How Terrible is A-Rod?

If you read No Owens, you understand that is an underlying lack of taste for a few prominent sports figures. Phil Mickelson, Derek Jeter, Michelle's Kwan and Wie, Brady Quinn are the biggest. Along with A-Rod. And now, he just goes and does it again.

Earlier this week, for whatever reason, A-Rod felt the need to tell the Post or the Times, I forget which one, that he wished he'd never signed with Texas and gone to the Mets. He would have been something great, on a great team, and he did admit that he took the money in Texas. I mean, he denied it for how long? It's not like everyone who follows baseball knows he followed the cash. And it's really ok. Most guys do. At least own it though.

How can we leave this out. He said he should have gone to the Mets. I'm sure that's exactly what all of the Yankee fans who are irritated that they haven't won a Series since the Paul O'Neil era want hear. He might as well talk about how he was almost a member of the Red Sox. You all know how I feel...Manny is the best right handed hitter in baseball, period.

But A-Rod, apparently, tries really hard to do everything right. Which on the field, other than coming up with big hits when it does actually count, he does. He gives monster cash to the U which is where he was going to play his college ball before he went number one overall. I mean, the stadium has his name on it. He tries to deal with the press. Not well. He always dresses well and has one smokin' hot wife, but the guy, for lack of a better word, is an idiot when it comes to deal with his personal image. He can't win, and it's his fault.

We talk about the lack of maturity that the high school kids in the NBA have. But how many careers in baseball have been like A-Rod's? The guy was drafted in 1993 as one of the best prospects ever. He saw 17 games in the bigs at the age of 18. 48 games at 19. At the age of 20, he hit .358 and won his only batting title. I mean, look at his stat line for that year: http://www.baseball-reference.com/r/rodrial01.shtml
It's unreal. At 20, he had probably his best season ever, even when you take into consideration that he was hitting second in the lineup, in front of Junior, Edgar and that Jay Buhner. By 25, he'd signed the biggest contract in the history of professional sports.

Again, we've talked about the basketball players. This guy has had more come to him at a faster pace than just about anyone. With no time to mature. I get it. This guy expects the world because it's been given to him. He tries to give back and that's nice. But the fact of the matter is that he still has no maturity. He still can't handle himself. He wasn't born with it and it's a skill he hasn't yet grasped. Jeter was a prospect much like A-Rod, but at least Jeter has the ability to be savvy. A-Rod just doesn't have it, just like you and I can't hit 50 jacks a year. So do I feel bad for the amount of pressure this guy has had to deal with? No. At 250 million dollar signs to play baseball, something we would kill to do for 50 thousand, no. He doesn't deserve it. He needs to learn to be an adult. And he still can't. Maybe he doesn't deserve the cash anyway.

Jose Canseco's new book allegedly states that Canseco introduced A-Rod to a steroid dealer at a party. A-Rod later tried to go plumbing with the guy's wife. Did anything happen? Well, A-Rod has nothing to say whatsoever about it to the press. The thing is...as trashy as Canseco is, he seems to be correct just about 100% of the time. Look what happened to Clemens when he decided to ignore the allegations. We are talking about the next 700 home run hitter here. I mean, if you could ignore how much bigger A-Rod has gotten since Seattle, you'd be one thing. A liar. I put those pics up that time. Go find them if you'd like. Moral of the story is that if Canseco calls you out, you're in trouble.

I don't feel bad for A-Rod. Not one bit. No one should. The guy is a plague. He's a terrible clubhouse guy who is as close to Barry Bonds in about every category as it gets. A-Rod likes Armani a whole lot more, other than that, there isn't much. So don't ignore this A-Rod stuff, but think about it like the basketball kids who have never grown up. Or like Deion Sanders. Oh, A-Rod and Bonds have another thing in common. No ring.