Since signing a $252 million contract before the start of the
2001 season with the Texas Rangers, Alex Rodriguez has belted 152
home runs to go along with 389 RBI, an average of 51 home runs and
129 RBI each year.
He is a six-time all star, a Gold Glove winner and has been
named the American League’s Outstanding Player three times. Ask
baseball aficionados across the country who the best player in
Major League Baseball is today; a good percentage of those people
will say Alex Rodriguez.
I disagree.
Alex Rodriguez is not the best player in baseball. In fact, he
is not even the best player at his position.
Every September, a handful of teams are still battling in their
respective divisions or in the Wild Card race for that final
playoff spot. One pitch can seal the fate of an entire team, making
postseason dreams come true or reducing six months and 162 games to
mere futility.
Playing in this type of atmosphere is an experience foreign to
A-Rod since before the turn of the century. After two disappointing
seasons, the Rodriguez-led Texas Rangers are in last place in the
AL West again this year with a 66-84 record, 24.5 games behind the
division-leading Oakland Athletics and, once again, set to watch
the playoffs at home.
Rodriguez is a stats player. While his power numbers are
impressive, they do not necessarily promise — or deliver —
success. He does not have the credentials of a player like Barry
Bonds.
The Giants outfielder has carried his team to a 91-57 record
this year. Barry is so valuable that San Francisco has a losing
record this season in games in which he does not play. A-Rod has
more home runs and RBI than Bonds, but A-Rod’s .296 batting average
and .395 on base percentage cannot compete with Barry’s .341 and
.534, respectively.
Unlike Bonds, Rodriguez does not have the ability or the
leadership skills required to carry a team.
Look at A-Rod’s counterparts: Derek Jeter’s New York Yankees
(93-57), Nomar Garciaparra’s Boston Red Sox (87-62), and Miguel
Tejada’s Oakland Athletics (91-60) are all contributing on
playoff-bound teams.
Rodriguez lacks the pressure or incentive to succeed; he already
has his millions and does not play in stress-filled markets like
Boston and New York, cities whose fans turn on you if you do not
produce. With a relatively unimpressive batting average and 120
strike outs this year, it is possible that A-Rod may be thinking
about the long ball too often when he bats, and why not? With his
team in last place, he is not being relied upon to win games, so he
simply boosts his stats.
One must question Rodriquez’s mental toughness and intensity. In
the AL Divisional Series in 2001, Derek Jeter made one of the
headiest plays in postseason history.
With his team trailing 2-0 in the best of five series, Jeter
sprinted from shortstop to the first base line to catch a cut-off
throw from right field in stride and flipped the ball to Jorge
Posada, who tagged out Jeremy Giambi in a close play at home. That
single play changed the entire outlook and momentum of the
game.
The Yankees won the game and the series and advanced to the
World Series before losing in seven games to the Arizona
Diamondbacks.
Last year, Tejada had multiple game winning hits for the Oakland
Athletics during a 20-game win streak in the heat of a pennant race
that catapulted the A’s into the playoffs.
Perhaps that is why Tejada was voted the AL MVP over Rodriguez,
even though his numbers were not as extraordinary.
Would A-Rod have been able to do what Jeter and Tejada did?
Probably not. Perhaps some people are beginning to realize that it
does not matter what you do but rather when you do it and against
whom you do it.
Rodriguez may have the highest salary in the league. However, he
is not valuable in terms of making his teammates better and helping
them win.
If you want a player who will lead your team to the postseason,
go with experienced players like Jeter, Nomar or Tejada. The only
thing A-Rod will help you win is your fantasy league , and that is
the reality of the matter.
