chaka
Junior Member
Posts: 60
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 16:43:04 GMT -5
Post by chaka on Apr 7, 2007 16:43:04 GMT -5
Something's different so far this season (I know, small sample)...he looks like he doesn't give a fuck. Almost like he's not afraid to fail anymore. My heart was beating out of my chest when the count went to 1-2. And he completely obliterated that pitch. Crushed. 100% agreed. he looks different
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 16:45:24 GMT -5
Post by philinla on Apr 7, 2007 16:45:24 GMT -5
I think he feels like he's being honest, succeed or fail, and that's freeing him. I also think losing some weight and working with Kevin Long has really given him back to himself.
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 16:55:02 GMT -5
Post by kinger on Apr 7, 2007 16:55:02 GMT -5
Still the best player in baseball when he is right. I have not been that amped since Giambi hit the homer against Minnesota
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 17:11:59 GMT -5
Post by philinla on Apr 7, 2007 17:11:59 GMT -5
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 17:37:50 GMT -5
Post by David Goodman on Apr 7, 2007 17:37:50 GMT -5
He's playing mad now. Kind of like when Giambi got it going again a couple of years back. I know he's thinking fuck you to all the idiots in the media.
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 17:51:02 GMT -5
Post by philinla on Apr 7, 2007 17:51:02 GMT -5
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 19:02:21 GMT -5
Post by The Other Mike T. on Apr 7, 2007 19:02:21 GMT -5
Hmm. Anyone else think he'll lead us to the title this year and be revered for the rest of his career with the Yanks (like Mantle did)?
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 19:26:37 GMT -5
Post by philinla on Apr 7, 2007 19:26:37 GMT -5
In my life, I saw something similar happend with Ranger fans and Phil Esposito. They hated him, then for some reason, in `79, they discovered they loved him and he became the toast of the town. But he had fewer fans that ARod for a long time.
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 19:42:03 GMT -5
Post by David Goodman on Apr 7, 2007 19:42:03 GMT -5
Hmm. Anyone else think he'll lead us to the title this year and be revered for the rest of his career with the Yanks (like Mantle did)? I think that's exactly what's going to happen.
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A-Rod
Apr 7, 2007 20:30:14 GMT -5
Post by michael123 on Apr 7, 2007 20:30:14 GMT -5
Hmm. Anyone else think he'll lead us to the title this year and be revered for the rest of his career with the Yanks (like Mantle did)? I think that's exactly what's going to happen. I have mentioned in previous posts that A-Rod is going to have a big season, and will get a new deal. I do not think he wants out of NY. Today was a big time validation. It was great to see the Capitan embrace him and push him out for the curtain call. This should go along way to helping silence the A-Rod naysayers
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A-Rod
Apr 8, 2007 0:53:54 GMT -5
Post by pemoco on Apr 8, 2007 0:53:54 GMT -5
I think that this season is different for A-Rod, and it's more than the socks.
Without over-analyzing it, his public statements about last season and his relationship with Jeter had a cathartic quality about.
Also, losing some weight won't hurt. He didn't need to bulk up last season and looks more fluid at his current weight.
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jimb
New Member
Posts: 4
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A-Rod
Apr 8, 2007 12:09:56 GMT -5
Post by jimb on Apr 8, 2007 12:09:56 GMT -5
I loved how the O's pitcher, Ray, pointed up as in "fly ball" when A-Rod connected. LOL
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 15:06:19 GMT -5
Post by stevej on Apr 10, 2007 15:06:19 GMT -5
Arod has the look. Simms with the NY Giants had it in 86, culminating with the SB win. His eyes show a man with determination.
However he has done it, Arod is focused. I'm glad.
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dan66
Full Member
Posts: 106
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 16:59:57 GMT -5
Post by dan66 on Apr 10, 2007 16:59:57 GMT -5
His name is Alex Rodriguez so why not call him that? Is it to hard to type his name? You never hear his teammates or manager call him Arod. He should ask to be referred by his name and a good place for this to start is at YES to help the fans to humanize him as Arod nickname equates objectification.
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 17:03:48 GMT -5
Post by sinctybldh on Apr 10, 2007 17:03:48 GMT -5
i type arod because its quicker than typing his full name.
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dan66
Full Member
Posts: 106
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 17:13:12 GMT -5
Post by dan66 on Apr 10, 2007 17:13:12 GMT -5
It's not so bad for fans more precisely younger fans to call or refer to him as Arod but the press is a different story. Why not just call him Alex like his teammates? Alex sounds like a person and Arod an object and to get the NY fans to support him it's imperative to change this if you're in his corner.
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 18:14:26 GMT -5
Post by HomerSimpson on Apr 10, 2007 18:14:26 GMT -5
We could call him Inanimate Carbon Rod, if we feel so inclined... Alex works OK for me, too...
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 19:01:02 GMT -5
Post by David Goodman on Apr 10, 2007 19:01:02 GMT -5
I'll just call him mvp.
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A-Rod
Apr 10, 2007 19:25:09 GMT -5
Post by The Other Mike T. on Apr 10, 2007 19:25:09 GMT -5
Dan - LT or Lawrence Taylor?
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A-Rod
Apr 11, 2007 11:53:52 GMT -5
Post by sinctybldh on Apr 11, 2007 11:53:52 GMT -5
this is ridiculous. On Colin Cowherd this morning they are talking about the "sensitive nature" of John Sterling's call of Arods home runs when he says an "A bomb for Arod" As if to say it could offend japanese people due to the attack on Hiroshima.
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A-Rod
Apr 12, 2007 22:24:41 GMT -5
Post by pemoco on Apr 12, 2007 22:24:41 GMT -5
A's empathize with A-Rod's N.Y. story Susan Slusser, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, April 13, 2007
(04-12) 19:06 PDT -- Even if Yankees fans outnumber Oakland fans this weekend at the Coliseum, as occasionally happens, New York third baseman Alex Rodriguez is likely to get a warmer welcome here than on his home field.
Or at least less grief. Rodriguez, long considered the top all-around player in baseball, has a turbulent relationship with the Yankee Stadium crowd. When he's not performing up to expectations -- and expectations for him are off the charts -- he is showered with boos. Rodriguez, who has a sensitive side, appears hurt by the verbal abuse now and then, and that seems only to make matters worse.
"I'd take it personally, too," Oakland third baseman Eric Chavez said. "If you're the best player in the game and you're treated like a bum, you should be upset. I wouldn't be as nice about it as he is. I'd say, 'Fine, screw you.' "
New York fans like to vent, and Rodriguez is the highest-paid player in baseball, at $25 million per year. He's a natural lightning rod.
"He can hit a grand slam and then strike out the next inning and get booed," said Dan Haren, who is starting for Oakland tonight. "That kind of goes with the territory with that contract. You get the criticism and you get the praise."
Adding to the dysfunctional drama is the fact that Rodriguez can opt out of his record $252 million deal after this season, prompting numerous "will he or won't he?" articles and talk-show segments.
Oakland designated hitter Mike Piazza was a major sports figure in New York for years when he was with the Mets and he's not surprised by the reaction Rodriguez elicits.
"It's one of those things that is New York," Piazza said. "It's not a personal thing. You can't take it personally, because when you do, it intensifies. Obviously, it's frustrating for him, because this guy can change a game in an instant, and then the fans turn right around, too. It's happened to me, too, and it can get you down. It's exhausting.
"You play under a microscope in New York, especially when you're someone of A-Rod's stature. Everything you say or do is going to be scrutinized. That might make you want to lash out, but you have to realize that it's going to be a rollercoaster there. You've just got to ride out the lows, make them less intense."
The ups and downs for Rodriguez are already extreme, even just a week and a half into the season. He was booed almost from the first moment of Opening Day, when he made an error in the top of the first and struck out in the bottom of the first. He banged a homer later in the day, then at end of the week, Rodriguez beat the Orioles with a grand slam in the team's final at-bat.
Since then, the two-time MVP has been piling up the home runs, with a major-league leading six (compiled in the first seven games -- he's the first Yankees player to start out that fast). Rodriguez is batting .355 with a major-league leading 16 RBIs and a 1.065 slugging percentage, and he's tied for the league lead in runs, with 10.
"The guy is putting up pretty good numbers but he's in a no-win situation," Chavez said. "If he goes off and hits 50 homers and drives in 130 runs, maybe there will be some role reversal. Maybe there will be a little more cheering."
Haren pointed out that Rodriguez is not a one-man show. The Yankees as a whole are on an offensive roll, with a .348 batting average and a league-high 52 runs.
"Obviously, A-Rod is swinging the bat really well," Haren said. "I'm looking forward to facing them -- you look at the boxscore and Johnny Damon is hitting .556, Derek Jeter's hitting .400. It's going to be interesting to go through the tape and see where they're getting their hits. One through nine, they can all get you, but it will be fun for me. And I hope we get more A's fans than Yankees fans."
That's one sentiment Rodriguez might support.
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A-Rod
Apr 14, 2007 11:32:57 GMT -5
Post by pemoco on Apr 14, 2007 11:32:57 GMT -5
Look out, Barry, A-Rod's a-comin' Column by Carl Steward Inside Bay Area Article Last Updated:04/14/2007 02:37:35 AM PDT OAKLAND — Barry Bonds launched a pair of bombs in Pittsburgh Friday night, which not only pulled him a little closer to Hank Aaron, but at least for a day, a little further away from the hard-charging Alex Rodriguez.
OK, so Bonds still has a 267-homer lead on A-Rod. No reason for Barry to start hyperventilating yet. Not that he would anyway, seeing that he hasn't ever sweated anyone trying to run him down.
But if and when Bonds does get the all-time home run record sometime this year, he'd better ride it for all it's worth. Unlike Aaron's 33-year reign as the king, Barry may sit in the big chair for less than a decade.
The incredible power start of Rodriguez this season — six homers in his first seven games — has rekindled the notion that this guy A-Rod might be a pretty fair baseball player after all. Not only that, it has reenergized a once-prevailing supposition that Bonds will only be keeping the seat warm for the man who will one day take sports' most ballyhooed record completely out of sight.
For the moment — and yes, it's only April — A-Rod is A-God again. One homerless week and a couple of errors and he'll be back to being A-Dog in Gotham. But look, it's only the usual short-term New York neurotic nonsense. Long term, we'll one day view Rodriguez as one of the greatest players ever ... something he already is, to be perfectly frank about it.
Rodriguez, at a mere 31 years old, has 470 home runs through the beginning of what will be his 12th full season. Sick. Bonds, at the same stage, had right around 335. If A-Rod simply averages 30 homers a year over the next 10 seasons — and he's averaged roughly 43 a year over those first full 11 — he'll hit 770 home runs. If he continues at that 43-homer average, he'll be at 900 by age 41.
Of course, Bonds' big advantage is that he's already done it, or nearly done it. A career can be derailed over the course of 10 years, as we've seen. Rodriguez has a long road ahead to the 700 Club.
"It all comes down to staying healthy," said Yankees manager Joe Torre Friday night as New York hit town for a three-game weekend set with Oakland. "Look at (Ken) Griffey Jr. Everybody had high aspirations for him, then all of a sudden, he started getting hurt. You have to be lucky and stay healthy. But I don't think there's any question what Alex is capable of. The sky's the limit."
So far, so good on the health front. Rodriguez hasn't played fewer than 154 games since the 2000 season.
But what has even the Yankees buzzing right now is the mental constitution A-Rod seems to have crafted for himself. When Torre is asked what's changed about Rodriguez this year, he has an immediate response.
"Comfort," he said. "At the plate, it doesn't look like he's anxious. That's the biggest change that I see in his body language."
That comfort has produced a more all-around natural feel for what he is doing, both at the plate and in the field, where he has just one error after last year's disastrous season at third base.
"You can't just tell someone, 'All right, go out there and relax,'" Torre said. "It doesn't work. It's got to be something you condition yourself to do. I sensed right from spring training this year he seemed to be different. What caused it, I don't know."
There are a million theories in the naked city, but one that's plausible is A-Rod's recommitment to playing in New York despite having every opportunity in the offseason to bow out and go to a safer, saner stage. Rodriguez deserves a lot of credit for wanting to stick it out and prove to everyone that he can achieve ultimate stardom in the ultimate athletic asylum.
Clearly, there is an inner drive that pushes Rodriguez to be as great as he can possibly be. That's what appears to get him in trouble in the postseason — he tries too hard.
So far this season, Rodriguez has been hitting his long balls to all fields, a trademark of his earlier career. In short, he looks like the old A-Rod, capable of hitting any ball he gets into the air out of any part of any park.
A great start doesn't guarantee a great season, of course. But there's no mistaking that Rodriguez's approach is more calm and focused. Torre sees a man who not only accepts his fishbowl environment but is learning to thrive within it.
"You've just got to deal with it every day," Torre said. "Do I think it's fair? No. But it's reality. He calls attention to himself by having the ability he has, and he's also playing for the Yankees, which is like piling on."
It's like piling on an 800-pound gorilla. But it's probably not going to stop A-Rod from hitting at least 800 home runs.
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A-Rod
Apr 14, 2007 16:30:39 GMT -5
Post by sinctybldh on Apr 14, 2007 16:30:39 GMT -5
cashman needs to give arod a blank check.
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A-Rod
Apr 14, 2007 17:17:35 GMT -5
Post by daveinbayonne on Apr 14, 2007 17:17:35 GMT -5
Great article find, pem. And I second what sin said, pay that man (A-rod)!
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A-Rod
Apr 14, 2007 20:08:19 GMT -5
Post by pemoco on Apr 14, 2007 20:08:19 GMT -5
it's important to keep perspective on something like this. most fans have difficulty maintaining an understanding of the long-term. fortunately, cashman does not.
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A-Rod
Apr 16, 2007 14:43:36 GMT -5
Post by sinctybldh on Apr 16, 2007 14:43:36 GMT -5
Jordan (San Jose): True or False. A-Rod will not be wearing Pinstripes next year.
Buster Olney: Jordan: True. He's making a case for a new eight-year, $200 million contract, and the Yankees won't give him that; they've moved away, philisophically, from giving 6 or 7 or 8 years to veterans... The Angels or Dodgers or Giants might.
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A-Rod
Apr 16, 2007 15:46:18 GMT -5
Post by HomerSimpson on Apr 16, 2007 15:46:18 GMT -5
Buster's a fucking idiot...
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A-Rod
Apr 16, 2007 22:17:10 GMT -5
Post by pemoco on Apr 16, 2007 22:17:10 GMT -5
Onley can't count to two with both hands down his pants....
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A-Rod
Apr 17, 2007 22:00:47 GMT -5
Post by jumbo on Apr 17, 2007 22:00:47 GMT -5
JT the Brick: Get a grip, Yankee fans Time for New York to make right call: stop booing, and cheer 3rd baseman Updated: 8:39 p.m. ET April 17, 2007 Now that Alex Rodriguez has hit seven home runs and clearly looks like the early front runner for the MVP in the American League, it is time for all Yankee fans to shut up and just cheer for this great player. I have the right to say this as a lifetime Yankee fan who also hosts a radio show in Boston and interacts with more Yankee haters than anyone in sports radio. If I had my way, thousands of Yankee fans would be barred from the Bronx for their childish behavior as they continue to look like amateurs when A-Rod comes to the plate, booing him whenever he strikes out or makes an out. I thought New York fans were supposed to be the smartest baseball fans in America, along with fans in St. Louis, Los Angeles and Boston. It should be easy for every Yankees fan to figure out that if Rodriguez doesn't play at an All Star level, the Yankees have no chance at winning their 27th World Series. I obviously understand the frustration that every Yankee fans feels when Rodriguez makes an out with runners in scoring position, but he is still the best overall player in the game and desperately wants to win his first ring. He currently has 471 home runs to go along with 1,365 RBI and should easily end his career as the all-time home run and RBI king. New Yorkers should embrace the fact that A-Rod doesn't play in Boston, where he could be helping the Red Sox win more championships at the expense of the Yankees. He will remain in New York for at least another five seasons, and all Yankee fans should want to make him feel at home so that players such as Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera will have an opportunity to win six or seven rings. Yankee fans need to remember that their beloved team is hated by most fan bases throughout baseball. No longer is it just the Boston Red Sox fans. I live in Los Angeles and have traveled up and down the West Coast throughout the past decade and watched fans from Seattle to Anaheim grow in the hatred towards the pinstripes. Take this past weekend in Oakland, for example. Yankee fans had to look over their shoulder when they walked out of McAfee Coliseum after closer Mariano Rivera gave up a walk-off three-run home run to Marco Scutaro and blew the deciding game (5-4) of the three game series. The chant of “Yankees Suck” blared from the stands in Oakland as the Yankees walked off the field in shock with their collective heads down. I'm still amazed whenever I travel to Seattle to go to beautiful Safeco Field and listen to ignorant Mariners fans shout that same disrespectful chant to most Yankees fans in attendance. Imagine a fan base that has never won a single championship disrespecting New York Yankee fans as they contribute hard-earned dollars to the local Seattle economy? Anaheim used to be the "softest" stadium in professional sports, where soccer moms would eat sushi while their children played with Tonka trucks in the aisle as the Angels underachieved. Angels Stadium in now a house or horrors for the Yankees, and Joe Torre can't figure out how to motivate his team to win a big game when it counts. Most ignorant New York Yankee fans that boo A-Rod in New York have no clue of what it feels like to walk into an opposing stadium to try to support their team while being verbally abused by some of the drunks and loudmouths who spew Yankee hate. That is what aggravates me the most about the behavior of the vast majority of Yankee fans who now sit on the fence and cheer Rodriguez and ask for a curtain call when he hits a walk-off home run, but then come to the Stadium on the next home stand and make life miserable for the best player in the game. New Yorkers can't have it both ways. Let’s not forget the New York Mets fans who despise the Yankees and pray for their failure during every waking moment of their lives. The Mets will always be the understudy for the Yankees, but now they finally have a team that will spend the money and fight to get on the back pages of the New York papers that the Yankees used to exclusively call home. I’m in New York this week and have talked with several clueless Mets fans who think Jose Reyes is a better player than Derek Jeter and also truly believe that third baseman David Wright is as good of a player as Rodriguez. You can’t talk any sense to a clueless Mets fans who last won a World Series when "Members Only" jackets were still in fashion. Today, the Red Sox — along with the Mets — have millions of fans who aggressively root against the Yankees. And one of the Yankees' own, A-Rod, continues to get booed in his home ballpark. It doesn't make sense to me. I'm proud that after 41 years I can say that I have NEVER booed for my home team. And I take pride in the fact that I always look down at the ignorant fans who can't control their emotions from inning to inning. Every card-carrying Yankee fan should have to sign a document stating that they either support Rodriguez as a Yankee or want to run him out of the Bronx. This binding contract would then be examined by George Steinbrenner at the end of September. If A-Rod is the clear front runner for the MVP and the Yankees are on their way towards their 27th championship, all non-believers should be kept out of the House that Ruth Built and left to out in the cold to listen to the fans who had A-Rod's back from day one! I’m anxiously looking forward to seeing how A-Rod is treated this week in the Bronx. With Carl Pavano and Mike Mussina on the disabled list and Mariano Rivera coming off one of the worst blown saves of his career, there should be plenty of frustrated and angry fans at Yankee Stadium. I just hope that they grow up and start giving Rodriguez the respect that he deserves. © 2007 MSNBC Interactive URL: www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18142630/
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A-Rod
Apr 18, 2007 21:52:36 GMT -5
Post by philinla on Apr 18, 2007 21:52:36 GMT -5
I hope he goes nuts in Boston.
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