For Alex Rodriguez, It’s Another Big Number

A terrific athlete, simple as that. Rodriguez spent a year out of baseball for breaking the rules but that is done with. Why should we punish Rodriguez further than MLB already and properly has?

All it takes is a few home runs to turn the anti-Rodriguez crowd into Rodriguez boosters. They guy cheated and took performance enhancing drugs. He should have been banned from ever returning to the field of professional baseball. Case closed. Morality in America has morphed into a fluid commodity.

Despite all of Alex Rodriguez's troubles in the past few years with performance enhancing drugs, he has been able to come back this year to achieve many milestones. After a year of suspension from the MLB Rodriguez has come back this year and joined some of baseball's greats with his high achievements. He is one of five players to have ever hit 660 home runs. He has also become the 29th player in MLB history to get 3000 hits. Many thought Rodriguez would never be able to return from his suspension with such success. Another amazing part of his success this year is that Alex Rodriguez is achieving all this as a forty year old. Only nine active players are older than Rodriguez, and only two of them are not pitchers! Also, only one of the forty plus year old players who is a hitter is a regular starter. This shows that Alex Rodriguez is achieving and performing better than any other player his age.

I enjoyed this article because it shows that you are never too old to accomplish greatness. I also learned that no matter the size of the obstacles that stand in your path you can always overcome them. Alex Rodriguez showed this by overcoming his suspension with steroid and missing an entire season. Most people his age would have considered retirement after the suspension but he served his suspension and came back better than ever. In an age when enrollment in little league baseball is declining I think Rodriguez has given fans great reasons to love baseball.

A-Rod is a positive influence on the young players of this team. He is discussing
the game with them and being a great teammate ( see Mantle's plaque in Monument Park ). Let's not put down the DH role since as American League fans we should appreciate how it can allow us to see great players perform at a
high level at an advanced age ( see Edgar Martinez ).

It's great to see Alex doing well. Half of the people on here criticizing him can barely spell but oh well, not my business. So let's get to it. Alex has been an elite player all his life and that of course has been thanks to the juice. Had he not taken PEDs, he still would've been great and without a doubt in my mind, A sure shot in the hall of fame. I don't blame him completely for taking the drugs that helped him achieve baseball immortality ( whether good or bad )
I am sure his entourage played a big part in advising him to do so. His trainers and his agents were all involved in the PEDs fiasco. Do we remember when a package arrived at Scott Boras' agency with his name on it?
That contained HGH and it was for Yankees former pitcher Carl Pavano and of course, your boy, A-Rod. A-Rod has been on the juice for 90% of his career but because people advised him to do so. People who are also close to MLB. People that train him everyday. People that helped him become the $300M man he is today. He didn't take it upon himself to guy buy these drugs himself and shoot em

Poor standards by the New York Times: here you have a scientifically proven, admitted cheater who has possibly never played a clean game in his life and he's getting high praise from the Times.

Yet there's Tom Brady and the Times already had him visit the guillotine because of alleged cheating, and there's not a shred of evidence, scientific or otherwise, to indicate he cheated.

Where's the standard, Times editors?

He is a CHEATER....and we should all reject what he's trying to achieve, and that the Yankee's ownership should have kept him on, only shows GREED on their part as well.
Like Pete Rose, maybe he lies to himself about what he is doing, whether he is doping again or not.
The New York media should quit reporting what he does and maybe he would learn a lesson about morality.

Go Alex!!!! Si se puede!!!

Alex is juicing (again). There's no way at 40 he's producing like he is without a little help from his friends. He trains one way, by doping, and that's the only way he knows. He's never been clean and he's not clean now. He's just learned how to hide it better and cheat the testing. By the way, is he being tested?

I've never been particularly fond of Rodriquez' personality, but I agree that he deserves credit for this year and I strongly doubt that he's still taking PEDs. Anyway, it's nice to see the Yanks again being the Bronx Bombers.

Sense of accomplishment?

Let me not burst your bubble Billy Witz, but those who have followed the game of baseball for more than the last fifteen minutes do not even think what Alex Rodriguez has done compares with real greats of baseball like those of Ruth, Mays or Aaron.

Because the real greats of this game did not have all of the benefits of modern sports training and medicine at their fingers.

Nor did they have the crutch of the designated hitter to artificially extend their careers when a ballplayer was no longer capable to play in the field, which is something that Ruth and Mays could have certainly made use of at the end of their careers.

But, more importantly, the real greats of the game did not disgrace their ball club, their fans and the game of baseball by cheating with steroids, which gave players like Alex Rodriguez a clear edge in artificially extending his career by allowing him to artificially bulk up, ease the pain of his injuries and speed up recovery from injuries.

I agree with those who feel A-Fraud is still juicing. Is he doing Human Growth Hormones? Are they testing for that? Barry Bonds bulked up on steroids and then sustained that strength with HGA, which I think was not illegal, but it is immoral and sullies the sport, and certainly makes mockery of the hallowed statistics and records set by Ruth, Maris and Aaron. All stats from Bonds, A-Rod, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire should be purged from the record books.

Part of why he's helping the Yankees so much is that he's behaving.
"Perhaps for the first time since heading to New York in 2004, he has let his bat do all the talking."
No discord in the clubhouse, keeping humble, positive attitude, a year of yoga, clean of drugs, huge numbers. I would never have thought he could do it. He's applied his incredible physical discipline to his behavior off field and on. At the beginning of the season, I didn't look forward to his return. If he only played well, that would have hurt the team more than it helped. But he's doing the right thing, and that's actually made me like him a little, and look forward to seeing him play.

A-Rod was a great player before he took anything. He has not forgotten how to hit. With the DH he is able to continue being the hitter he was. I don't believe he is still on the juice, too much testing has gone on. Now that he is a DH, I have a problem with all those records he is claiming. He is not a complete player now, just part time, getting plenty of rest and staying away from injury. To establish any records he should be playing full time, and, of course, he did a lot of his record breaking home runs while he was on the juice. He is just another gifted player taking advantage of the DH. National league players don't have that luxury so how fair is it?

Whomever team one supports one cannot deny that Rodriquez has been outstanding.His success this season, illustrates his great baseball talents, & boggles the mind as to why he resorted to steroids that ruined his health & his career.We are indeed our own worst enemies.

If I were commish, he and all his PED useing commrades, Sousa, Bonds, McGuire, Palmero (among my favorite players of all time until he used), Clements, etc al, and including Pete Rose, would be banned for life, their records striken from all statitics, and there would be no consideration for admission to the HOF. Not only did these men use PEDs and gamble on the game, but they vehemently lied about it. What they did was a travesty and a made a mockery of the performance of all the players who did not use PEDS or gamble on the game.

nice article, nicely written.
I didn't like an article a day or two ago that I thought demeaned the team. The article said the Yankees were built to win at home and implied they were really losers in bigger ballparks. I put on the game tonite just after Warren came in. I was thinking I know rodriguez going to hit a homer. I was disappointed at the score when I put it on. with a-rod coming up, I learned he'd already hit his homer. well, I thought, so he'll hit a second one. The third one was very cool. And the win very sweet. This team can make it (if Warren displaces CC). They have the faith and we should support them. & sweetest of all is maybe that Rodriguez is the team leader. Maybe with Jeter gone & a-rod's come-uppance, and real maturity, he's blossomed as an old dude!

All of his stats won't matter for he took drugs to strengthen his ability to perform. the con job continues. He will have a start next to his stats when he retire, remember Mark McGuire crying in front of Congress. Baseball is a joke now. No longer taken seriously with clowns like AROD.

A year ago every time there was another news report about Alex I wished it was the last. I was so tired of hearing about him and his denials, lawyers, his next steps. I just wanted him to go away. Super rich, super talent, and super stupid and woefully self centered. This year he has me convinced he is a different person. Humbled, positive, productive, let's his game do the talking. To call it refreshing is an understatement. I don't care about all this Hall of Fame stuff. I care about the Yankees going as far as they can.

Yeah, A-Rod! Congratulations on your achievements this season. It's a joy to watch you play.

The question I have is why when A-Rod is having one of his best years did he ever need PED's? Too much too late?

A long time ago (as in Spring Training), I proposed that the only way to quell the speculation on A-Rod and PED's was if he agreed to be regularly tested, and the test results made public. Now, he is having by all accounts a comeback year, and I think the torrent of comments by those who have "no doubt" that the results stem from continued juicing have buttressed the prediction. Of course, the skeptics have absolutely no proof to back up their claims. Yet, by the same token, those of us who are impressed by A-Rod's bounce back can't feel comfortable, given his past transgressions. So, how about it MLB, the player's union and, most of all, A-Rod? Let's end the debate by full transparency and disclosure!

It is amazing, but not surprising, to find that the Rodriguez "Hate Club" is still alive and well.

It is also amusing that this is the same crowd that can not accept the fact that Rodriquez's recent productivity on the field is non steroid related. People from the DEA could test this guy for the rest of the season before and after any game he went 3-4 and if the results were negative, the "Hate Club" would swear up and down that the medical officials administering the tests were being payed off.

People should remember that Rodriguez was an incredible baseball talent long before his experimentation with performance-enhancing drugs. Given that fact, it stands to reason that what we're seeing from Rodriguez now is an effort to rebuild his image without the aid of anything other than the talent God gave him.

A-Rod always has been one of the greatest players. He cheated and paid dearly for it. He has transformed into a model player and most importantly is producing significantly. He has turned things around. Give him credit. Forgive his weakness of the past and revel in his and the Yankees revival. Go Yanks.

With the numbers A-Rod is putting up this year, do you think he wonders why he ever juiced to begin with?

Cubs’ Futility Can Be Traced to a Promise, Not a Curse is a lovely autobiographical writing by the son of a photographer - and those two were Cubs fans at that time. From 1950 to 1956 I grew up on The South Side, and Hank Sauer was the subject of daily conversation. The Cubs had won a World Series. When would they repeat, we asked. We were living in despair - in a mental institution on The South Side, but we wondered about that North Side team for no good reason other than they never seemed able to win. I was then and am now a Yankees fan. Casey Stengel, three 20 game winners, Mantle history captured my imagination. Baseball was important as I learned to read.

I comment Billy Witz for some good writing. The meaning of sport to the sports writer is vital to his interpretation. Ask Michael Powell, one of the best writers at The New York Times - or anywhere.

Hopefully, the recovery to sanity of Alex Rodriquez will become the focus at some point. This is the story in sport. The past is important - and why is important. We have children and presidents that need to learn these things.

I worshiped Lou Gehrig for his decency. I wondered about DiMaggio's chasing. I loved Stengel's sense of humor. I found the bad ball hitting of Yogi Berra fascinating.

And I find the apparent recovery of Alex Rodriguez as inspiring as any story in baseball or sport today. This man trashed himself as he piled up the money.

But the photographer of Billy Witz raised a son with little. He knows.

The coulda-woulda-shoulda are silly. We know it all - he'll never make it to the Hall of Fame and has been about as smart as used banana peel. It sould make no difference now. He may be a dope (in many ways...) but he's had a career fully as incredible as Ruth, Mays and DiMaggio. Just watch and enjoy because you're not going to see one of those for a long time.

Many seem skeptical whether the HR's A-Rod is hitting this season is due to still being on 'power pills.' I find it amusing that the same people that scream 'cheater' to him at the games he plays, were the same people cheering like crazy when balls were flying out of stadiums at a record pace. I am willing to give Rodriguez the benefit of a doubt on the success he is having this year. I think much of this is due to the self imposed time he had off which gave his body time to rest and heal. Also, being the Yanks primary DH helps in not having the wear and tear of having to play the field.

Yay, A-Rod! Great to have you back! Great to see you playing so well! Great to see you enjoying playing! Yay, A-Rod!

A-Rod and Lance Armstrong are twin brothers in different sports. They deserve the same ending. A-Rod can spend the rest of his life playing Mother Teresa, but it's too little too late. Good luck in retirement, but no Hall for you.

Billy Witz,

I have never been an fan of Alex Rodriguez. I admire him today. I do.

His past is not pleasant. Many aspects have harmed him and harmed baseball. And his manner was offensive, to boot. He heard boos today for his past. I cannot imagine the fans booing him for his excellence.

Today he has mastered himself. He has reached a point where all can say he has learned. That is worth cheers. Many cheers.

He has become an example of a man that can grow and change for the better. May the nation and all sport learn from this transition.

Why not say this, Sir?

Is he being tested for enhancing drugs after he plays each game? If he is being tested and is staying clean, give him credit. He is helping the Yankees and I say more power to him.

And while we're at it, let's get Pete Rose out of purgatory too.

It is laughable that people are talking as if Alex is still juicing. He is the most tested player around these days. The angry barb throwers notwithstanding, the man had been a model player this season and has been producing too. His big bat and Tex's too, are making the middle of the order formidable and the Ysnks fun to watch. If the old guys can stay healthy, they just might make the post season, which will be fun for the fans. Enjoy it people and lose the soap opera mentality.

Either steroids don't work or he is still on them. At 40, the same age that Derrick hit 4 home runs, Alex is hitting 470 foot bombs. So either steroids are completely ineffective, or he is still taking them. I don't see any other way around it. His none steroids numbers and his steroid numbers, even at this late age, are very similar. I guess all these guys wasted the money with all these doctors.

When a story is too good to be true, it ends up being a lousy story eventually.
Froome's times in the Tour de France. A-Rod's home runs this year. Juice is the word.

Had a pretty good night tonight with the Yankees come back win over the Twins.

Change the rules so that guys like this are kicked out permanently and have to repay their salaries. Baseball is disgraced by the continual employment of these pathological cheaters.

When I saw your headline, I assumed "another big number" referred to how many asterisks will have to follow his name in the record books........The numbers will be hollow....perhaps their quantity will tell us more about A-PED.

Perhaps A-Rod should be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame twice, once with McGwire, Sosa and Bonds and another time with non-juiced players (although Babe Ruth's hot dogs could have had performance enhancing chemicals; you never know with hot dogs). He was an All Star before he juiced, an All Star when he juiced and now an All Star after giving up the juice.

Pretty smart not to slide on one of those repaired hips. Moreover, we do not know if the PEDs enhanced or hindered his longevity, because they make certain tissues more brittle (as I have been told when getting legal cortisone shots) even as they promote healing. The key was the whole year off, when Alex Rodriquez must have worked very hard -- that is what we are now seeing pay off. Not much of an athlete, I do say that at 40 I could outrun most baseball players of any age and certainly the present day A Rod. I paid the price later. Anyway, HOF or not, it is nice to see that great swing back working for us. Now, perhaps he should thin of re-marrying Cynthia, the mother of his children!

Amazing they let him back into the game. Did they test him during his year off, or was he able to use whatever he wanted to during that time?

I find it an outrage that his is allowed to play still after being found so totally guilty. Take Lance Armstrong's punishment as an example. Strike all his records, ban him for life.

AROD: "I think everybody remembers your 40th birthday"

Strangely, I don't. I am 51 now and I have no memory of how I celebrated 11 years ago.

How much of his longevity is due to his use of PEDs?

The PED use calls into question all of his stats including # of games played.

Sorry Alex. You and Barry........and Mark , Sammy , Rafael and Roger are condemned to your own version of baseball purgatory..........Great numbers but no HOF admission.