There’s been sufficient speculation about the possibility of Alex Rodriguez signing with another team now that he’s formally cleared release waivers — the Marlins, most notably, have been mentioned — but Rodriguez’s publicist, Ron Berkowitz, has released a statement definitively stating that said scenario will not come to fruition. Via Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (links to Feinsand on Twitter):
“I want to put all this talk to rest about Alex playing for any team this season. It’s not happening. Like he said Friday night, he is happy and he is going to take some time to relax and hang with his family and friends.”
It should be noted that Berkowitz specifically references the current season only, suggesting that he’s not willing to rule out the possibility of Rodriguez pursuing a contract — and his 700th career home run — in a new uniform next season. That would seem to open up a number of additional opportunities for Rodriguez, as there are potentially American League clubs that would be open to an opportunity for A-Rod over the winter that don’t feel they have a roster spot to spare in the midst of a playoff push.
Rodriguez, 41, played his final game with the Yankees on Friday night and will reportedly transition to an advisor/instructor role with the organization. He batted .200/.247/.351 with nine home runs in 243 plate appearances this season, leaving him with 696 long balls in his historic career.
A-Rod has done enough damage to the Integrity of Baseball already . He needs to go to the House Permantley . Take Barry ( fathead )Bonds with him too !
I find it hard to place all the blame on Alex for ruining the integrity of the game. I can assure you he wasn’t the only one who used or is using PEDs. If you’re going to place blame in relationship to the integrity of baseball, there are hundreds of guys who can shoulder that blame, including guys who play/played for your favorite team.
Alex’s big mistake was alienating his teammates and his own union, which was a severe lapse in judgment, but not an attack on the integrity of the history of the game.
I was the biggest proponent of Alex for a long time. After last week, I hope he has truly become a better person based on his past indiscretions, and does something positive in the future.
*opponent
Good piece.
He was a Mature adult he knew actually what he was doing, He put ( along with those other Cheating Phonies) himself above the Interighty of the game for his False Glory and the Almighty Dollar.
History will judge him and the others Cheaters poorly , He must be banned for Life from the HOF.
My guess is then you’re probably not going to have a lot H of F from the 90s and 00s. I hate to say it, but my guess is the majority of guys were using during this time.
You can’t just take an average person or professional athlete from a different sport, give them steroids and watch them produce at a HOF level. It doesn’t work that way. You can’t nullify their accomplishments and pure ability because of it.
SOOO many guys get caught that both never were anything and never would amount to anything despite pursuing a career in professional baseball and probably having played it at a high level their entire life.
On top of that, until there is measurable statistical mean and standard deviation for how much steroids actually allegedly boost performance, one can not discount any players’ statistic accurately. SO, going from HOF to not HOF because ‘hur dur his numbers are inflated by a magic pill’ is not scientifically objective.
Lastly, the whole ‘he was an adult when he took it and knew exactly what he was doing’ thing is great and all, but why should a person be kept out of the HOF based on poor judgment skill? How many players currently in the HOF were convicted of crimes? Should Tony La Russa be left out of the HOF because of his DUI? Get off all of your high horses.
/endrant
I disagree, let all the ped users in, just use the asterisk. If you think that some players in the hall didn’t dope, and even current stars for that matter, you are just ignorant
Very good point. But there certainly is an integrity issue. Particularly with A-Rod and my ex favorite player Bonds. This wasn’t isolated use it was long term cheating. Yet the Giants just unveiled a statue of Catfish hunter and made a joke about his use of Vaseline by putting a jar under everyone’s seats. Will we one day joke about these guys by putting a syringe under people’s seats?
See Randy Velarde, lol.
It was Gaylord Perry not Catfish Hunter. When Bonds was taking peds it wasn’t illegal. Eric Gange, (sic), claimed in his book that 80% of the Dodgers were taking. That means that the pitchers , in large part, that were throwing to Bonds were also juiced. How can you retroactively condemn players when they were all doing it, and it wasn’t illegal? Make rules prohibiting ped use, and from that time forward enforce them.
How many players are hitting 50/60/70 home runs anymore? None. There is your statistical proof. PEDs keep you on the field longer. Recover from big workouts faster recover from injury quicker. Too bad really because most of the users with HOF talk around them were so incredible they did not need the chemical help. Comparing PEDs to Tony’s dui is completely ridiculous and undermines your arguments
I don’t think his biggest mistake is the alienation of people. I think his biggest mistake was using PEDs even after the so called “era” ended and not copping to it. Had he come out and admitted it and acted in the manner he has done these last two seasons he would have been a more digestible character.
I think it’s such a shame that big talents like Bonds and A-Rod used and acting like major league knob heads towards people. They could have been as respected as Jeter is.
In my opinion it is absolutely his biggest mistake. It’s what separates him from all the other PED users. Most of the guys who came clean were forgiven. Had he owned up to his mistakes in the beginning, were probably not having this discussion.
Alex (and Barry) have done more positive for the sport than they have negative. Both are high magnitudes, but the former definitely outweighs the latter.
I fully support ARod’s decision to stay away. 100%. Keep it up, Alex, and good riddance.
I truly hope A-Rod’s last game was Friday. Up until last week, I was very much anti-Alex. Between him finally admitting that he was wrong and the treatment he received from management last week, I kind of feel bad for the guy. I was at the game Friday night and think the crowd gave him a pretty nice send off. I’m HOPING Alex has been humbled by his experiences. Who knows, he’ll lead this next group of young talent to the next great Yankee run, lol.
*maybe
Good piece.
He will play somewhere next year. Someone will get him for nothing and make a bunch of money in extra ticket sales and Arod shirts. At least he’s not in pinstripes clogging up middle of lineup.
Let the crazy A-Rod rumors begin! Oriole A-Rod? Tiger A-Rod? Mariner A-Rod? We can rule out the National League and probably Boston, but maybe mlbtraderumors will do a poll in the off-season.
That sounds like Pocket Mortys.
He needs the time to find another way to juice up…
Totally sarcastic in that statement but shocked no one else said it. Father Time has caught up to ARod
Could care less that he used PEDs personally I think over 90% of the players from that era used something and plenty of the all time greats used stuff that would get them dinged today too. They didn’t make A-Rod great. He deserved to go out on his own terms, but sometimes even the great players need to be told that its the end. While I could see some team signing him for some Mr. 3000 like he just needs four more homers for 700 I think it would be in his best interest to stay retired instead of trying to hang around for a few more homers. When the end comes it usually isn’t pretty.
Remember though Bonds couldn’t find a taker when he was reduced to basically a DH and Bonds could still hit at the end.
How much less could you care? You said “could care less” so could you care 20% less? 50% less? 63.2% less?
Even if 90% of players cheated, it’s still wrong. And Bonds could still hit at the end because he was still cheating.
He needs to give his salary to a foundation or go play in Japan
The sanctimonious hypocrisy of baseball fans is endless and easily its most unbearable quality. Because we should banish one of the game’s greatest players because he took some supplements, while abandoning such an aggressive moral alignment concerning, say, domestic and sexual abusers that run rampant throughout the game.
Instead of rattling off the list of other active and recently retired players with more egregious offenses than taking some strength supplements that weren’t even banned for the majority of Alex Rodriguez’s playing career, maybe somebody could explain the actual difference in value between injecting, say, cortisone (a steroid) on a daily basis to enhance or enable performance standards, versus sucking on some power pellet lozenges for a power boost – where’s the moral outcry every time an organization moves the fences to better accommodate their team’s offensive strengths and weaknesses?
This is all media-driven, and it started when the Yankees stopped wanting to pay the bill… After, of course, they had already gotten what they needed from ARod. To his credit, not many players or people would accept the type of merciless, unjust beating he’s taken in the recent years – and “injustice” is exactly how it should be described on any objective level, considering the unprecedented punishment and measures taken that ultimately did very little to prove he’s done anything wrong.
Preach it loudly. Unfortunately, not many will be willing to hear. Hopefully he will get his recognition in time.
The medias hatred of a-rod began when the red sox trade was nixed. Then it all became about who was more clutch arod or ortiz. Even though you have the biogenesis stuff, remember the only test arod ever truly failed was the 2003 test, which by the way so did ortiz yet the media will defend ortiz on that while using it against arod
Was always confused by Boston’s hatred for A-rod other tHan the fact that he was a Yankee . From my understanding, Alex was willing to take less money to play in Boston, but MLB nixed the deal. This then allowed the Yankees to make their deal.
@JB I’ll do this in 2 parts because of the length.
I threw up a little on my mouth reading that. Some of your disdain is based on not knowing the difference between a Corticosteroids and a Anabolic-androgenic steroids? The term “steroid” is a chemical name for any substance that has a characteristic chemical structure consisting of multiple chemical rings of connected atoms. Vitamin D is a steroid, cholesterol is, so is estrogen.
Corticosteroids act on the immune system by blocking the production of substances that can cause inflammation and allergies. Benadryl is a Corticosteroid, so are some eye drops and eczema creams. Cortisone does what aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen do only faster and more effectively
Anabolic-androgenic steroids are designed to do one thing promote the growth of skeletal muscle (anabolic effect) and the development of male characteristics (androgenic effects). Anabolic-androgenic steroids can cause liver and kidney tumors, cancer, jaundice, high blood pressure etc.
@JB
“banish one of the game’s greatest players”…how do you know? He lied about when and what he took, how do you know he wasn’t using the whole time? As Tom Hicks said after A-Rods 2009 interview “He assured me that he had far too much respect for his own body to ever do that to himself. … I certainly don’t believe that if he’s now admitting that he started using when he came to the Texas Rangers, why should I believe that it didn’t start before he came to the Texas Rangers?” There are many reports he as using since HS so how do you know he was one of the greatest? In 2009 he said “I’m guilty for a lot of things. I’m guilty for being negligent, naive, not asking all the right questions. And to be quite honest, I don’t know exactly what substance I was guilty of using.” Do you really believe that. He is know for a strict routine …do you believe he didn’t know what he was taking?
“merciless, unjust beating he’s taken in the recent years” Really? I just threw up a little again. When caught the other Biogenesis offenders took the advice of the MLBPA, advice Alex refused, and took the 50 games. They did not buy evidence (Alex wasn’t smart enough to know there were copies) to destroy it but Alex did, the others didn’t avoid (“oh I am sick and can’t testify”) testifying under oath 3 times. The only time poor mistreated Alex testified is when the Feds said…throw your cousin and others under the bus and we will give you immunity. Even when it cam time for him to testify in arbitration, when he said I will testify. I have emails to prove my innocence, he threw a staged hissy fit and stormed out, making a beeline to the one NYC radio show that supported him. The others did not try and pay off Bosch’s lawyers (monety the lawyers refused, the others did not sue MLB as a stunt, the others did not sue the MLBPA. The MLBPA was there to defend A-rod and he “fired” their lawyers and the sued beause the didn’t defend him!! Only an egomaniac acts that way. Only Alex interfered with MLB’s investigation (which is in violation of the CBA). Only A-Rod tried to obstruct MLB’s investigation by pressuring Bosch to sign a statement that claimed he had never supplied banned drugs. The list goes on and on. The “beating” he has taken he brought on himself and only those who worship at A-Rods Church of Inaccurate Deception can’t see that.
The one thing that A-rod excelled at was lying , the quicker he goes from Baseball the better, Along with Barry bonds , Both these are a disgrace to baseball,
Talk about teaching Kids the right things in Life !
@Jb I hear it all the time…steroids were not banned then. Unless “then” means before June 1991 you are wrong on June 7, 1991 issued a memorandum that stated, in part…
* The possession, sale, or use of any illegal drug or controlled substance by major league players and personnel is strictly prohibited. Those involved in the possession, sale, or use of any illegal drug or controlled substance are subject to discipline by the commissioner and risk permanent expulsion from the game.
* In addition to any discipline this office may impose, a club may also take action under applicable provisions of and special covenants to the uniform player’s contract. This prohibition applies to all illegal drugs and controlled substances, including steroids or prescription drugs
* MLB believes that its testing program is the most effective means available to deter and detect drug use. For admitted or detected drug users, testing will be a component of that individual’s after-care program for the balance of his or her professional baseball career. for which the individual in possession of the drug does not have a prescription.
Selig issued an almost identical memo to all clubs, players and MLBPA in 1996. Both times it was ignored because MLBPA Chief Donald Fehr refused to even discuss testing as it was “a violation of the players privacy”. That was even a line he used before Congress. Congress laughed in his face and testing finally came about. There are many to blame for the steroid era but Mr. Fehr shoulders most of it.
Alex is east for judgmental people to dislike. HE IS ONE OF THE GREATEST TO EVER PLAY THE GAME . That punctuation is a period ! You guys need to get over yourselves . Hundreds of players have used P E D’s if anything Bud Selig is more responsible than any player ever could be .
Easy* sorry
Most people believe that cheating is objectively wrong. Alex knowingly cheated to gain an advantage over others in the game, then lied about it repeatedly. That’s just a fact, regardless of whether other players also did or didn’t. If you’re still an Alex fan based on that fact, that’s totally fine, but it is certainly reasonable for other people to dislike the guy!
You defenders do A-Fraud, These Guys did Great Harm to a game that is supposed to America Pastime, And yes the Baseball executives let it happen for Money.And When YOU Defend this Filth you become PART of the decline of Americas Moral fiber
God Bless America , Where you gotta have Money to be considered a good Human Being.
There is no room for theology in baseball or discussions in a baseball forum. God uses steroids , he invented them!
Well said.
Alex just got caught up with all the hype to do steroids. He may have been one of the first but he wasn’t the only one , they were a lot of pitchers and hitters that did it. He made a stupid decision and got caught and he is paying the price. My question is why do fans hate him so much? 3 reasons , he was obnoxious , he is talented and he is rich, typical alpha male .
One of the first? A-Rod was 14 years old when Canseco claims he was introducing them to McGwire…
You left out he was and is a Dirt Bag !
There is without a doubt PED’s are just what the initials stand for. Not only did the drugs make the player bigger, stronger, faster, recover from injuries, they also improved the player’s vision as well. Taking PED’s didn’t or doesn’t guarantee the greatness required to enter the Hall of Fame, but it did increase the player’s skill set to a level where they were head and shoulders above the one’s who played the game straight.
While that’s true, I bet arod still would have a great career without them. Peds don’t always make you good, you still need the skill to play
“It’s not A-Rod’s choice to not play.” – all MLB teams
I wonder if A-rod asked to be paid for the advisory role.
You can tell his spokesman is lying because he said A-Rod is going to enjoy his time off with family and friends. Everyone knows A-Rod has no friends….
Arguably, the greatest player of all time – the man who brought baseball back from the brink of extinction with his homeruns – Babe Ruth, was known to frequent speakeasies and bars during Prohibition. Does this mean that he’s ruined the integrity of the game? Alex Rodriguez paid the price for cheating – he sat out an entire year. He made amends and returned clean. If he really ruined the integrity of baseball, then baseball should’ve made a stand and kicked him out for life like they did Pete Rose. But they didn’t. Why? He sold tickets and made MLB, the Rangers and the Yankees mountains of money. He owned up to it – let it be.
It’s funny to see that the people on this site who keep talking about the integrity of the game are from Boston. Don’t the Patriots constantly thumb their noses at the NFL? The coach is a cheat, Brady distrupted the legal process by smashing his cellphone, but Alex Rodriguez should be drawn and quartered even after he paid for his crimes? Come on guys! Aren’t you taking this rivalry a little too far?
“baseball should’ve made a stand and kicked him out for life like they did Pete Rose. But they didn’t. Why? “You really don’t know? Because Rose and his arrogance broke the one rule that places you on the permanently ineligible list….Rule 21d which has been posted in every club house since the 1920’s, a rule he saw thousands of times that says, in part ” Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which the bettor has a duty to perform shall be declared permanently ineligible.” Alex did not break a rule that carries that punishment but he did enough (by interfering with the investigation, lie after lie, tampering with evidence, attempted bribery) to increase a 50 game to a full season. If MLB had tried to ban him for life it never would have held up in arbitration. There are little documents that stop that…the JDA and CBA.
Not an Arod fan but believe the HOF needs to recognize the “steroids era” and still put all time greats in where their numbers belong regardless of who was using and who wasn’t. It was part of the game at the time as was other drugs earlier years. MLB knew what was going on and was reaping rewards bringing fans back like never before after the strike. The HOF and the history of baseball in this country can’t be missing the greats that we watched and cheered for during that time. Entertainment is the business and we were all entertained and had our full attention during that time and it was some of the most exciting baseball of our lives. Alex in, Bonds in and whoever was worthy in that era. I would also recommend a small corner (Hall of Shame) in hall after Pete is gone that tells his story so he is not forgotten. Anybody in future banned can join in corner. The hall should tell the full story, not all good, about the different times in the game but not exclude players that they allowed themselves to market and make money off.
respectfully disagree. Most have some sort of item at the hall…..a bat to hit a HR etc. To be honored for cheating…sorry I hope it never happens. For many I doubt it will. Even in the future they would have to be elected by Vet committee and those veterans will be the same players today who are sick of it. I case can be made that Barry had HOF #’s before he cheated but the fact is…he still thumbed his nose at baseball..told his employer. I will do what I want because I am Barry Bonds…just as A-rod did…just as they all did. May some who used get in? Of course but I hope that anyone caught, anyone who common sense says used after June 7 1991 only ever gets in if they buy a ticket. They do not deserve it.
Yes there is plenty of blame to go around but that is a shallow excuse to honor deception and cheating How is it fair to honor some who cheat right along with those who don’t? Keep the hall as clean as possible. any false records they have still stand. They are not being erased but the should not be honored…ever.
One last thing…I keep seeing A-Rod is an all time great…how does anyone know. There are many stories if him using since HS. If media guides are correct his weight never fluctuated much like Bonds. On average an athlete who juices gains 9.3% more muscle mass.. Barry did in the course of one off season…hence the nickname the Incredible Hulk. People say it isn’t a magic pill and I agree…there must be some talent there first but when you add 10% muscle mass you add approx. 3.5%-5% bat speed. That add to batted ball velocity, that adds to distance. A soft liner to short becomes a single. A gapper that would be cut off now creams threw the outfield and goes to the wall and long fly balls are now HRs. Every one focuses on just the HR..PEDs enhance every batted ball With someone like A-Rod…I would love to “reverse engineer”. remove that extra bat speed and power and look at every ball he hit. I will bet you would find a player of some skill but just barely above average.
Anabolic steroids were first synthesized in the 1930’s and earned it’s creator a Nobel Prize. They were being used by Olympic athletes in the 40’s and according to former MLB pitcher Tom House, they were using steroids in the 60’s “that they wouldn’t give to horses” and that everyone was trying to “out milligram” everyone else. Amphetamines were being used by 90% of players back then. Mickey Mantle was using them in the 50’s and the only reason we know that is because he got a bad infection from an injection. How many others were using back then and if anabolic steroids were widespread in the 1960’s, how far back does it go? The 50’s at least? I wouldn’t be surprised if 80% or more of players currently in the HOF were guilty of using PEDs during their careers that would get them banned today. The hypocrisy is astounding.
Hank Aaron admits to using PEDs, so why is he allowed to stay in the hall? What about Mantle, Mays and countless others? Babe Ruth experimented with sheep testosterone in his career, so I guess he ruined the integrity of the game too? Hell, in 1889, Pud Galvin was willing to inject a dubious elixir into his body just to try to prolong his career which it kinda did, but whether or not it actually did anything is another story. The point is even back in the 1800’s, there were players willing to do anything to get an edge and prolong their careers.
Cheating is as old as professional sports themselves. Even amphetamines were synthesized back in the late 1800’s and cocaine was around longer than that. In order to limit the “steroid era” to the 80’s and 90’s, one has to engage in a lot of willful ignorance about the history of these drugs in sports. Steroids didn’t just arrive on the scene in the 80’s and 90’s, the drugs just got better. Steroids had been around for a good 60 years before the home run explosion in the 90’s. So, why do Mantle, Mays, Aaron among countless others who played in the 50’s-70’s get to stay in the hall despite being cheaters? Gaylord Perry cheated every day of his life VIA spitballs, but that’s cool too? Why all the hypocrisy? The HOF is beyond tainted based on today’s standards and has been for a long time. All any of the guys in the 80’s and 90’s were doing was what players had been doing for the last century and especially since anabolic steroids were synthesized. PED’s were and always will be part of the fabric of baseball and any professional sport even before all this money was around. Sports will never be clean and never have been clean.