I grew up spending my summers in New York City. July meant muggy city weather, the greatest fireworks exhibition ever, and watching the Nathan’s hot-dog eating contest on the Fourth of July. Of course, being a temporary New Yorker meant spending a lot of time at Yankee Stadium. There wasn’t a choice, really. I was either going to be a Yankee fan or a Mets fan – and well, being a Mets fan just wasn’t an option. So at an early age, I caught on that it was Yankees or bust. The Boston Red Sox? Let’s just say when I’m at the grocery store and see people in Red Sox hats, it makes me want to break out in a long, loud speech about how much the Red Sox suck.
Needless to say, I was quite excited Wednesday with the official start of preseason baseball. Yes, it is only preseason and doesn’t technically mean anything, but to me it’s more than just a month of practice games. It’s a vibe. I can almost smell the hotdogs.
Now, as a true Yankee fan I still reminisce about the good old days of the Yankees. I’m talking about the late 90s. Tino Martinez on first base, Scott Brosius at third. Paul O’Neil in left field and Bernie Williams at center. You know, back when Joe Girardi was behind the plate, and my die-hard Yankee fan Uncle Scott would call him “Jumpin’ Joe Girardi-O.”
Anyway, let’s get back to the present. Alex Rodriguez hit a homerun Wednesday to help win the Yankees’ first spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays. I’d call that a response to the negative publicity and the mixed emotions of fans. And while I’m happy that his homerun helped lead the Yanks to a 6-1 win, I just can’t get over my profound dislike of A-Rod.
When he started playing for the Yankees I was excited. What Yankee fan wouldn’t be happy about a talented slugger signing on to the team? Too bad, despite the millions of dollars he is being paid, he fell way short. Season after season I have watched A-Rod perform well in not-so-important situations.
Can you expect a handful of homeruns from A-Rod? Of course. Can you expect A-Rod to pull through with so much as a base hit with a man or two on base? No way. He’s not clutch. Sure he has had a couple great moments but there have been plenty of playoff games where I find myself bummed out. A-Rod didn’t come through again. Maybe he had a hard time readjusting to playing baseball without using steroids. I don’t know, but it’s unacceptable.
I can’t consider myself very passionate about the issue of steroids in Major League Baseball. Sure it’s cheating, but ambition and pressure to succeed can lead people to do some crazy things. I really just think of the ordeal as one more way A-Rod was exemplified as sub par, and definitely not a true Yankee.
Yankees are classy. Yankees are about the faithful bleacher creatures chanting the names of players at the beginning of each game. Yankees don’t respond to steroid allegations with “We consulted no one…It was pretty evident that we didn’t know what we were doing…I knew we weren’t taking Tic Tacs.” Seriously? I could go on and on about his flaws during that press conference. He used “perhaps” about a billion times and if he talked about being “young and stupid” one more time I might just vomit.
The last thing that really bugs me about A-Rod is the fact the he and Derek Jeter are not friends. Being the all-around good guy that he is, I trust Jeter’s friend choices. If Jeter doesn’t like you, there must be something wrong. If Jeter doesn’t like you, and comes out in a press conference saying so, chances are you (yes you, A-Rod) could probably be a cooler person.
There’s my rant. I still love the Yankees heart and soul and I’ll still wear my lucky Yankee shirt every time a game is televised in Dallas. Maybe A-Rod can pull through. Maybe A-Rod can change my mind and become a perfect baseball specimen (Ã la Derek Jeter). But in the meantime I’ll sneer at the TV when he’s interviewed and hold my breath every time he gets up to bat in a must-hit situation.
All I know is that this season better be more promising than last season, because honestly, I can’t go another October without having a team to root for in the post-season.
Christina Geyer is a junior journalism major. She can be reached for comment at
