05/11: Thinking About A-Rod
Posted by: James
Here's an interesting tid-bit...for as good as Ortiz has been, as big a Yankee-killer as he has been in his career, want to know who's been just as good (better, in my oipinion)? A-Rod.
David Ortiz in his career against the Yankees: 74 Games, 274 ABs: .325/.400/.602/1.002 with 17 Hrs and 59 RBIs. 37 BBs, 49 Ks and 1 SB.
-Just with the Red Sox: 56 games, 211 ABs,: .336/.409/.654/1.063 with 16 HRs and 50 RBIs. 28 BBs, 38 Ks and no SBs.
A-Rod against the Yanks: 74 Games, 308 ABs: .347/.398/.692/1.090 with 28 HRs and 72 RBIs. 29 BBs, 58 Ks and 14 SBs.
What does this prove? Nothing. Just like A-Rod's current travails with the Red Sox prove nothing about his worth as a player. He has hit them in the past to a tune of .290/.377/.539 /.916 with 20 HRs and 52 RBIs. But wait, you say, he doesn't hit them when he's with the Yanks. Oh, is that right? .285/.386/.530/.916 with 10 HRs and 21 RBIs would say differently. This is actually somewhat diminished since he started off his Yankees-Red Sox career with a 1-for-17 performance. Take away that those 4 games and voila, .313/.414/.590 /1.004 - MVP numbers.
He has, is and will continue to hit the Red Sox but people will continue to focus on the times that he fails rather than the times that he comes through (including a few moonshots off of self-promoter extrordinaire Curt Schilling). Of course, no one has even mentioned Jeter's numbers against the Sox in the same time period but that's a story for another time and it probably wouldn't matter if they did. The people who keep booing A-Rod are the same folks who were booing Jeter when he started off the 2004 season barely hitting .200, the same people who dared to boo Mariano after he blew a save early last year.
What can A-Rod do? Nothing really. It's simply the burden that he must carry because of
a) the contract that he signed (and I swear that anyone who says that they wouldn't have done the same thing should get a swift boot to the head - you don't pass up a quarter of a BILLION dollars),
b) the fact that he has (somewhat unfairly) become the face for the new Yankees (more than Giambi, Mussina, Johnson, etc.) and
c) he just hasn't had his defining Yankee moment yet.
However, if he keeps hitting to his ability, he'll have his big games against the Red Sox, just like he has in the past. Hopefully, they'll come on a big enough stage that they actually get remembered this time. So, call me an A-Rod apologist but I will continue to root for him whether or not anyone else does...and if A-Rod keeps putting up these numbers, he'll certainly give fans like me even more ammunition.
David Ortiz in his career against the Yankees: 74 Games, 274 ABs: .325/.400/.602/1.002 with 17 Hrs and 59 RBIs. 37 BBs, 49 Ks and 1 SB.
-Just with the Red Sox: 56 games, 211 ABs,: .336/.409/.654/1.063 with 16 HRs and 50 RBIs. 28 BBs, 38 Ks and no SBs.
A-Rod against the Yanks: 74 Games, 308 ABs: .347/.398/.692/1.090 with 28 HRs and 72 RBIs. 29 BBs, 58 Ks and 14 SBs.
What does this prove? Nothing. Just like A-Rod's current travails with the Red Sox prove nothing about his worth as a player. He has hit them in the past to a tune of .290/.377/.539 /.916 with 20 HRs and 52 RBIs. But wait, you say, he doesn't hit them when he's with the Yanks. Oh, is that right? .285/.386/.530/.916 with 10 HRs and 21 RBIs would say differently. This is actually somewhat diminished since he started off his Yankees-Red Sox career with a 1-for-17 performance. Take away that those 4 games and voila, .313/.414/.590 /1.004 - MVP numbers.
He has, is and will continue to hit the Red Sox but people will continue to focus on the times that he fails rather than the times that he comes through (including a few moonshots off of self-promoter extrordinaire Curt Schilling). Of course, no one has even mentioned Jeter's numbers against the Sox in the same time period but that's a story for another time and it probably wouldn't matter if they did. The people who keep booing A-Rod are the same folks who were booing Jeter when he started off the 2004 season barely hitting .200, the same people who dared to boo Mariano after he blew a save early last year.
What can A-Rod do? Nothing really. It's simply the burden that he must carry because of
a) the contract that he signed (and I swear that anyone who says that they wouldn't have done the same thing should get a swift boot to the head - you don't pass up a quarter of a BILLION dollars),
b) the fact that he has (somewhat unfairly) become the face for the new Yankees (more than Giambi, Mussina, Johnson, etc.) and
c) he just hasn't had his defining Yankee moment yet.
However, if he keeps hitting to his ability, he'll have his big games against the Red Sox, just like he has in the past. Hopefully, they'll come on a big enough stage that they actually get remembered this time. So, call me an A-Rod apologist but I will continue to root for him whether or not anyone else does...and if A-Rod keeps putting up these numbers, he'll certainly give fans like me even more ammunition.
Joseph P. wrote:
do better. And when I call him a bum, it means that he's currently a bum
but I know he can play otherwise.
And while I boo when he grounds into meaningful double plays, I still cheer
every time he gets on base. Because more than anything, I want A-Rod to
succeed and stick it to the people who think he'll never win a World Series.