Alex Rodriguez: cheat, liar, egomaniac ... and baseball's savior

Baseball has a savior and his name is Alex Rodriguez.

A-Rod has continued – no, accelerated – his remarkable comeback to the majors, hitting .350 with three home runs and nine RBI in the last week alone, while powering the Yankees to a 5-2 record over that span. Observers of this A-Rod renaissance, or A-Rodaissance (feel free to use that one, NY Post!), fall into two camps. On one side, there are those who despise Rodriguez for being a liar and a cheater and an egomaniac (and some other character flaws I’m probably forgetting, they all ran together after a while) and were hoping this season would see him reap his karmic comeuppance. Day after merciless day of failure. Strikeouts. Booing. Taunts. An average in the 100s and Ks in the 200s. This group of people – classification: Haterus Sapiens – are having a very bad April.

The other group entered the season happy to embrace any entertainment Rodriguez provided. If he failed miserably and did all that karma-reaping stuff, fine. But if he had a huge season like this, forcing the Yankees to awkwardly reembrace him as their savior and baseball to acknowledge that he remains one of the sport’s most marketable stars? Even better. Watching hypocrites and the self-righteous squirm and backtrack is never not entertaining.

But both camps are missing the bigger story: A-Rod could be single-handedly moving baseball beyond its PED-stained past.

The 39 year-old slugger is the only big name remaining from the 1990s/early 2000s heyday of steroids-fueled baseball. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds and Manny Ramirez are all long gone. Only Rodriguez remains. Baseball’s modern hitting stars are Mike Trout, Andrew McCutchen, Giancarlo Stanton – men who are young enough to be the sons of McGwire, Sosa, Bonds and friends (assuming they were capable of producing children due to, you know ... the shrinking). Yet every year, instead of building a bright future for the sport, baseball refights the old steroids battles when Hall of Fame voting rolls around. “Sure, Mike Trout is an amazing talent, but how about we yell at each other over players from 15 years ago instead?” says baseball.

A-Rod can get us beyond all that.

The guy took steroids. Probably a lot of steroids. That’s true. And he lied about it. Repeatedly. Also true. But guess what? He’s also really really really really good at baseball. Really good. Even without steroids, as this season is proving. If you read through the names on the Mitchell Report, there is a whole load of terrible baseball players on that list. Steroids don’t make you good at baseball.

Barry Bonds was awesome at baseball. Even without steroids. Alex Rodriguez is awesome at baseball. Even at age 39 and without steroids. The Hall of Fame is supposed to be a place that recognizes everyone who was awesome at baseball. That’s it.

So, yeah, A-Rod is a cheater. A-Rod is a liar. A-Rod is an egomaniac. A-Rod is also one of the greatest baseball players in the history of the sport, with or without substances. Please, let’s just all finally recognize that, stop focusing on the past, and finally – peacefully – enjoy what baseball has to offer now.

Deal? Deal. Great!

Now let’s just hope A-Rod doesn’t get busted for PEDs again.

Quote of the week

He’s an incredible athlete. When you look at him, first looks doesn’t mean anything.

Michael Cuddyer, Mets outfielder, on team-mate Bartolo Colon, after Colon knocked in his second run of the season.

Before joining the Mets this season, Cuddyer played in Minnesota and Colorado. With the Twins his team-mate was Joe Mauer. Mauer is a seven-time All-Star, was the 2001 Gatorade National Player of the Year in high school football, and also averaged more than 20 points per game as a high school point guard. In Colorado, Cuddyer’s team-mate was Troy Tulowitzki. Tulowitzki is a 6ft 3in shortstop with range and power who was second team All-State in basketball in California. Yet Cuddyer, with a straight face, calls Colon an “incredible athlete.”

Please. Someone hand Bartolo Colon a basketball and a football. He could be the savior the Knicks, Nets, Jets and Giants need.

Stat of the week

100 – Mike Trout became the youngest player in baseball history to reach 100 career home runs and 100 career stolen bases this week, doing so at the age of 23 years, 253 days old. The previous record holder was Alex Rodriguez, who hit 100/100 at age 23 and 309 days old. Trout will have to enjoy this place in history while he can. Cubs rookie phenom Kris Bryant is six months younger than Trout and, as of this writing, needs just 100 home runs and 100 stolen bases by the end of September to break the record. Let’s see if the kid can live up to the hype.

This week’s horrible fantasy team that’s better than your team

Caleb Joseph, C, Orioles - 9-for-17, HR, 4 RBI

Zack Cozart, SS, Reds -- 11-for-23, HR, 2 RBI

Adeiny Hechavarria, SS, Marlins - 10-for-26, HR, 4 RBI

Cody Asche, 3B, Phillies - 10-for-26, HR, 2 RBI

Adam Ottavino, P, Rockies - 3.1 innings, 2 saves, 7 strikeouts, 0.00 ERA

Nathan Karns, P, Rays - 12 innings, 1 win, 13 strikeouts, 2.25 ERA

Reader Twitter question of the week

My opinion is that there should be both a salary cap and a salary floor, similar to the NHL system. That way the Dodgers can’t buy every free agent and international phenom, and the Marlins can’t field a local community college’s intramural softball runners-up every five years when Jeffrey Loria wants to save money. All would be right and fair in the land, with high-quality, competitive play in abundance.

Or at least that’s the theory. In practice, the organizations that are successful now would wisely spend their money within the constraints of the payroll structure and remain successful, while the bad teams would struggle even more thanks to throwing money at washed-up vets to make payroll or, on the other end of the scale, they’d be somehow incapable of fielding a solid team for less than $200m. (See: Cashman, Brian.) The “fairest” system is to make sure every team has competent management.

As easy as it is for those of us who root for “small market” teams to complain about the big spenders, the Yankees and Dodgers have combined for a grand total of one World Series championship over the last 14 seasons. Watching them fail has brought happiness to a lot of people. You can’t put a price tag on that. Actually, I guess you can: approximately $400m a year.

Phillies-ness of the week

After a curiously successful 3-2 start to the season, the Phillies began rounding into shape this week, dropping six games in a row by a combined score of 30-13. But as bad as Philadelphia will be this year, Phillies fans can draw comfort from the fact that it’s unlikely the 2015 Phillies will be the worst team in franchise history. That honor goes to the 1941 Phillies, a squad that went 43-111. Those wartime Phillies featured players named Pinky May, Bobby Bragan, Heinie Mueller, Wally Millies, Boom-Boom Beck, Lefty Hoerst and Rube Melton. My point being this: If you’re going to stink, at least do it with a roster full of players with hilarious old-timey names. Watching Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Cole Hamels toil away is depressing. But seeing Pinky Howard, Heinie Utley and Boom-Boom Hamels take the field? That’s entertainment.

Cubs World Series odds: On the Rise!

Kris Bryant’s much-hyped and long-awaited (if you think 12 days is “long”) debut came and went last Friday with Bryant going 0-for-4 and striking out three times in a 5-4 loss. Surely the crushing disappointment of their top prospect’s first game would send the Cubs spiraling into their usual state of failure. Indeed, the very next day, the Cubs blew a 6-2 ninth inning lead. Another season was lost.

But, no. Two innings later, Starlin Castro ripped a walk-off single with the bases loaded and the Cubs won the game. Bryant even followed up his awful debut by plating a run and reaching base five times. This Cubs team is resilient. This Cubs team is different. This Cubs team is good. This Cubs team is a real World Series contender!

Or it’s just mid-April and we’re reading way too much into a 6-4 start.

A-Rod-ness of the week

The 477-foot home run Alex Rodriguez hit Friday night at Tropicana Field is the longest home run of the season and the second-longest home run hit by a Yankee in 10 years. It really is like this nearly-40-year-old Rodriguez is actually his former, younger self somehow transported to 2015. Hmm. Hmmmm. That makes me think.

Do all disgraced baseball sluggers know the secret of time travel?

10 things I think I thought I think

1) Fox Sports 1 has hired Pete Rose as a baseball analyst. It’s a savvy move for a fledgling network still working to bring any additional viewers. That said, Rose has been banned from Major League Baseball, not from talking about Major League Baseball, so if he was an insightful and entertaining voice, he would have been scooped up by a network long before now. However, I promise FS1 that I will watch their studio show if Pete Rose dresses like this. And not only will I watch, I will call ALL of my friends and tell them to watch, too. We’re talking three extra viewers here, Fox Sports 1. Make it happen.

2) Yasiel Puig says he plans to cut down on his bat flips. “I want to show American baseball that I’m not disrespecting the game.” Ugh. Puig has only been here for two years and already sees “American baseball” as a whole bunch of lames. This idea that MLB can market itself as fun to a younger audience isn’t going to go well when it can’t even market itself as fun to its own 24 year-old stars.

You may have won this battle, stodgy baseball people. But know that you’ll lose the war (because you’re all very old and will die long before the rest of us).

3) I hope they have WiFi in heaven.

By the way, every time you share this column on Twitter or Facebook, it counts as a double-extra super thank you to Jackie Robinson. “What? Why?” you ask. Shut up and share it, okay?

4) Former baseball commissioner Bud Selig was given the Outstanding Civilian Service Award this week by the US Army, the third-highest civilian honor the Army can bestow on a private citizen. Selig obviously was given this honor for his great achievements for the nation, including ... hmm ... hmmmm ... I got nothing. Bud Selig didn’t do anything to make the country better. At all.

Ohmigod! I’m a legit candidate for the Outstanding Civilian Service Award! My parents are going to be so proud.

5) The San Francisco Giants are in last place and don’t look very good. Hard to think they’ll win the World Series this year, meaning their biennial streak is continuing. So put them down for the 2016 World Series. And probably the 2018, 2020 and 2022 World Series. Best of luck to other 29 teams in the odd-number years and thanks to the Giants for not being the kind of dynasty that has to hog EVERY title. You are good and merciful rulers.

6) Last week’s worst fan in baseball was this guy:

This week the worst fan in baseball goes to this Orioles fan ...

... who turned his back to the field when A-Rod came to bat. Yes, an Orioles fan. The guy whose favorite team has employed Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Miguel Tejada and Nelson Cruz. There hasn’t been a more steroids-friendly team in the history of baseball than the Orioles. For all we know, the team’s “O” logo could be depicting an injection mark. But I like to assume the best of people, so maybe this Orioles fan isn’t a massive hypocrite. Maybe he was just turning his back to the field to show his support for those afflicted with bacne. We must not give up the fight.

7) Now this is a hat:

Many are mocking Mets pitcher Alex Torres for his padded head donut, but these same people would likely void their bowels the first time a line drive from a major league hitter came within 20-feet of their head. So I’m not going to make fun of someone making a safety decision. I will, however, say that I fear for Torres’ children. If a man will put his own personal safety this far above style, imagine the choices he’ll force on his children.

“But dad, the kids at school make fun of me when you send me to school in this inflated bubble during cold and flu season.”

“Keep complaining and you won’t be going to school. I’ll keep you home every day in your bike helmet, harnessed to the pillow pile.”

8) The Mets are in first place and it may not be an early-season fluke. With young stars Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom anchoring the rotation and Bartolo Colon providing RBIs from the 9-spot, the Mets could stick around. And think about: this team is playing well now without one of their highest-paid players in the lineup. When Bobby Bonilla suits up? Watch out.

9) If you’ve been to a Major League game this year, you may have noticed the new metal detectors at the entrance of stadiums. Hooray! We’re safe! Except, according to security experts, we’re not. One security expert wrote in the Washington Post that the detectors are “pure security theater: They look good without making us safer.” Hey, security expert guy: Want to know a good way to stay safe? Not having our nation’s security experts telling the bad guys that our security measures are worthless shams. Where did you even go to security expert school, fella?

10) The 65th anniversary of Vin Scully’s debut game as the play-by-play man for the Dodgers came on Saturday. He has somehow lasted 65 years in media without becoming a parody of himself. That’s super. That’s scintillating. That’s sensational! Maybe the most remarkable aspect of Scully’s longevity and continued brilliance is that he has lasted into the social media age and still doesn’t have critics. You won’t find anyone ripping the guy or saying he’s overrated. Because he’s that great. And he’s not great in the way we often talk about past-their-prime legends, politely pretending they are still at the top of their game. He truly is still at the top of his game at 87. He’s still better than most everyone in his profession. He does it without catchphrases and without screaming. He doesn’t have a shtick. Well ... hmm. I suppose his shtick is being great at his job and not trying to make himself into a celebrity. Wow. Vin Scully does have a shtick. Have to say: I’ve lost a lot of respect for the man.