New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez (13) comes up to bat against the Los Angeles at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California on June 5, 2011. The Yankees won 5-3. UPI/Lori Shepler.
“We’re talking to people involved in the investigation and we’re taking this very seriously,” said an MLB executive who spoke to ESPNNewYork.com on condition of anonymity. “Because he had been warned about this before, I would say a possible suspension would be very much in play.”
The allegations, first published by RadarOnline.com, are that the New York Yankees third baseman played in at least two of the games, one of which took place at the Beverly Hills mansion of a record executive at which “cocaine was openly used and a fight nearly broke out when one of the players refused to pay after losing “more than a half-million dollars.”
According to the story, details of which were reportedly provided by another player at the games, Rodriguez “tried to distance himself from the game,” once the violence broke out.
“He just shook his head, not knowing what the hell happened,” the whistle-blower revealed. “He didn’t want to deal with it at all. He was like, ‘OK, whatever. It’s your game.’ I would estimate A-Rod lost, like, a few thousand dollars that night. After everything that happened, he paid up and left.”
In 2005, Rodriguez had been warned about gambling in underground poker clubs by the Yankees and by baseball commissioner Bud Selig, both of whom were concerned that possible involvement with gamblers who might be betting on baseball games could result in a Pete Rose-type lifetime ban from baseball.
Let me get this straight, Major League Baseball turned a blind eye to steroid use for over a decade but a player participates in a poker game and the league is taking the situation “very seriously?” What, if the league can’t make money off the situation then it’s ready to jump into action? Come on.
Look, I don’t condone drug use and seeing as how A-Rod was warned by the Yankees and MLB not to participate in these games, he’s subject to punishment. But this situation seems rather hypocritical in my eyes. Players probably gamble all the time in the clubhouse or on road trips, but because A-Rod was gambling in someone’s house now it’s a problem? If the league is so worried about a Pete Rose effect, then why doesn’t it ban all forms of gambling? Go Big Brother on everyone. (And really, poker? They’re in a tizzy about a poker game? Get real.)
Again, Rodriguez had been warned so if he obeyed the people that sign his checks, then he should be punished. But it would be ridiculous if MLB made a huge deal out of this and suspended him for an inordinate amount of games. Besides, had the U.S. government not shut down all of the online poker sites a few months ago, A-Rod could have played in the comforts of his own home.
If you’re anything like me, I hate it when my favorite team signs an aging veteran free agent. I’ve uttered the phrase, “Please God don’t let them sign that crusty old vet,” too many times to count.
But those “crusty old vets” hold a ton of importance to a team’s success, especially in baseball where World Series-winning rosters usually have a mixture of both youth and veteran experience. Take the World Champion Giants for example. They won because of their young pitching, but it wasn’t Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain or Madison Bumgarner who wound up holding the World Series MVP Trophy at the end. It was 35-year-old Edgar Renteria, who was cursed by the SF faithful for being yet another horrible Brian Sabean signing, but wound up being a Fall Classic hero.
Today’s media doesn’t pay enough homage to the older MLB players. In fact, when fellow TSR contributor David Medsker and I were brainstorming ideas for a new feature, the first thing I brought up was that we should do an all 24-and-younger MLB team comprised of…well the idea is pretty self explanatory.
It wasn’t until David and I exhausted that idea before he sent me an e-mail that simply read: “Has anyone done an all 35-and-over team?”
Perfect. The moment I read it I burst into laughter. Could you imagine compiling a team of players that were only 35 years or older when present day teams usually build around youth? I love it.
Unfortunately, the guys over at Off Base Percentage beat us to the punch by compiling their own 35-plus year old team, so David and I decided to actually hold a live draft in order to make two teams. (Take that OBP.)
Below is a round-by-round breakdown of our all 35-and-older MLB draft. We selected a player for every infield position, plus three outfield positions, four starting pitchers (we only had eight to choose from), three relievers, one DH and two bench spots. Once the draft started, David and I quickly developed different strategies for building our rosters, so it was interesting to see how the draft played out. Take a look and let us know if you would have gone a different route.
A few Fox honchos’ ears were burning Sunday night in Dallas — and it had nothing to do with the action on the Cowboys Stadium field. Turns out Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez wanted to slug a few folks after he spotted himself and his girlfriend Cameron Diaz being shown to the 111 million people watching the game.
America saw the actress lovingly feeding popcorn into A-Rod’s mouth.
“He really went ballistic — thinking the cameraman was out to get them in a paparazzi-like shot. … That’s so crazy,” said my source. “Anyone who knows anything about producing a live sports event — especially something as huge as the Super Bowl — would know that those celebrity shots are purely random.
“A-Rod, of all people, should know that.”
After that one shot — which frankly was totally innocent and kind of sweet — Rodriguez got a guarantee that he and Diaz would not be televised any further.
Here’s an idea — if you don’t want the camera to catch your girlfriend feeding you popcorn, THEN DON’T LET HER FEED YOU POPCORN AT THE F#$%!NG SUPER BOWL!
This is it — this is where ego and idiocy converge.
Just because he complained to Fox, I’m going to post the video here, in case you missed it:
With a dominating effort over the Yankees in the ACLS, the Texas Rangers have punched their first ticket to the World Series in club history.
Colby Lewis allowed just one run over eight innings in the Rangers’ 6-1 win in Game 6 Friday night. The only run he allowed shouldn’t even have counted, as A-Rod scored on what was deemed a wild pitch, but replays showed that the ball actually hit Nick Swisher’s leg.
No matter. Lewis yielded just three hits and struck out seven while frustrating Yankee hitters with his outstanding command of the strike zone. He won both of his ALCS starts, posting a 1.98 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP with 13 Ks over 13 2/3 innings.
Josh Hamilton was named series MVP, as he reached base in all four plate appearances on Friday and batted .350 with four long balls in six games. Considering his long personal battle with drugs, alcohol and immense ups and downs, it’s amazing how far he’s come. He’s an easy guy to root for if you know his background and he’s a true comeback tale.
As for the Yankees, they can only blame themselves. They hit just .201 to the Rangers’ .304, while driving in 19 runs to Texas’ 38 RBI. They were also bested in home runs (9 to 6) and ERA (6.58 to 3.06).
This is yet another example of how baseball is won on the field – not in the offseason. The Bombers could have spent triple what they did this year to field a team and they still would have had to execute on the field. But they didn’t and now they’ll be at home come November.
Comment Starter: The Rangers now await the winner of the NCLS between the Phillies and Giants, as San Fran currently holds a 3-2 lead. What matchup would you most like to see? The two underdogs or a powerhouse Phillies-Rangers matchup?
Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to hit 600 home runs when he launched a Shaun Marcum 2-0 pitch over the centerfield wall during the Yankees’ game with the Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon.
Excuse me while I wet myself.
The blast broke a string of 12 games in which A-Rod was so overcome with pressure that he managed to hit only .177 with no home runs. While I can’t prove that pressure was the thing that was holding him back, rumor has it he hasn’t slept in nearly 10 nights and has often been seen shaking uncontrollably at the mere mention that he has to perform. (All right, so I can’t prove that either.)
A-Rod now joins an elite club that includes Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755), Babe Ruth (714), Willie Mays (660), Ken Griffey Jr. (630) and Sammy Sosa (609) to have accomplished the feat.
Too bad only four of those seven players didn’t need to enlist the help of performance-enhancing drugs in order to reach the milestone.
So way to go, A-HoleRod. Congratulations, or something.
I read yesterday that one of Pete Rose’s bats was being auctioned off, the one he used for his last hit, number 4256. And it made me wonder if that will ever be topped. I can’t imagine it will be, but stranger things have happened. Of course, the Baseball Hall of Fame still fails to recognize what Rose did on the field because of what he did as a manager off the field. But that’s for another post. Here is a look at the Top 10 active leaders in base hits:
1. Derek Jeter, New York Yankees (2824)—The classiest player by far in the big leagues today, and the epitome of someone who plays the game right and just gets it. I look forward to Jeter notching his 3000th hit, which will likely be next season.
2. Ivan Rodriguez, Washington Nationals (2781)—In his twentieth season this year, I-Rod is batting .331. No loss of bat speed with this guy, that’s for sure.
3. Omar Vizquel, Chicago White Sox (2724)—Amazingly, Vizquel is in his 22nd season and still looks like he’s 28 years old. I got to see him play in his prime in Cleveland, and he was/is the best defensive shortstop I’ve ever seen. But he has clearly racked up hits too.
4. Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees (2596)—Well, duh. The question is, though, will he eventually be the all-time home run king?
5. Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles Dodgers (2530)—Yeah, he juiced, and so did A-Rod. But these two guys still have to be incredibly talented ball players to rack up this many hits.
6. Garret Anderson, Los Angeles Dodgers (2515)—Steady and classy as well, but it’s just hard to believe Garret Anderson is 38 years old. Didn’t he just break into the bigs?
7. Johnny Damon, Detroit Tigers (2482)—Scrappy, solid player, and he just keeps on grinding. But do any of you remember Damon’s days with the Royals? I sure don’t.
8. Chipper Jones, Atlanta Braves (2444)—Another guy who defines playing the game the way it was meant to be played, and he just keeps on hitting well into his thirties.
9. Vladimir Guerrero, Texas Rangers (2326)—He’s hitting .339 with 53 RBI on June 11. Vlad is another ageless wonder.
10. Edgar Renteria, San Francisco Giants (2213)—It’s kind of amazing that Renteria is on this list, even though he’s never had a 200-hit season. But he’s been reliable and consistent all these years.
Braden, the A’s left-hander best known for his dust-up with A-Rod over pitcher’s mound etiquette, yesterday hurled the 19th perfect game in major league history, shutting down the Rays, 4-0.
But his grandmother, Peggy Lindsey, who rasied him in Stockton, Calif. (home of the 209 area code), after his mother, Jodie Atwood, died of cancer when he was a senior in high school, had the last word — appropriately on Mother’s Day.
“Stick it, A-Rod,” the feisty granny told Bay Area reporters after her grandson had completed his gem.
As Braden was approaching perfection, Rodriguez had nothing but good wishes for the 26-year-old.
“Something I’ve learned throughout my career is it’s much better to be recognized for the great things you do on the field,” Rodriguez said before the Yankees played last night in Boston. “Good for him. Even better, he beat the Rays.”
A-Rod has kept his cool since his dustup with Braden, but how funny is it that Rodriguez tried to make Braden out to be a nobody after the incident and then the A’s pitcher goes out and hurls a perfect game less than a month later? It was the biggest middle finger that Braden could have given A-Rod.
It was also ironic that another unwritten rule was broken during one of Braden’s start. During the fifth inning of the game yesterday, Rays’ slugger Evan Longoria tried to bunt for a hit, which is regarded as a sin when a pitcher is in the midst of a perfect game. Personally, I think that unwritten rule is flat out stupid (the entire point for hitters is to get on base anyway they can, remember?), but if anyone were upset by Longoria’s bunt attempt, I can’t blame him or her. Evan Longoria bunt? Come on.
A’s pitcher Dallas Braden still hasn’t gotten over A-Rod’s decision to run across the mound following a game last month and has decided to stir the pot with more comments.
From ESPN.com:
Braden said he was particularly peeved that Rodriguez dismissed his actions and words merely because Braden hasn’t done much as a major leaguer yet.
“There’s two ways that I can comment on that, and I’ll give you both of them,” Braden said to CSN Bay Area. “One, I was always told if you give a fool enough rope, he’ll hang himself, and with those comments, he had all the rope he needed. No. 2, I didn’t know there was a criteria in order to compete against A-Rod.”
Rodriguez also is a selfish player, Braden added.
“He’s an individualistic player,” Braden told CSN Bay Area. “He plays for the name on the back of the jersey, not the front. I don’t know if he’s noticed, but he doesn’t have a name on the back over there so he should play for the name on the front.”
If this was the first time A-Rod had broken one of the unwritten rules of baseball, then I would call out Braden for overreacting. But this isn’t, and I happen to find the pitcher’s comments funny.
That said, at some point Braden is just going to have to get over it. The game was two weeks ago – let it go, my friend.
Federal agents have reached out to several of Alex Rodriguez’s assistants, including those that handle his scheduling and finances, in attempt to learn more about his relationship with Canadian doctor Anthony Galea.
From the New York Times:
According to two people briefed on the investigation, which is seeking to determine if Galea distributed performance-enhancing drugs, agents want to question people associated with the Yankees’ Rodriguez — particularly the assistants who have handled his scheduling and finances — to determine the number of times he met with Galea, where they met and how much money Galea was paid for his services.
The effort to talk to people connected to Rodriguez comes as he and his lawyers have put off several meetings with federal agents, who have yet to question him about Galea. Those delays have aroused the curiosity of the agents, the two people said, and helped prompt them to contact others in Rodriguez’s circle.
They said investigators have not made equivalent efforts to question people associated with Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran of the Mets, both of whom met with federal authorities in Florida more than a month ago to answer questions about their own dealings with Galea. It was at that time that federal investigators made their first unsuccessful efforts to meet with Rodriguez.
If A-Rod and his lawyers knew what was best for them, they would cooperate. I say that with Michael Vick in mind, seeing as how the quarterback went down rather quickly after lying about his involvement in dog-fighting.
If Rodriguez is hiding his relationship with Galea, the feds will sniff it out eventually and then he might find himself right back in the middle of controversy.
Savvy fantasy drafters realize that the pool for third basemen this year isn’t as shallow as catchers and shortstops, but it isn’t as deep as second basemen either (which may sound surprising to some owners).
What does that mean to you? Well, if you don’t grab one of the top seven or eight third basemen in your draft, then good luck trying to figure out which player after that will exceed expectations.
Drafting third basemen is pretty cut and dry. If you don’t land one of the top 3 (Alex Rodriguez, Evan Longoria or David Wright), then focus on drafting one of the next five 3B’s available or you better hope that Gordon Beckham or Ian Stewart are the ultimate sleepers this season. We don’t need to sell you on why you should take A-Rod, Longoria or Wright, so we’re going to concentrate on the next five rated players on our list, which we’ve highlighted for you below.
Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals
There’s a good chance that Zimmerman will plateau at around 30 home runs (which is nothing to scoff at), but it’s hard to argue with what he’ll bring to the table in terms of production across the board. He should hit around .300 (or maybe a little south of that number), with 100-plus runs and RBI, all while stealing 5-10 bases and hitting the aforementioned 25-30 home runs. That’s solid production for your third base position if you happen to miss out on one of the top three guys.
