The Difference Between A-Rod And Roger Clemens
Since opting out of his contract Alex Rodriguez has quickly become enemy #1 for many Yankee fans. Peter Abraham recently posted a caricature of A-Rod titled “The Salary Cap“ which includes the inscription “You Pay I’ll Play” (and when challenged on its merits comically shoots back with “I didn’t do the drawing”). A youtube video titled “Been Caught Stealing“ has been making the rounds on Yankee fan sites. Set to music the video shows all the wonderful things that could have been done with the money wasted on A-Rod. You’d be hard pressed to find a Yankee fan site that isn’t attacking A-Rod’s character.
I’m no fan of A-Rod, and I don’t want him in a Red Sox uniform. Yet I can’t help feel sorry for the guy. At 32 he’s already a Hall of Fame player and on his way to becoming, perhaps, the greatest player of all time. In 4 seasons in New York he will have won 2 MVP trophies. Last season he put the Yankees on his back and carried them to the playoffs. It’s ironic that the fan base of a team with the highest payroll in the majors (by 50 million) would begrudge the best player in the game from opting out of his contract (which was there and a possibility the day the Yankees signed him) and testing his worth on the open market.
Let’s compare A-Rod to Roger Clemens. Clemens held out until a team was desperate enough to make him the highest paid player in the league. He was paid 18 million and delivered a .500 record and league average ERA. He broke down (shocker) and was useless for the last month of the season. In his one playoff start he hobbled (or waddled) off the mound in the third inning leaving the game in the hands of a rookie pitcher.
And yet, as Roger Clemens was walking like a man in need of a walker towards the Yankee dugout fans stood and cheered. Even more astonishing is that even today many Yankee fans point to the day Clemens signed as the turning point in their season. There’s no caricature of Clemens wearing a cap with a dollar sign, no video showcasing Clemens as a money hungry hired gun.
This doesn’t surprise me. Clemens, for whatever reason (left the Red Sox?), has always received a pass from Yankee fans. A-Rod has never been as fortunate. One became the game’s highest paid player when he chose the Yankees. The other will become the highest paid player when he leaves the Yankees.
And that makes all the difference in the world.
