cause a ton of problems every time he gives an interview. (unless of course sj can talk some sense into him!)
maybe yankee camp is the best place for him. as juicy as this story is (no pun intended), the yankees have a ton of starts and three new high-priced free agents. to me, it’s a better place to disappear and just play baseball.
Alex has made Joe’s job harder. Unlike Alex, Joe can get fired. Alex should be puckering up big time.
2 things:
1. What Alex did in Texas(?)is disappointing and he will pay the price for that.
2. The effect this has on the team’s start to spring training, with all that is riding on this season, is what should anger most people. It’s pissin me off royally.
I’m not sure of how I feel about him playing in the WBC. I’m sure the Dominican people want him to play and it would be good I guess for their country. On the other hand he’s not getting paid tens of millions of dollars by the DR so he should sit his stupid butt in Tampa and prove to the team that he’s 100% committed to them.
And he should invite every writer under the sun to his house and throw an extravagant party where he sits on a big throne wearing a dunce cap and answers every question until the writers are bored of him.
That should be his mission.Become so accessible that the writers are actually bored.
Why should the manager get so obsessed with an apology (so publicly)? Instead, managing the crisis with steady hand and try not add more fuels to the fire (you can always kick A-rod behind the closing door).
Arod fan,
Because she’s not employed by the Yankees and Joe Girardi isn’t her manager.
It ain’t that tough to figure out.
Randy,
The WBC has Olympic style drug testing. That also had it in 2006. That’s a plus when it comes to rebuilding your image.
Tex’s:
There is no point in me answering questions like that. People will believe what they want to believe.
I try to call it as I see it. The guy has said he wants to change the way he did business with the media last year and has promised to be more candid. I hope that is what happens. That’s all I can really say.
A-Rod is always a distraction for one thing or another. Maybe he feels he doesnt need to apologize since this happened 6 years ago!!!
He needs to apologize to the entire team and staff for dragging them into the mess with him.
Maybe he only want to do it once over there when everyone is here.
Lighten up a little bit people!
“That may be true. But if I was talking to Girardi everyday, planning how we’re going to attack this, I’d end every conversation with, “Joe, sorry about all this”. I’d say it until Joe said, “Alex, no need to say anthing”
I’ll give you that. I can just speak from my own experience. Whenever I screw up (which is more often than I care to mention), I go right into my bosses office, look her in the face and say “I’m sorry. It was my fault. Won’t happen again”. That way, she can see that I’m truly sorry. That’s just how I roll. Maybe Alex rolls that way too.
“hero worship” is a huge part of baseball. i am not interested in having that interrupted with some call for my hero to apologize to the manager.
Tex’s:
There is no point in me answering questions like that. People will believe what they want to believe.
I try to call it as I see it. The guy has said he wants to change the way he did business with the media last year and has promised to be more candid. I hope that is what happens. That’s all I can really say.
—
I appreciate your direct response. I just wanted to make the point that people have their opinions. Some of us still believe a-rod is worth it, and dont feel the need to defend why.
I think that, in an effort to sweep all this under the rug, that people are really underestimating how huge a story this is. They underestimate how much grief Alex has caused. They’re underestimating how much this affects the organization.
So, we can say “let’s move on and stop talking about it”, but it’s really only just begun.
To read these comments some days, it seems as if everyone BUT Alex is in the wrong. Pete, Oswalt, Selena Roberts, Selig, Schilling, Girardi and so on.
Pete’s right…there’s a fair amount of hero-worship going on for an admitted steroid cheat. Did all of you who are bashing everyone else stand up to defend Bonds when the media piled on him?
Arod owes an apology to the organization, and the fans. He should only apologize to Girardi for creating a media circus, or if he lied to Joe directly to his face.
A-rod shoild just mail out 350 million “I’m sorry cards” (one for very American) and buy up primetime T.V. air space so he can say I am sorry for what I did to every American.
I’ve been busy and just got around to reading the comments today…some random thoughts:
A while back I argued that using HGH did nothing for athletes and that pounding Pettitte over the issue was silly. Glad to see Keith Law backing up my argument today and a number of people on this blog now seeming to agree. At the time though, my position was pretty unpopular. (Is there an icon for patting oneself on the back?)
I still think the anger at Roberts is misdirected. She didn’t violate the court order, although whoever gave it to her may have. She just did what reporters do, and that does not make her a bad person.
The issue on reporting steroids usage is impossibly tough to handle in a blog comment. So many gray areas. The “list” was supposed to be confidential, but the public and the press didn’t agree to that, MLB and the player’s union did. The court had required the parties in the case not to disclose it (I think). But the press wasn’t a party and not subject to the order, so was the act of reporting it wrong?
I’m sure it seems wrong to ARod, and whoever leaked it may turn out to have done wrong in the opinion of the court. But players who use illegal steroids break the law and the rules of baseball. So do they really have the right to complain if contrary to their expectations the information gets out? I don’t think the answer is so clear.
And if they do have at least some right to complain, towards whom is it properly directed? The public which has an insatiable desire to know, the press which reports it, the person who leaked it, the union which didn’t destroy the info when they could have or the government which seized it when perhaps it didn’t have the right to?
Don’t get me wrong, I think the whole steroids issue is way overblown. I’m pro-ARod all the way. But I thought that about whole Bonds controversy too (I’m pro-Bonds, too), and as far as Bonds is concerned that has always been a minority position around here.
Laura,
Oh, no. The face-to-face apology is a requirement on top of all that!
I really hope that, when Alex shows up to camp, he walks straight to Girardi and they talk behind closed doors. If he’s approached he needs to politely defer until after he talks to Girardi. He’s the boss and I hope that Alex shows him that respect of checking in with him on that first day.
Hate to break it to you Arod fan, but “hero worship” should be reserved for your parents.
These are ballplayers. They aren’t “heroes”. Don’t get sucked into the mass media nonsense.
He screwed up, he owes his manager, teammates, ownership, and everybody associated with the Yankees an apology.
Some, he has to do in a more personal manner than others.
Either way, spin it any way you like, if you are talking to the manager everyday, which is he, it doesn’t take much to say, “I’m sorry”.
“Did all of you who are bashing everyone else stand up to defend Bonds when the media piled on him?”
Bonds isn’t a Yankee so I could give a rat’s behind about him. From all reports, he’s a first class jerk, who is liked by almost no one. So to answer your question, no – I am not a Bonds defender.
Pete’s right…there’s a fair amount of hero-worship going on for an admitted steroid cheat. Did all of you who are bashing everyone else stand up to defend Bonds when the media piled on him?
——————-
Yes. IMO the only reason Barry didn’t play baseball last year was because of collusion against him. Even at this late stage of his career he could still be one of the better DHs in baseball. Does that make what I say about A-Rod more or less reasonable?
At the same time though Barry denied he did anything, which was a bad route for him to take. IMO Bud should just say “amnesty for everybody who played in the ’steroids era’ and we aren’t going to look for anymore names. Moving forward we are going to have a harsh punishment for users and extensive testing.”
He should’ve apologized by now over the phone. AND then he should apologize AGAIN in person. Nothing over the top but something to the effect of, “Again, I’m really sorry. I didn’t want everyone including you caught up in all this.” It’s not rocket science, and it should be common sense for everyone here. If someone in your office pulled that, you and your co-workers would be talking amongst yourselves saying, “Wow, that guy’s a tool.”
“From all reports, he’s a first class jerk, who is liked by almost no one.”
Who was that again?
I don’t think Peter was bashing him or being snarky with regards to this. I thought Alex should have apologized to Girardi. At least say sorry for being a reason behind the bigger and crazier circus that surrounds the Yankees right now.
I dunno, Alex is a strange dude. But he is our strange dude.
The issue of whether or not HGH or steroids work is a seperate issue.
Under the present rules, if a player uses a banned substance and gets caught, he has problems. That’s the way it is. Fair or not, them’s the rules that are currently in place for these guys.
Andy screwed up just like Alex screwed up. No spin in the world changes that.
That’s the unfortunate culture we are in when the powers that be conduct themselves the way they have on this entire subject.
That said, going forward, like Andy did, Alex is going to have to take responsibility and change his ways.
If he doesn’t, moreso than Andy because Andy is well liked by the media, he will get KILLED by the media.
By extension, if he gets killed, the Yankees suffer because his performance will suffer and that hurts the team.
““From all reports, he’s a first class jerk, who is liked by almost no one.”
Who was that again?
”
Good one, m. Actually, I don’t think that the people who dislike A-Rod think he’s a first class jerk. From the stories I’ve read over these last few days, people say that he’s not a bad guy. He’s just needy and awkward. I’ve never heard anyone say anything good about Bonds. I’ve seen Bonds’ press conference as well and he is beyond arrogant.
Well SJ, I’m sorry that you have not experienced the pleasure of hero worship in all of your years as a baseball fan. It is 500 million times more fun than pondering about a-rod’s human limitations.
Didn’t Arod apologize to his teammates and The Yankee organization in his Gammons interview?
SJ44,
It takes away all the fun to agree with you but I agree with you.
“But, I guess not. I’m “bashing” him. I just don’t get, I really don’t.”
Pete there is this story about the boy who cried Wolf, It’s an interesting read.
A-rod needs a life coach. His last one left him for Lenny Kravitz (ew).
JoeyA
February 12th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
Does anybody believe that certain guy fastracked to stardom lack certain socialization skills/experiences that prepare you for life.
————————————————————
I made an earlier comment about yet another “snippy remark” that was unnecesary, but, I’m also not saying that Rodriguez shouldn’t have apologized to Girardi (he certainly should have), but, I’ve also dealt with a lot of ego-driven people that screwed up.
Generally, no matter what they’ve done and who knows it, they have severe issues with making apologies, and, especially to more than one person at a time. It takes a while for some of these guys to actually realize that a public apology or group apology isn’t the same as a personal one-on-one. He will eventually (by the time he reports to camp) make a private apology to Girardi.
You’re talking about someone who has basically been protected all of his life, and social skills are usually a last thought. Apologizing is the most difficult thing to do for some people to do. That’s why some look so uncomfortable and awkward when they do it. Everybody always remarks about him being socially awkward, then complain. That’s a learned skill.
Will he ever learn? Who knows? Mantle finally learned at age 65 in the last two months of his life.
Wave Your Hat: “SJ44, It takes away all the fun to agree with you but I agree with you.”
OMG, Wave and SJ44 finally agree on something. Now that’s a story that should make the papers!
SJ
Smack some sense into him tomorrow.
“Will he ever learn? Who knows? Mantle finally learned at age 65 in the last two months of his life.”
Mickey was lovable in spite of everything he did. ARod doesn’t seem to have that gift.
Actually Arod fan, I derive great pleasure by watching baseball.
I don’t however live on Fantasy Island.
When my favorite team has to deal with this stuff again, and its coming from a friend of mine, I’m not throwing him platitudes.
I think its reprehensible that confidential information came into the possession of a reporter to out him. Its wrong, its a crime, and I hope the person who did it gets caught and goes to jail.
That said, expecting basic human courtesy in this situation isn’t asking for the world. That’s it. Plain and simple.
He has told me that next to Lou Piniella, Joe Girardi is the best manager he has ever played for. He likes him personally as well as professionally.
That being the case, its inconcievable to me why he has yet to say, “I’m sorry” to the guy.
If it hurts your feelings some of us feel that way, I suggest you toughen up.
2 trivia questions:
1. Who was Lenny Kravitz’s mom?
2. What was the name of the first professional baseball team?
Who’s to say he is not going to get on his and knees and beg forgiveness, when he gets to Tampa.
Do it one time, maybe he’s learning from Jeter after all.
This is another non-issue.
“That being the case, its inconcievable to me why he has yet to say, “I’m sorry” to the guy.”
Maybe ARod’s just waiting to say it face to face.
““From all reports, he’s a first class jerk, who is liked by almost no one.”
Just when I start going there, I hear Michael Kay say he’s the only player who came to his Mom’s funeral or a man on the radio say he was kind to his family in a restaurant and then I think there is a good person in there.
I believe that Girardi would prefer a face to face apology next week before the position players report for physicals opposed to a hollow text message or cellphone call.
In all likelihood, A-Rod will have a one time session with the media after his first workout and take no further questions related to his problems for the rest of the spring. Yankee talk only thereafter.
He will also have a public apology like Andy Pettitte did last year aired live by (who else ?) ESPN.
“1. Who was Lenny Kravitz’s mom?”
Roxie Roker from the Jeffersons.
Why not do both? He has apologized by phone to plenty of people the past 3 days. Some of the people he has apologized to, unlike Girardi, he doesn’t speak to daily.
Its just something that rings hollow to me. Humility is something he really needs to have right now, IMO.
Beyond all this stuff, Alex needs to change the way he carries himself from hereon out. Take the steroids out of it for a second.
Do you really think the Yankees want their season engulfed with, “Arod on steroids”, “Arod with Madonna”, “Arod this and Arod that”.
Really folks, the team has had it with him. You get to a point where even the teammates on the team that like him, get Arod fatigue.
He has to start showing some signs of change.
If not, he’s a trainwreck who will eventually crash.
He crashes, he not only hurts himself, he hurts the team.
Laura,
Haha. I don’t know what her name was, but I think that the husband’s name was “Tom”. That was many, many years ago for me.
The answer to the other one is slightly newsworthy. A certain baseball card got auctioned off recently.
Remember all the hoopla when the Mets were after Alex and that stuff came out about Alex needing his own press tent? Now’s the time for such a tent. And it should be across the street in the parking field.
Alex should have been puckering up for 3 days now. He made Joe’s job harder. Alex can’t get fired, Joe can.
Alex did what he did and that’s disappointing. He’s got to live with that. He did his little interview and that was good. But that was for his sake.
Now it’s time to think about the Yankees. So far I don’t see him doing the right thing.
“They underestimate how much grief Alex has caused. They’re underestimating how much this affects the organization.
So, we can say “let’s move on and stop talking about it”, but it’s really only just begun.”
so what’s worse , people having their homes foreclosed on and having their families out on the street?
or alex having to admit using steroids?
tragedy is a relative concept.
once you have done everything you can do with a problem, the ability to go into healthy denial isn’t such a bad thing. i call it a healthy bad attitude.
i’ll say it again that once everything is addressed head on, the best thing to do is say blank it and move on.
baseball is supposed to be fun. that’s why they call it a game instead of work. the sooner the yankees start having fun the better.
Roxie Roker and The Cincinatti Red Legs or Stocking or whatever they were called.
It seemed like ARod apologized to America on Monday. I suspect when he sees Girardi, after he’s done with whatever he needs to do before he comes in, he’ll thank him.
He is a good guy who has lost his way in some areas, IMO. He too often surrounds himself with people who don’t have his best interests at heart, IMO.
He is a follower and sometimes he follows the wrong people.
There is a VERY good person in there. There really is.
I’ve seen him to some amazingly nice things for people. Things that don’t involve “good PR”. Things he did simply because he wanted to do them.
That’s the kind of guy I’d like to see come out of this thing.
Those of us who like him are hoping this finally is his wake up call.
If it is, its the best thing that could happen to him.
If its not? Trainwreck.
None of us want to see a trainwreck.
“Haha. I don’t know what her name was, but I think that the husband’s name was “Tom”. That was many, many years ago for me.”
She played Helen Willis. Her husband was named Tom. George always gave them a hard time because they were a mixed couple.
I will never defend ARod or anyone else that took steroids. That being said one of the big problems I have with this is how they have let indivual players take on the brunt of the criticism. Tejada admited to lying but I don’t here much noise about that.
Oswalt is complaining about what ARod cost him but didn’t he pitch against Bonds, Sosa etc. Lets not be selective. The ones that are not outing all, just some arne’t being honest.
Then they say they won’t vote them into the hall of fame because they used steroids. How can you single out some without a complete and unbiased investigation. I realize that isn’t going to happen so only some will take the blame for all. It doesn’t make the ones look very good that will stand by and let others take the blame for them.
“Why not do both? He has apologized by phone to plenty of people the past 3 days. Some of the people he has apologized to, unlike Girardi, he doesn’t speak to daily.”
Without hearing their conversation who’s to know?
Maybe he thinks he did?
Maybe he doesn’t remember who he has apologized to?
Maybe he thinks that apologizing for something he did 6 years ago, while on a diffrent team is stupid?
Maybe,….
I will bet there will be a face to face apology for Giradi and all his teammates.
randy l,
Puhleez. What are you talking about? I’m responding to the constant, “stop bashing Alex” whining that goes on here. Not the state of the nation.
People are so, “poor Alex”. Well what about the Yankees? That’s all we care about.
Phil,
Ding!Ding!Ding! Cincinnati Red Stockings. $10 card sold for over $60,000.
In management they say, 20 percent of your employees make 80 percent of your problems. For Joe, the split is more 10/90.
1. There is no real excuse, if he has spoke to Girardi several times, for him not to have apologized at some point for some thing or for everything.
2. This should have been a joyous first press conference for Girardi. He’s got CC, AJ and Teixeira coming to camp! for crying out loud. And he doesn’t even get to enjoy that.
3. ARod does not get the privilege of “once and done” like Jeter does. If Alex has to apologize a thousand times, then he has to. Simple.
4. I agree with m – on the phone to end every conversation and then again in person.
This is not ARod bashing. This is business etiquette 101. Not to mention human relations 101.
You think he “misremembered” apologizing to the manager. Or, do you think the manager “misremembered” it?
It doesn’t matter when he flunked the test. He’s not upsetting the Texas Rangers with this stuff. This is the Yankees headache.
I hope this guy somehow finally “gets it”. If not, apologies or not, he’s in a for a long season.
Look, I have mucho experience with good kids with very poor social awareness. Kids who need guidance every single step of the way in social situations. Just because ARod is a successful ballplayer doesn’t mean he has mastered all of life’s necessary skills. I sympathize with that aspect of Alex. He keeps getting in his own way, in spite of some good intentions. I believe SJ44 when he says Alex is a good person. I do sense that. But he is awkward and he doesn’t seem to automatically know what the right thing to do is.
I don’t know if his handlers and advisors really know what they’re dealing with. He comes off as a diva, but I suspect it’s not that at all. Actually, quite the opposite.
SJ44
I hope you get a chance to give him the advice you have outlined here. And I hope he listens. If he doesn’t he probably will derail.
I agree he does need to get it. I also think we (Yankee fans) are guilty of over anylyzing. I still think this is a non issue.
Doreen
That was an excellent post. It explains my feelings as well.
Tarheelyank,
We may be overanalyzing this, but did you catch Cashman on the WFAN? You should listen to it, Mike asked some tough, point-blank questions.
Anyway, he asked Cashman, and I’m paraphrasing here, “Do you think that Alex will suck the life out of this clubhouse?”. Yes, we know he’s exagerrating and there’s no danger of that happening. No one has fractured this clubhouse in recent memory. But the question begged to be ask. So there is some very real concern about how Alex affects this club.
Listening to that made me want to stab myself in the eye with a pencil. I can understand now why Pete gets so snippy sometimes.
Listening to that made me want to stab myself in the eye with a pencil. I can understand now why Pete gets so snippy sometimes.
Another beat writer reported that Girardi also said that he didn’t expect an apology from ARod. That changes the tenor of the remark, no?
I’m not going to defend him over this one – yes, I think he should apologize. But this is minor stuff.
My guess is his instinct to apologize is warring his natural resentment at being the only one in this position. He knows how many people were using steroids, and to have to be the one to grovel is probably hard for him. He did a fairly good job of it on ESPN, but, unfortunately, he has to keep groveling for a while longer.
warring with
m
This is not ONLY about Alex. This is about a Baseball problem.
How many of Alex’s teammates did the same or worse then he did?
I can’t even say it was his fault for getting caught!
We have to let the Arod stuff go. If not, when do we investigate how much knowledge about steroids Bud Selig and MLB had? Also how about going after these leaks! Grand jury testimony is not supposed to be leaked out. Who leaked Arod’s name?
Lots of people, not just me but, LOTS of good people, people with no agendas, have reached out to him.
Its like Mark McGuire.
Mark McGuire is one of the nicest people I have ever met in sports. If there was a Mount Rushmore of nice people I have met in sports, Mariano Rivera and Mark McGuire are two of the people who would be on it.
Mark goes to Congress, overly coached, IMO, and torches himself. Basically, his entire professional life is in shambles because of that testimony.
Didn’t have to be that way. He was overly coached by lawyers who couldn’t strike the balance between being (somewhat) truthful and keeping the government from indicting him. They had him stonewall everything and he was finished. It was a rotten shame.
It was avoidable, IMO.
Alex can’t get overcoached here. He just can’t. He isn’t skilled enough to pull it off. It will come off as phony.
He has to be humble, contrite and, frankly, the kid he was when he was 20 years old. The Gammons interview showed signs of that. He has to build on it.
Leave the diva garbage at the door. If not, you have a bloodthirsty media ready to pounce.
They can’t pounce if you are honest and humble. They will if you are phony.
I’m rooting like crazy he comes out of this in good shape.
He would have a better chance of doing so, IMO (which is all this is) if he lessened his payroll of handlers.
You know the saying about too many chefs in the kitchen……
Tarheelyank,
This is definitely a baseball problem. And it starts at the top.
But the poor Alex act has got to stop. He did it, he got caught, he admitted it. It’s not baseball’s fault he did it. People can say it’s not a big deal, but it’s probably a big deal to him. You don’t think he’d want those 3 years back? His legacy, his HOF chances, his reputation have all been damaged.
mel-
i wasn’t picking on your view of things as much as saying at some point all this isn’t the end of the world for anyone including arod or the yankees.
it’s a bump in the road. ask gb7 when things hit the fan if some healthy bad attitude isn’t helpful. you’re not a kid. i’m not. there’s lots of people on the blog who are adults and deal with serious stuff all the time.
cashman got to express and show his disappointment and be transparent about it today. it was understandable, but he’’s done that now. leadership is showing everyone how to snap out of a funk and moving on. girardi has the same problem before him. once he addresses it , he needs to move on.
as i said, baseball is played best when everyone is having fun.
if they can’t have fun with him there, then that’s another story.
i don’t think the yankees are at that point with arod.
if he’s told the truth, it’s a bump in the road.
if he hasn’t , that’s another matter.
SJ44,
What’s your opinion on Boras’ input in this mess? ARod is reportedly involving him in this. Boras has potential conflicts (other clients, his own reputation) etc., plus he made the stupidest PR move in history with the timing of the opt-out.
I love Joe Girardi. I think he’s everything a manager should be, and more. I think he will have a great season.
I can’t imagine who asked Girardi about whether his job was one the line if they don’t get back to the playoffs. Nice to count on the press to be obnoxious and trying to introduce controversy.
randy l,
Oops. I APOLOGIZE for being hyper-sensitive. And I’ll definitely apologize in person when I make it out to the Cape.
“But the poor Alex act has got to stop. He did it, he got caught, he admitted it. It’s not baseball’s fault he did it. People can say it’s not a big deal, but it’s probably a big deal to him. You don’t think he’d want those 3 years back? His legacy, his HOF chances, his reputation have all been damaged.”
m
where did that come from? Did I disagree with anything like that? I was discussing Arod apologizing on the phone or not. And for the record Arod has to apologize to his team. I think we are making a big deal out of nothing over this phone thing. By the way go TAR HEELS!!!!
Clare,
I’d rather have Scott involved than Madonna’s manager.
If he listens to Scott, he can get through it.
Having the PR team that advised Sarah Palin is not the way to go, IMO.
They don’t understand sports. They don’t understand the passion of the fans and the high moral ground the media stakes on these issues.
When you don’t understand the audience you have to appease, how can you solve the problem?
They act as if they are the smartest people in the room because they “aren’t in sports”.
Those are the kind of people that get BBQ’ed, as well as their clients, in these situations.
They “represent” Bonnie Bernstein. Whoopee. How’s that workin’ out for Bonnie.
She went from a $500k+ per year job with CBS to being nothing right now. That’s not exactly an endorsement in their “crisis management” skills in the sports business, IMO.
If he listens to Scott, he will come out of this ok. If he doesn’t? Trainwreck.
I’d imagine that’s the Yankees biggest fear right now.
Trisha:
He twice acknowledged it himself without anybody asking. He’s not a dope.
But don’t that distract you from hating me and my colleagues.
And without being overly dramatic here, I think Arod broke a lot of hearts with this revelation. It is what it is, but it was probably harder to hear that about Alex than it would have been about any other player in baseball, for me anyway.
Only two others would trump in terms of making me feel like my innocence was totally lost and the beauty of the game had been totally blackened. Derek and Mariano.
I have a request Pete: put up a poll asking the readers if they WANT 99.9% of baseballs media coverage to focus on Arod/steroids. I’m curious what the results would be.
Pete, I don’t hate you and your colleagues. I do hate some of the questions put out there though.
“Girardi was very candid in his session, even agreeing that he would not be the manager in 2010 unless the Yankees returned to the playoffs. “I don’t think about that, but you’re probably right,” he said.”
Pete, either the phrasing here is poor or someone asked a question. When you say someone agreed, it would imply someone else made the statement. If he’s saying he’s not thinking about it but someone’s probably right, what does that say?
I was only responding to that statement.
SJ44,
Yikes! I didn’t know they were Palin’s people – that’s really, really scary.
I agree with you above – that honest and humble is the way to go, but there’s a problem in that as you’ve noted, he can’t be too honest here. He’s not going to detail where/when he bought banned substances, and I can see him getting repeatedly grilled in his press conference on that. I guess I just don’t think the press is ever going to be appeased, no matter what ARod does.
mel-
we’re all just talking here. no apologies necessary. actually if arod wanted some good free advice, he should read the blog. every possibility has been gone over here and then some.
i think sj44 is right that alex needs to get some humility out of this experience and i think it’s likely he will. showing some humility would go a long way towards getting him back on track.
i didn’t especially like him before, but i’m rooting for him now.
#13 need to lose the “A-Rod” persona and just be Alex…whatever that is. Apologize to everybody for making screwing things up and causing other people to address non-baseball issues.
He needs to drop the need for being on the Back Page of the tabloids for non-game related items.
He needs to keep his private life…private…otherwise the media circus will eat him alive and he will be out of baseball in 3 years.
When it comes to the media he needs to be the modern day Joe D. or Lou Gerhig. Not the modern day Babe Ruth or Reggie Jackson.
i’d like to see Damon in Center on some days. If they’re worried about the toll on the knees, why can’t they rotate him between CF and LF every other day? They’ve got Nady, Swisher, and Matsui. I know Mats is supposed to DH but he can spend a day or two per week in the field most likely. It’s better than having Gardner/Melky out there every day. If Johnny can play Center even 1/3 of the time it’ll be good, and we can have Nady/Swish in RF/LF and Matsui DHing.
Trisha:
Somebody said something along the lines of “this is an important year for you and he said “oh sure, somebody else will be manager if we don’t make the playoffs”
It wasn’t a harsh question. People like you have this mistaken impression that everything is antagonistic and it just isn’t.
“i didn’t especially like him before, but i’m rooting for him now.”
Yeah me too.
Pete, I’m sure you must realize, as much as you would realize it if the same information came out about Tom Brady, that as hard as we as fans are trying to find equilibrium in all of this, it truly is not easy to do.
It’s certainly nobody’s faults but Arod’s that he did what he did, but unfortunately Arod isn’t the only one left to deal with this. It’s a hideous distraction.
Maybe I’m looking for a little happiness in all of this. Maybe it would be nice for Joe Girardi to have to talk about nothing but this season, even if it includes Arod, and not have to worry about whether or not he is going to be here if the Yankees don’t make the playoffs. (They will make the playoffs.) I feel bad for the guy is all.
Hey guys Pete is right about Arod apologizing to Girardi thats the least he could do. Please join me at Yanks and More tomorrow at 6 for a live Yankees chat. http://gmarchese.blogspot.com. Please come and ask any questions you would like although we will try and keep it to baseball as much as possible.
GMAN,
I think you’re mixing up what ARod is responsible for and what he isn’t. I doubt he has the “need” to be on the backpages for his personal life. I highly doubt he called the press and alerted them to the photo op with the blonde in Toronto. He went to great lenghts to keep his relationship (whatever it was) with Madonna private – to the point that none of the stalking papparazzi managed to get a photo of them together.
Unless you’re saying you expect him to be celibate for the rest of his life, I don’t think you can blame him for the fact that the press has different rules regarding his so-called private life than it does for any other athlete.
“Maybe he wanted to do it face to face. We don’t know. I just get so tired of people looking for something to slam A-Rod about. It is amazing how large the target is this guy has on his back.”
He possibly might have, but he still should have said something Girardi. I’ve been understanding enough of ARod to be branded an apologist along with other, but sometimes I also agree the target on his back is partly of his own making at times. In this case it is – Girardi has gone to bat for him an awful lot.
But as an aside, whats this about Girardi’s job being jeopardy? Am I missing something or just possibly misinterpreting?
“Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager.”
—————————————————–
For WHAT? Something he (and hundreds of other players) did FIVE YEARS AGO?
Tell me Pete, when you get a new girlfriend, do you apologize to her for things you did to a girlfriend you had FIVE YEARS AGO?
Wow… talk about beatin’ the bushes for something nice to say about ARod!
“Get this: Alex has yet to apologize to his manager.”
—————————————————–
For WHAT? Something he (and hundreds of other players) did FIVE YEARS AGO?
Tell me Pete, when you get a new girlfriend, do you apologize to her for things you did to a girlfriend you had FIVE YEARS AGO?
Wow… talk about beatin’ the bushes for something nice to say about ARod!
“Somebody said something along the lines of “this is an important year for you and he said “oh sure, somebody else will be manager if we don’t make the playoffs”
It wasn’t a harsh question. People like you have this mistaken impression that everything is antagonistic and it just isn’t.”
Then I apologize for reaching the wrong conclusion and am happy that it wasn’t antagonistic. Sometimes the written word just doesn’t translate well.
I’m in my own private fan hell right now because I am trying to find equilibrium and am finding it impossible. I’m trying to get my footing back as a fan of the game and can’t seem to do so. My biggest fear is that I am not going to be able to get ther. That’s pretty much how crushed I feel by what we just found out. The biggest downside to being extremely trusting and naive is that the fall is a lot harder than it is for people who are skeptics and negative by nature.
I didn’t mean to chill conversation.
Have a good night all.
Trisha,
That’s an understandable reaction from a passionate fan.
Here’s my suggestion to you to get thru it.
Realize, all these guys not just Yankees but all players, are human.
There are good guys, bad guys, and guys in between.
There are smart guys, dumb guys, followers and leaders.
Above all, they are human and they make mistakes.
We are spoiled as Yankee fans. Every guy can’t be like Derek and Mariano.
When you realize that they are just like the rest of us, sans the skill to play baseball at the highest level, it will make you better understand their weaknesses.
He absolutely should have apologized to Girardi. Dude is clueless and so is his 50 million handlers who can’t seem to make him get it.
And there will be a lot of A-Rod fatigue because the guy is not just a baseball player. He has transcended baseball so almost any time he does something, even if its walking down the street, will be chronicled.
SJ – as usual, your voice of reason has helped me find my way. My tears of sadness and disappointment have changed to tears of gratitude.
Thank you my friend.
First off, and especially Trish, y’all should read this just to get an idea of how long and to what extend steroids have been part of baseball.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/.....CJ0SK1.DTL
Here is something you might find interesting:
http://steroids-and-baseball.com/
One mans opinion:
“Steroids have a markedly greater effect on upper-body strength than on lower-body strength. Batting is almost exclusively powered by lower-body strength. Beefcake doesn’t drive long balls.”
“There is no evidence that steroid use has altered home-run hitting and those who argue otherwise are profoundly ignorant of the statistics of home runs, the physics of baseball, and of the physiological effects of steroids. “
House is always my example of why people need to stop this sudden religion about PEDs in baseball.
Why the hell should A-Rod have to apologize to Joe Girardi personally? What is he, his dad? He doesn’t even work for Girardi, he works for the Yankees and their front office. That is who employs him. Besides, Alex already apologized in his interview. I don’t think he said, “I’m sorry to everyone except Girardi”.
Clare,
Good points.
I don’t think that Alex wanted to be Tabloid Meat in those instances…but the decisions he has made and his lack of discretion have left him vulnerable to that media exploitation.
He has on-field charisma…he does not off the field.
Ruth, Mantle were magnetic “fun loving” icons…Pepitone and David Wells were original eccentics with I don’t give a crap attitudes…so in a strange way…they could get away with that stuff. They were comfortable being themselves.
Alex is not like those guys…he’s more distant…trying to present themselves in a way that is not really the man in full…perhaps in a way like Gooden or Strawberry.
Alex needs to make better decisions…so that drama is minimized…so that the media finds him boring…causing the pack to focus on the next deer in the headlights…who can’t stay our of his own way.
Hope that makes some sense.
Always gotta throw in that jab at Arod…
Pete,
When it comes to discussing AROD I do not always agree with you, but you are right here. Alex absolutely owes Girardi an apology. The fact that it hasn’t happened yet concerns me. Does Alex not respect Joe enough?
This is stupid. A-Rod has apologized to Texas because he did something illegal while he was there. He has not done anything illegal in NY – in fact SI managed to illegally get his name out of a list that was supposed to be sealed and destroyed.
We always talk about how you need to handle the media when you’re in New York (playing, managing, etc). A-Rod will be harassed 10x more than any member of yankees (and rightfully so) – so no need to apologize anymore.
Girardi’s job will not be saved if Alex apologizes…puts up MVP numbers…hits .450 with 4 homers in the 1st round but the Yanks lose .
All Alex has to do when he arrives at camp is apologize in person…(phone apologies are for the weak) and tell Joe G he will play his heart out for the team.
Girardi will be judged by his record this year…as will Alex…and deservedly so.
Why would Arod need to apologize to Girardi? He wasn’t the manager when Arod was using roids. I am by no means an Arod fan, but let’s be fair.
I would also like an apology from arod because of how long I have liked him.
There are some hilarious spoofs on the A-rod situation at http://www.theonion.com