A-Rod doing his part
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Sep 02, 2009 
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Mark McGwire once told Congress he would campaign against steroids use and got all weepy about it. Seen him lately?
But Alex Rodriguez has stayed true to his promise. He was at a school in Baltimore yesterday delivering an anti-PED message to young athletes.
Alex asked that the media not be allowed in, which I believe attests to his sincerity.
You have to give Alex credit, he has managed to blend in, stay out of the news and generally avoid the clownish behavior that marked his first few years with the Yankees. That the team is on pace for 100+ wins probably isn’t a coincidence.
Good post Pete….A-Rod under the radar seems like an oxymoron but this year he is doing it.
Maybe Kate Hudson has a good head on her shoulders….
come onnnnnnn pete you know he was told by one of his 30 p.r. people told him not to allow media people in…..probably the only good advice hes gotten from them
Or maybe it is a coincidence. Im pretty sure the much improved pitching and the stellar performance from the lineup (most notably Jeter) have no correlation with how A-Rod carries himself off the field.
I wish ESPN or other sports channels would report on this. For the weeks they focused on the bad things w/ A-Rod and other PED users, you would think they would report on the good things said PED users were doing to better the game and build awareness.
“I wish ESPN or other sports channels would report on this”
He asked that the media not be allowed in. No need for them anyway. That’s like donating a million to charity and having the media there to cover it. Makes it more about him than the message….and the message is far more important.
Joey – I belive that same article was linked to in Buster Olney’s ESPN blog this morning
ditmars1929 September 2nd, 2009 at 9:22 am
Christina, nice pictures. I’ve never been to your blog before, so I scrolled around. That post about your tour of the Louisville Slugger factory was very interesting.
Thanks.
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Thanks ditmar. The Louisville Slugger Museum is amazing. If you are ever in that area, i suggest you all check it out.
Outside of the box score, the less I hear about that clown the better.
Just a thought – I understand ARod has an image to repair, showing remorse and holding events like this look good, etc. But isn’t it just a tad hypocritical for a known drug cheat to be lecturing kids about not taking drugs? Wouldn’t it make more sense for the clean players to be advising children on how to succeed the proper way?
“Rodriguez and Hooton have been working together for several months, appearing together at each of Rodriguez’s talks.”
Has Alex given other speeches like this?
I find it somewhat funny and sad that a little line in that story talked about Brian Roberts who had come to speak at another time because “he also admitted to using steroids”.
I know because Alex is the best and most high profile player to admit the use but how come Brian Roberts doesnt get the grief and everything that goes with admitting the use of PED?
I think A-Rod might finally feel comfortable here with Tex taking a lot of the pressure off him to be the key hitter in the middle of the lineup. I think after a restful winter (hopefully) A-Rod is going to have a MONSTER 2010.
>Maybe Kate Hudson has a good head on her shoulders…
Didn’t Ellen DeGeneres attempt suicide after they broke up?
Pel,
I think you are thinking of Anne Heche. She is the one that broke up with Ellen DeGeneres.
I’m glad you haven’t forgotten the fool that McGwire made of himself in front of Congress. Hopefully A-Rod can continue to move in the right direction and avoid the stupid mistakes that Bonds, Clemens and McGwire made when they were discovered to be cheaters…
“Has Alex given other speeches like this?”
The story says he has been doing 2 a month.
Tom in N.J.
September 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
“Rodriguez and Hooton have been working together for several months, appearing together at each of Rodriguez’s talks.”
Has Alex given other speeches like this?
————————
they mention at least two more in the article – read elsewhere that they are done without fanfare etc, this got out b/c the org publicized it, not alex et al
with arod imo only he needed to become sincere,tell the truth & live a clean life first.
then he needed to learn to keep it simple & not put his foot in his mouth & all this while putting up good enough numbers to justify his contract.
with the injury he has done that.
there are enough reporters that when given the ammunition that arod in the past has given them will keep arod in the spotlight.
negative,positive,etc…
the yankees are winning,he is producing enough,his life is clean,he does charitable events & he makes good on his promises.
simply put.
live a clean life,keep it real & simple & for the most part earn your contract & there is no fuel for the fire.
nobody wants to read about arods clean,boring life when his contract is justified enough
“Wouldn’t it make more sense for the clean players to be advising children on how to succeed the proper way?”
Maybe Oswalt and Moyer would like to volunteer to be first.
“I know because Alex is the best and most high profile player to admit the use but how come Brian Roberts doesnt get the grief and everything that goes with admitting the use of PED?”
You can substitute Brian Roberts’ name with a bunch of guys still playing today and ask the same question. It is a content issue–writing stories and spending hours talking about how much of a blight on the game Brian Roberts is because he used HGH does not have national weight, i.e. it won’t stir national interest and drive readers to debate, click blog posts, write comments, be interested, etc.
Not the case with A-Rod, so it was a feeding frenzy for a dying industry when his admission ocurred. Every media outlet ate it up, especially because it was during the offseason when there isn’t as much news to sustain content.
“Didn’t Ellen DeGeneres attempt suicide after they broke up?”
No, you are confusing Ellen DeGeneres with Owen Wilson (I guess they are both blonde?)–their breakup (Owen & Kate Hudson) is speculated to be one of the factors that contributed to his suicide attempt.
>I think you are thinking of Anne Heche.
>She is the one that broke up with Ellen DeGeneres.
In my own subtle way I was trying to illustrate the point that NO WOMAN on this planet can possibly have a good head on their shoulders if they get into a relationship with Owen Wilson and his ghastly nose.
http://i26.tinypic.com/260x30i.jpg
I was a little too subtle.
I’m joking, of course.
http://i27.tinypic.com/296dijd.jpg
But still…
“I wish ESPN or other sports channels would report on this. For the weeks they focused on the bad things w/ A-Rod and other PED users, you would think they would report on the good things said PED users were doing to better the game and build awareness.”
If ESPN reported on it, everyone would say that A-Rod was only doing this for publicity.
ditmars1929
September 2nd, 2009 at 9:45 am
Outside of the box score, the less I hear about that clown the better.
Just a thought – I understand ARod has an image to repair, showing remorse and holding events like this look good, etc. But isn’t it just a tad hypocritical for a known drug cheat to be lecturing kids about not taking drugs? Wouldn’t it make more sense for the clean players to be advising children on how to succeed the proper way?
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couldnt be further from the truth
a person who goes trough it knows much more.
like a drug user who lost everything can tell people or kids exactly what they can lose because they lost it.
a person who has never been through it & has lost nothing never experienced it.
like michael vick can say look what i lost.
Yeah Pete I’ve seen Mark at an event honoring him in STL(yuk.)
He walked on the field,with his new child at Bush stadium,and he looked about the size of Prince.He was so small in stature.
You won’t believe how small he is a shell of the grotesque,
figure he morphed into with the juice.
-StLouis, actually has a street renamed after their favorite Roider!
I get your point, bru, and that crossed my mind too.
I just seems like bs to me that ARod cheats with drugs, makes his gazillions of dollars, then after he’s got his he turns around and tells kids how to do it the right way. I think there’s a difference between a recovered alcoholic saving lives and a cheating ballplayer telling kids about sportsmanship.
Perhaps I’m being overly cynical. Or a little blinded by distaste of ARod. But I appreciate your opinion.
what did aj say to felix pie? they just mentioned something on wfan and i missed it. anyone?
“what did aj say to felix pie? they just mentioned something on wfan and i missed it. anyone?”
Probably nothing. He yelled something after allowing a homer to Pie. Whether it was him yelling at himself in much the way he did the “Why’d I throw that pitch” thing at Fenway, or yelling at Pie hasn’t been made clear. I’m thinking he was scolding himself. Maybe I’m hoping he was scolding himself. If he wasn’t, then it was an a-hole move.
ARod’s new image, who is responsible for it, in order:
(1) ARod
(2) Jason Zillo (the real team MVP this year)
(3) Tex
(4) Kate Hudson
Great reporting, and maybe you are actually coming over to ARod’s side, Pete? Can pigs flys? The Sox won the WS, so anything is possible, I guess.
Kids are taught by people who’ve never done things all the time, whether its drugs, gambling addiction, crime, etc.
People who have screwed up are used to supplement the message the kids receive from the others.
When I planned a drug and alcohol prevention seminar for college kids one aspect of the seminar was a person their age who lost everything due to drug and alcohol abuse.
“what did aj say to felix pie?”
Burnett says he was yelling at himself for the location of the pitch. Trembley thought he was yelling at Pie so he gestured and yelled at Burnett.
ditmars1929
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:13 am
I get your point, bru, and that crossed my mind too.
I just seems like bs to me that ARod cheats with drugs, makes his gazillions of dollars, then after he’s got his he turns around and tells kids how to do it the right way. I think there’s a difference between a recovered alcoholic saving lives and a cheating ballplayer telling kids about sportsmanship.
Perhaps I’m being overly cynical. Or a little blinded by distaste of ARod. But I appreciate your opinion.
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i see & respect your side.
arod is lucky that he is in mlb & not in the nfl where contracts are not guaranteed.
michael vick has a very powerfull message.
he lost 140 million or so,endorsments,etc….
i am not sure how someone who has never lost that can get their point across better.
ditmars1929
You are being overly cynical.
In your defence, advanced age leads ito greatly increased cynicism, especially in males.
Don’t kid yourself, bru. Vick lost his money because he went to jail. Burress too. Other NFL players who failed PED tests, like Shawn Merriman or Rodney Harrison did not get their contracts voided. Heck, Giambi, Manny, or Palmeiro didn’t either.
Vrsce, yeah, I know. But what makes you think I’m of advanced age (I’m not)? Besides, I’ve been cynical since the age of 15, and with good reason. I’ll try to think more like Bella and bru regarding our pet clown.
the yankees offensively have an answer for almost every one of the rs players.
position by position
c-ynkees
1b-yankees
2b-yankees
ss-yankees
3b-yankees
rf-yankees
cf-(wash)
lf-rs
dh(wash)
the only edge for the rs is lf & it isnt huge.
Thanks for the shout out, Pete!
ditmars1929
The 1929, (which makes you a real geezer, lol) more likely middle aged, due to phraseology.
Anyway the Times article by Kepner on Arod clearly stated that he has done a number of speeches to kids on steroids, without publicity of any kind. I think he has matured and that he deserves credit. Hope is far better than cynicism, feels better too.
bru
Matsui versus Ortiz at DH a wash? Are you serious? Matsui, by a lot.
ditmars1929 you don’t have to think like me regarding Alex. Sorry, I refuse to call him a clown. In fact, one could say telling kids to not name call then calling a grown man a clown is hypocritical. That is just me, I’m raising a kid not to name call so I try to be aware of such things.
Anyway, back to the issue. I was speaking on the idea of using “sinners” to preach to the congregation. Its done for a reason. And when done with honesty, people don’t walk away mumbling the person is a hypocrite they should ignore.
Bru:
Wouldn’t agree that the Yankees hold an edge in right field.
Alex asked that the media not be allowed in, which I believe attests to his sincerity.
But let it be known that he was giving the speech. Good touch.
Ruhi CantBut
“let it be known that he was giving the speech. Good touch.”
Untrue. Kepner’s article clearly states that the sponsor, not Arod released the event information.
Retraction?
ditmars1929
put a sox in it already. finally a good news piece about arod and you have to pee in the ice cream. You sound like a “Yankee’s are losing” downer game thread.
If your going to suffer please do it in silence
Vrsce, the ditmars is a boulevard in Astoria. The 1929 is the street address, not my birth year. Sadly, I don’t live there anymore.
Bella, I see your point. Perhaps my issue in this case is that I have trouble taking ARod with honesty.
Tom in N.J.
my argument was not based on that it is based on a person who has been through it compared to a person who has not.
it is impossible to get your contract voided in baseball or almost.
owners can use it against a player,endorsments take a it,etc…
a drug user in life can lose a house,get divorced,jail,etc & lot of them do.
“Bella, I see your point. Perhaps my issue in this case is that I have trouble taking ARod with honesty.”
Fair enough.
The orioles announcers should just join the circus. Buck Martinez when speaking about David Robertson said again last night that the yankees had the luxury of converting from starter to reliever…
A total joke on MASN every night… instead of baseball they should only be allowed to broadcast monkeys on tricycles.. with Jim Palmer and Buck Martinez doing the play by play
19-55-drew
23-72-swisher
hr & rbi in similar ab
similar obp
i take swish even though drew is better defensively
“i take swish even though drew is better defensively”
I’d take him if I were opening up a comedy club or running a carnival. If I want the more complete baseball player, I’m taking Drew.
Rex
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:47 am
Bru:
Wouldn’t agree that the Yankees hold an edge in right field.
——————————————————–
swisher has 17 more rbi & 4 more hr
i know it is close but swish has been a much bigger factor than drew has
not worth debating but i take swish & offensively swish has been better by a little.
the yankees have a clear edge in almost every position on the field
“I’d take him if I were opening up a comedy club or running a carnival. If I want the more complete baseball player, I’m taking Drew.”
You spelled complete disappointment wrong.
Rex
fair enouhg but as far as hr & rbi swish is ahead
that is all i am saying.
i am comparing our players to theirs as far as hr & rbi only
Great post Pete. A Rod is the one athlete who told the truth (mostly) and is trying to do the right thing. Name one other guy who has done anything similar.
Gotcha Bru. I agree the Yankees have an edge in nearly every position, and an especially massive one at SS. In the end though, there have been several Yankees teams over the past 8 years who would win this battle against every team in baseball and it’s yielded nothing. These kind of comparisons are fun for the press before a postseason series and stuff, but are kind of meaningless. In the end, it’s always each team’s pitcher aganst each team’s lineup.
I believe A-Rod is a changed man. I believe there are some people who truly can learn from their mistakes and turn their lives around. My gut feeling is that he is one of those people. Don’t make me eat my words, A-Rod!
“I wish ESPN or other sports channels would report on this. For the weeks they focused on the bad things w/ A-Rod and other PED users, you would think they would report on the good things said PED users were doing to better the game and build awareness.”
I’m actually glad ESPN doesn’t report this, b/c it would seem like hey look at me, here it’s more about getting the message out. I’m shocked by all this, I didn’t know he was doing this. If anything guys like Pete Ab. and Sweeny Murti are the ones who should get that news out to the public on thier next radio gigs not Al or his reps. This is great behind the doors stuff.
It probably is a coincidence. Correlation does not equal causation.
Who cares what ESPN reports? No one’s trying to win popularity contests, and the World Series isn’t voted on…it’s played.
Everyone’s way too worried about a perceived ESPN bias. What, will Yankees be booed LESS on the road if ESPN reports more glowing Yankee stories? Fat chance.
Just a thought – I understand ARod has an image to repair, showing remorse and holding events like this look good, etc. But isn’t it just a tad hypocritical for a known drug cheat to be lecturing kids about not taking drugs? Wouldn’t it make more sense for the clean players to be advising children on how to succeed the proper way?
I think it would easier for kids to see what happened to Arod as a result of using PEDs (damanged Rep etc..), I don’t thinks its hypocritical, he’s speaking from experience he did it, there were negative consequences and he’s urges others to learn from his mistakes so they don’t have to experience it themselves.
Bella, I see your point. Perhaps my issue in this case is that I have trouble taking ARod with honesty.
How can that be when you weren’t even there to hear what he said?
Well if ARod delivers during the playoffs I can forget anything
No one could have asked Alex to do more post “admission” than he has. He has contributed his time and money to help convince young people not to try stuff. He has withdrawn from the public eye.
He also risked his own long term health by having essentially two-thirds of an operation so he could better help his team in 2009 even though his money was guaranteed and had more to lose than gain by doing so.
I understand people who are turned off by some of what he’s done, but I think those who insists on calling him a cheat are just jerks. He took what he took to get BETTER. David Wells spending his entire career overweight and half of it hung over thus being a chronic underachiever was ten times the “cheat” Alex was.
I’ll take guys on HGH or Steroids over lazy, fat underachievers every time.
I’m happy with Arod this year, he’s gotten it done on and off the field. Not only Arod but all the Yankees this year seem to be more involved in the community. Very proud to be a Yankee fan.