Jamie Insalaco
Alex Rodriguez is a truly amazing ball player. You can say whatever you want about the steroids, but he’s great. Even this year, when he’s battled injury, he’s still an amazing producer. You don’t have to believe me – the numbers will make it clear.
Ask any Yankee fan who had the best year on the Yankees this year and they’ll say Robinson Cano nine times out of ten. He did have an amazing year and did everything he was asked. Before the season, people speculated that he couldn’t handle hitting 5th, and he did a great job. When A-Rod was hurt, he hit clean up like he’d been doing it his whole life. Here are his 2010 numbers in 160 games:
- .319 avg
- 200 hits
- 29 home runs
- 109 RBI
Now here are A-Rod’s numbers in 137 games:
- .270 avg
- 141 hits
- 30 home runs
- 125 RBI
How amazing is that? Cano was out there every day, playing in 23 more games in 2010 than A-Rod, and they virtually tied in home runs and A-R0d beat him in RBI. How amazing is that? He passed him in homers (just barely) and drove in more runners playing in fewer games. I just can’t get over it.
I think a lot of the A-Rod hating Yankee fans went away after he played so well in the 2009 post season, and the drug thing will follow him around forever, but love him or hate him, you have to admit that A-Rod is great. Even with the hip thing and whatever damage the PEDs may have done to his body, I’m glad he’s going to be with the Yankees for a long time to come.
