Does A-Rod Deserve a Second Chance?
Watching him at bat during Spring Training for the New York Yankees in Tampa, Florida, it appears that the Alex Rodriguez come back trail is now in effect. It has been 18 months since we last saw A-Rod grace the majors due to his lengthy 211 game ban for his involvement in the Biogenesis Scandal. Public opinion has been split about whether this guy deserves another shot at glory, particularly as he was caught publicly trying to prolong his career by illegal means. But love or hate the guy, baseball has felt slightly less exciting without this guy around.
Rodriguez career stats on the surface read like a dream and would probably have seen him grace the hall of fame automatically. A .299 batting average, 654 home runs, 2.939 hits and an incredible 1,919 RBI's rival his long time friend Derek Jeter's stats. But the one element to his play that caused friction among baseball fans is his lackluster ability during the playoffs. A-Rod won a World Series in 2009 with New York, but prior to this his post season stats always seem to hover around the .200 mark! When you consider that this man has twice been the highest paid player in baseball, this leaves certain questions hanging! At one stage his career he was referred to as 'The Cooler' due to team being cold when he was with them and turning on a hot streak when he left.
Commissioner Rob Manfred believes that A-Rod deserves a second chance and feels that he was unfairly criticized by the Yankees when the scandal hit. Well if one of your key players got a ban for that long and gave the team a black eye, that reaction is expected. Since his return, Rodriguez has displayed some genuine remorse for his actions. He has appeared to have accepted that this whole affair was his own doing and is now content to shut up and play ball. In fairness to the guy that does take balls to come clean and from a character such as him known for his over confidence that was a big step forward.
Another question that come forward is his advancing age. This year Rodriguez will turn 40 and his roster spot for the first time in his career is not a guarantee! Yankees coach, Joe Girardi will be trying A-Rod at first base for spring training to see if he has still got it. Playing in this position is a first for this man and will either make or break his career. With Mark Teixeira already set here, A-Rod may find that his converted to being a DH. Some expert believes the Yankees will be better off cutting this guy from the roster to make room for newer talent. ESPN correspondent Chris Singleton has expressed his extreme doubts on his future on the game,
The one thing that baseball loves however, is a great story of redemption- and that is exactly that this whole affair could produce. A-Rod is very the pantomime villain of this game, like Barry Bonds before him. He may have missed out on the hall of fame permently, but this guy is going to go out swinging. One thing you cannot doubt about Rodriguez is his love of the game. I agree that his actions taken were foolish and have officially solidified his hate status among fans. But I for one would like to see him given one final season- if only for the fact that I am dying to see the reception he receives when he steps up to the plate at the Rogers Centre!
So far in spring training A-Rod has been hitting .333 with two hits in 3 games. Seems his spirit has not died out just yet.
Rodriguez career stats on the surface read like a dream and would probably have seen him grace the hall of fame automatically. A .299 batting average, 654 home runs, 2.939 hits and an incredible 1,919 RBI's rival his long time friend Derek Jeter's stats. But the one element to his play that caused friction among baseball fans is his lackluster ability during the playoffs. A-Rod won a World Series in 2009 with New York, but prior to this his post season stats always seem to hover around the .200 mark! When you consider that this man has twice been the highest paid player in baseball, this leaves certain questions hanging! At one stage his career he was referred to as 'The Cooler' due to team being cold when he was with them and turning on a hot streak when he left.
Commissioner Rob Manfred believes that A-Rod deserves a second chance and feels that he was unfairly criticized by the Yankees when the scandal hit. Well if one of your key players got a ban for that long and gave the team a black eye, that reaction is expected. Since his return, Rodriguez has displayed some genuine remorse for his actions. He has appeared to have accepted that this whole affair was his own doing and is now content to shut up and play ball. In fairness to the guy that does take balls to come clean and from a character such as him known for his over confidence that was a big step forward.
Another question that come forward is his advancing age. This year Rodriguez will turn 40 and his roster spot for the first time in his career is not a guarantee! Yankees coach, Joe Girardi will be trying A-Rod at first base for spring training to see if he has still got it. Playing in this position is a first for this man and will either make or break his career. With Mark Teixeira already set here, A-Rod may find that his converted to being a DH. Some expert believes the Yankees will be better off cutting this guy from the roster to make room for newer talent. ESPN correspondent Chris Singleton has expressed his extreme doubts on his future on the game,
The one thing that baseball loves however, is a great story of redemption- and that is exactly that this whole affair could produce. A-Rod is very the pantomime villain of this game, like Barry Bonds before him. He may have missed out on the hall of fame permently, but this guy is going to go out swinging. One thing you cannot doubt about Rodriguez is his love of the game. I agree that his actions taken were foolish and have officially solidified his hate status among fans. But I for one would like to see him given one final season- if only for the fact that I am dying to see the reception he receives when he steps up to the plate at the Rogers Centre!
So far in spring training A-Rod has been hitting .333 with two hits in 3 games. Seems his spirit has not died out just yet.
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