NakamuraOver and Under: A-Rod
"Over and Under" is a segment on my blog. Once a week, I write an analysis on one major league player and tell you whether he is over or under rated. This week's edition is on Yankees' Infielder Alex Rodriguez:
Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a shortstop. A shortstop with so much skill people expected to see him in the hall of fame only a few years into his professional career. This amazing legend's stort began with a simple draft pick. Naturally, as the best, he was the first selection in the 1993 draft by the lucky Seattle Mariners. When he was added to the arsenal of stars that Seattle had, it was still this man who shined the brightest.
The days of this legend was long before those of today. Days long before Ichiro and King Felix. Long before Kazuhiro Sasaki and Bret Boone. There was the great A-Rod. And he was accompanied by two other future hall of famers. You may have heard of them. They are known as the magnificent Ken Griffey Jr. and Randy Johnson. The team was destined to go places, win games, and dominate the AL west with exceptional force. But the team faced a breakdown soon after.
When Griffey went to the Reds, the Mariners felt a tough, hard blow to the gut. The loss winded them and gave them a dire conflict. But as long as the legendary Alex Rodriguez stayed by their side, they could make it through anything. Suddenly, the Randy "The Big Unit" Johnson headed towards Houston to play Astro baseball. Seattle looked grim and were in a
tight situation. Their stars were headed off. And to finish off the disaster and knock them onto their knees, Alex Rodriguez went to Texas. It's horrendous how quick the days changed for the Mariners. But then again, It's just plain hilarious when the Rangers broke down almost immediately.
The phenomenon level of skill never changed. He remained as the most amazing shortstop the Rangers had ever seen. Rodriguez had a new co-star to replace Griffey and Johnson. His name was also Rodriguez. Ivan Rodriguez. Together, they searched for a winning formula, to go for the most difficult title of them all. World Champions. They struggled and fought, and over time, they achieved a slightly different accomplishment. The biggest joke in baseball. The two of them were paid so much to perform quite admirably. They earned their right to play and their wads of cash.
But a baseball roster consists of 25 players and the two stars could not manage anything. Alexander the Great was silenced. The rest of the team was lower than than low on a bad day. How could Alex Rodriguez do this? He gave up winning for money. Sure, he was still producing. He gave people a reason to watch a Rangers game. He was still the star. So far, he'd lost the chance to win a world series. But the amazing never surrender. Mr. Rodriguez would not give up so easily. He got back up and fought for one more round. His mission was to win a ring and he would not stop until he had it on his hand. His ambition was greater than ever before. The great Alex Rodriguez was after his prize.
Only a few years into his very lengthy contract with Texas, Alex was traded to the New York Yankees. The Rangers wanted to dump the 200 million somewhere, it was an understandable move for them. Rodriguez wanted to win... and only win. He had lost his ability to win in Seattle, and he wanted going to regain it before it was too late. But he was going to do it by changing everything that made him so successful. It was the classic, the good turns evil. He was to go against all of his morals of life. To play third when he was the best shortstop in the
game. At a time when he was the only power hitting middle infielder of his time. Even after he had won a gold glove. It was a sad sight to see, but it was clear that he wanted to win.
His entire life, it was the Alex Rodriguez Show. First overall pick hogging all of the attention. But things are run differently in New York. It's all about Derek Jeter. It's all about Mr. November, one of the greatest Yankees of their lengthy past. He was the shortstop. He wasn't going anywhere. What does that mean? Alex Rodriguez was no longer the star. He was the secondary attraction. How could he lose the spotlight? And then later, he lost his perfect image. It used to be Alex, the man who played ball the right way. Who was clean, naturally talented and worked hard for what he received. Alex was fading away. You guys all know the rest of the story. His accusations of taking steroids, how he couldn't find a team to play for after opting out of his contract and how people started saying David Wright was the better third basemen in New York.
There's no doubt in my mind that Alex Rodriguez is a talented man. Anybody who can hit 40 home runs year after year either cheats, has a great hitter's ballpark or just plain talented. He has hit 100 RBIs every year despite being labeled as a choker. A-Rod is by far the highest paid player in baseball and no one has really disputed whether or not he deserves it. He's not the captain or the leader of the club. He's not single-handedly carrying the team; the Yankees would have no problem winning without him. He's just a third baseman to them. Is Jeter
essential to the club? Yes. Is Posada is essential to the club? Yes. Is Teixeira essntial? Yes. Sabathia? Burnett? Mariano? All yes. They have each made their contributions to win in a massive way. But Rodriguez has done the same as the people who make under 10 million dollars like Cano and Melky.
It's terrible what's happened to A-Rod. I used to admire him when he was a Ranger. He never took no for an answer, played his heart out, and produced. As a Yankee, he's pushed around the lineup. The lineup's no longer built around him, he's just being squeezed in somewhere depending on who the pitcher is. The steroids thing has just made him another on the list. Sure, he's done great in the playoffs. But he's a changed man. He's no longer the future of baseball and never will be again. People have moved on to players like Joe Mauer. It's such a shame how much Alex has lost. He couldn't work out a deal between his agent and any team in the big leagues. Organizations no longer saw him as the must have player. Nobody saw him worthy of an offer. Nobody gave him an offer of 30 million, 25 million, 20 million or even 10. Does he still deserve to be in the Hall? Of course. Is he still first ballot? Definitely. Will he be one of the greatest Yankees of all time? Probably. But he won't be remembered as much as Ruth, DiMaggio, Mantle, Maris, Ford, Gehrig, or Jeter. And he just might break all of their records. There's no question in my mind that A-Rod is more talented than Jeter. But he misplayed his cards, and it'll cost him.
So is he over or under rated? The past few years have generated some great 3rd basemen. David Wright and Evan Longoria have led the pack. But there's no doubt the A-Rod surpasses them. A-Rod is still the best 3B in the game. I don't think he's under rated because he's a future hall of famer. He's perfectly rated, now that he's shown his capabilities in October. It's still a shame, he used to have so much more. He was baseball's greatest. He was supposed to be the one catch Aaron. He was supposed to challenge Ripken and Honus for the title of best shortstop of all time. But all that's gone. A-Rod, you can have all the success you want at third base. But fact is, you made a mistake.
-Written by: Nakamura. This article is copyrighted © by Nakamura and may not be reproduced, recopied, or used in any form without permission from Nakamura
Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a shortstop. A shortstop with so much skill people expected to see him in the hall of fame only a few years into his professional career. This amazing legend's stort began with a simple draft pick. Naturally, as the best, he was the first selection in the 1993 draft by the lucky Seattle Mariners. When he was added to the arsenal of stars that Seattle had, it was still this man who shined the brightest.
The days of this legend was long before those of today. Days long before Ichiro and King Felix. Long before Kazuhiro Sasaki and Bret Boone. There was the great A-Rod. And he was accompanied by two other future hall of famers. You may have heard of them. They are known as the magnificent Ken Griffey Jr. and Randy Johnson. The team was destined to go places, win games, and dominate the AL west with exceptional force. But the team faced a breakdown soon after.
When Griffey went to the Reds, the Mariners felt a tough, hard blow to the gut. The loss winded them and gave them a dire conflict. But as long as the legendary Alex Rodriguez stayed by their side, they could make it through anything. Suddenly, the Randy "The Big Unit" Johnson headed towards Houston to play Astro baseball. Seattle looked grim and were in a
Those were the days...
The phenomenon level of skill never changed. He remained as the most amazing shortstop the Rangers had ever seen. Rodriguez had a new co-star to replace Griffey and Johnson. His name was also Rodriguez. Ivan Rodriguez. Together, they searched for a winning formula, to go for the most difficult title of them all. World Champions. They struggled and fought, and over time, they achieved a slightly different accomplishment. The biggest joke in baseball. The two of them were paid so much to perform quite admirably. They earned their right to play and their wads of cash.
But a baseball roster consists of 25 players and the two stars could not manage anything. Alexander the Great was silenced. The rest of the team was lower than than low on a bad day. How could Alex Rodriguez do this? He gave up winning for money. Sure, he was still producing. He gave people a reason to watch a Rangers game. He was still the star. So far, he'd lost the chance to win a world series. But the amazing never surrender. Mr. Rodriguez would not give up so easily. He got back up and fought for one more round. His mission was to win a ring and he would not stop until he had it on his hand. His ambition was greater than ever before. The great Alex Rodriguez was after his prize.
Only a few years into his very lengthy contract with Texas, Alex was traded to the New York Yankees. The Rangers wanted to dump the 200 million somewhere, it was an understandable move for them. Rodriguez wanted to win... and only win. He had lost his ability to win in Seattle, and he wanted going to regain it before it was too late. But he was going to do it by changing everything that made him so successful. It was the classic, the good turns evil. He was to go against all of his morals of life. To play third when he was the best shortstop in the
No longer the star, he's the joke of New York
His entire life, it was the Alex Rodriguez Show. First overall pick hogging all of the attention. But things are run differently in New York. It's all about Derek Jeter. It's all about Mr. November, one of the greatest Yankees of their lengthy past. He was the shortstop. He wasn't going anywhere. What does that mean? Alex Rodriguez was no longer the star. He was the secondary attraction. How could he lose the spotlight? And then later, he lost his perfect image. It used to be Alex, the man who played ball the right way. Who was clean, naturally talented and worked hard for what he received. Alex was fading away. You guys all know the rest of the story. His accusations of taking steroids, how he couldn't find a team to play for after opting out of his contract and how people started saying David Wright was the better third basemen in New York.
There's no doubt in my mind that Alex Rodriguez is a talented man. Anybody who can hit 40 home runs year after year either cheats, has a great hitter's ballpark or just plain talented. He has hit 100 RBIs every year despite being labeled as a choker. A-Rod is by far the highest paid player in baseball and no one has really disputed whether or not he deserves it. He's not the captain or the leader of the club. He's not single-handedly carrying the team; the Yankees would have no problem winning without him. He's just a third baseman to them. Is Jeter
And it keeps going downhill...
It's terrible what's happened to A-Rod. I used to admire him when he was a Ranger. He never took no for an answer, played his heart out, and produced. As a Yankee, he's pushed around the lineup. The lineup's no longer built around him, he's just being squeezed in somewhere depending on who the pitcher is. The steroids thing has just made him another on the list. Sure, he's done great in the playoffs. But he's a changed man. He's no longer the future of baseball and never will be again. People have moved on to players like Joe Mauer. It's such a shame how much Alex has lost. He couldn't work out a deal between his agent and any team in the big leagues. Organizations no longer saw him as the must have player. Nobody saw him worthy of an offer. Nobody gave him an offer of 30 million, 25 million, 20 million or even 10. Does he still deserve to be in the Hall? Of course. Is he still first ballot? Definitely. Will he be one of the greatest Yankees of all time? Probably. But he won't be remembered as much as Ruth, DiMaggio, Mantle, Maris, Ford, Gehrig, or Jeter. And he just might break all of their records. There's no question in my mind that A-Rod is more talented than Jeter. But he misplayed his cards, and it'll cost him.
So is he over or under rated? The past few years have generated some great 3rd basemen. David Wright and Evan Longoria have led the pack. But there's no doubt the A-Rod surpasses them. A-Rod is still the best 3B in the game. I don't think he's under rated because he's a future hall of famer. He's perfectly rated, now that he's shown his capabilities in October. It's still a shame, he used to have so much more. He was baseball's greatest. He was supposed to be the one catch Aaron. He was supposed to challenge Ripken and Honus for the title of best shortstop of all time. But all that's gone. A-Rod, you can have all the success you want at third base. But fact is, you made a mistake.
You were loved by Texas and Seattle... but New York was a mistake... good luck A-Rod
-Written by: Nakamura. This article is copyrighted © by Nakamura and may not be reproduced, recopied, or used in any form without permission from Nakamura
This year, after admitting his steroid useage while at Texas, going through a divorce, and what could have been a career ending injury, he has quieted down. Inspite of starting the season late, he still reached 30 home runs and 100 RBI's, and he has exploded in the post season.
In the past he was on teams that paid him huge amounts of money but couldn't afford to pay anyone else to support him. Now, he's on the Yanks, and they have the money to pay the best players to support him. He doesn't have to do it alone.
Baseball Author
Tech Poke
Writing Edition
Anything or Everything?
well it looks like A-rod finally got his ring. Seems like it was late and should have come earlier, but nonetheless, he got it. I totally agree with you, once he calmed down and focused on baseball rather than things like his image, he truly performed.
Nakamura