ALEX RODRIQUEZ

A-Rod, considered by some to be the greatest player ever, certainly the youngest to reach 500 home runs, and the youngest to reach 600 home runs, besting Jimmy Foxx and Babe Ruth respectively, signing a ten year $275 Million contract with the New York Yankees, batted .276 with 16 homeruns, 62 RBI’s and scored 67 runs in 2011! He is guaranteed $20 a year until 2017, and I ask you this, is he able to do better that what he is doing, can he pick up the numbers and make them look worth $20 Million?

At the ripe old age of 37, old for baseball, it becomes apparent that a long-term contract at big money for athletes just does not make sense. Even if this year is a banner year, just what he did or didn’t do in 2011 proves my point.

Look at all the contracts at big money in sports and you will see that too many of the signers were pulling in big money and the teams involved in a dilemma having to pay, and not being able to better the team with new players. The salary cap has been a help to curb that to some degree, but teams like the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels will be willing to pay a tax to continue the practice of locking someone in for the long term.

Then after the Yankees helped the Miami Marlins, the newest spender on the block to open their new stadium and showcase their new contracts, A Rod showed no class at all, gushing tears over Loria’s new spending spree and the Miami taxpayer’s new financial burden. It seems like he is saying that he would be happy to break his commitment to the Yanks and sign on to the Marlins.

A player who was once loved in New York, who commanded respect from his fans is now a joke, admitted user of PED’s, he better hit this season, and improve the sickly numbers he put up last year.

That’s all I wrote, Folks!