Back then, every one ASSumed he was going to the Mets because he was a Mets fan growing up in NY, and supposedly his dream was to play for them. They even started calling him "Shea-Rod" in Seattle. When Boras started negotiating with the Mets, he asked for: the use of a private jet for road trips, personal office space usually reserved for managers and executives, a personal tent to sell A-Rod merchandise, and more billboard advertising space than crosstown Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter. The Mets ended negotiations right there.

Good for the Mets. That's ridiculous.

I'm a little late to the secondbaseen discussion.

Jeff Kent, like Craig Biggio, sometimes gets overlooked in the greatest at their position arguments. Kent is the only 2B to have: 8 100 RBI seasons, 9 seasons with 60+ extra base hits and a .500 career slugging percentage since Hornsby. He also, of course, hit more homers than any 2B ever to play. While his defensive skills weren't among the elite, he was the most prolific guy at his position. He was overshadowed by Bonds in SF, played on multiple teams and was never well liked by peolple (probably forjust reason), but I think he belongs in the Hall.

That said, the best at that position that I ever saw was Joe Morgan, a big part of the Big Red Machine. His defense was outstanding; he was a great hitter with power, who stole bases with the best of them in the best base stealing era of the game. He had a very good on base % too.

While it is true that playing for the New York teams, particularly the Yankees, generally tends to overrate your talents, there is one Yankee in history that probably doesn't get the credit he deserves, and that's 2B Joe Gordon, who gets lost in the discussion of Yankee greats.

A-Rod admits, regrets use of PEDs
ESPN.com

His voice shaking at times, Alex Rodriguez met head-on allegations that he tested positive for steroids six years ago, telling ESPN on Monday that he did take performance-enhancing drugs while playing for the Texas Rangers during a three-year period beginning in 2001.

"When I arrived in Texas in 2001, I felt an enormous amount of pressure. I needed to perform, and perform at a high level every day," Rodriguez told ESPN's Peter Gammons in an interview in Miami Beach, Fla. "Back then, [baseball] was a different culture. It was very loose. I was young, I was stupid, I was naïve. I wanted to prove to everyone I was worth being one of the greatest players of all time.

"I did take a banned substance. For that, I'm very sorry and deeply regretful."

Rodriguez's admission comes 48 hours after Sports Illustrated reported that Rodriguez was on a list of 104 players who tested positive for banned substances in 2003, the year when Major League Baseball conducted survey tests to see if mandatory, random drug-testing was needed in the sport.

Sources who know about the testing results told SI that Rodriguez tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan, an anabolic steroid. In his ESPN interview, Rodriguez said he did not know exactly which substance or substances he had taken. In 2003, there were no penalties for a positive result.

"I am sorry for my Texas years," the New York Yankees third baseman said. "I apologize to the fans of Texas."

Rodriguez, who joined the Yankees for the 2004 season after a trade from Texas, said "all my years in New York have been clean." He also said it felt good to be honest about what he's done in the past.

"The more honest we can all be, the quicker we can get baseball [back] to where it needs to be," he said.

Rodriguez said he was told by Gene Orza, the chief operating officer of the MLB Players' Association, that he might, or might not, have tested positive in the 2003 survey. A source told ESPN on Saturday that Rodriguez knew he had failed the test.

"I had never heard anything since," he said. "Whatever I was experimenting with in Texas might have been OK."

Rodriguez also said of his 2007 interview with Katie Couric on "60 Minutes," when he denied ever using steroids, that "at the time, I wasn't being truthful with myself. How could I be truthful with Katie Couric or CBS?"

well at least he admitted it unlike bonds, but still though he should get suspended as others in the report last year had the book thrown at them.

There were no mandatory suspensions for steroid use back then.

damn it...well idk he may have leaned his lesson or will learn his lesson when the media and public judge him...i just cant stand anybody that cheats it just ruins the game, and i also hate it that peolpe think that players should take steroids just to make the game more entertaining.

Take some of his and others millions away from them when they get popped on a drug test and they will learn real quick.

now that would be great right there dont fine them 10,000 or 100,000 since its junk change to them, and also too i guess there is 103 names that were found with steroids in 2003...its not said if there going to release the names or not.

As someone pointed out, at least he has admitted it. That doesn't diminish what he did, or lessen the guilt of the 103 others.

I hope they don't release the names of the other offenders, and it was actually unfair to release A-Rod's name (are the tabloids calling him A-Roid yet?). There was a negotiated agreement through the labor union that the tests would be anonymous and destroyed, and would be used to survey the scope of steroid use. Otherwise, the union would not have consented to this study. I understand that the federal government subpoenaed the tests, but the tests should not have been there to be subpoenaed.

Anyway, A-Rod admitted to three years of steroid use. I don't know whether he used it before or after the periods, to which he is admitting, but I'm not going to waste a lot of time thinking about it. His numbers in the end will be shrouded in mystery and doubt, like some of his colleagues.

What is curious is his response to Gammons' question of whether the steroid use improved his performance. A-Rod gave a vague answer, but he had to perceive a quantifiable enhancement in performance because he used it for three years, knowing that his reputation would take a big hit if it was revealed. He also knew that the use of the substance posed a health risk. Why would he or anyone run these risks for years if the substance's benefits were dubious?

I had to chuckle when he was explaining his use because of the heat in Texas. Maybe superstars are more susceptible to heat stroke than the rest of us.

Also, Derek Jeter is looking better and better. I remember A-Rod's Esquire article about 10 years ago that was dripping with jealousy and bitterness over the success and popularity of #2, and this is just another reason why he isn't as beloved as the Yankee captain.

Derek Jeter? Who is he??

Well, this certainly has taken the headlines away from Torre and his book!!! And, yes, I've seen A-Roid in a few headlines. This was my personal favorite:

With steroids revelation, Rodriguez goes from A-Fraud to A-Roid

Yes, he did. I'll give him that. But he really had no choice, did he? I mean, they had him dead to rights on this thing.

I thought the NY tabloids would have been a little kinder to him today for his admission, but they're killing him again. And they're absolutely right in doing so.

Pressure to be the best?

Boo-fucking-hoo. When you're the highest paid player in the land and your agent turns makes it clear that wherever you go, you're bigger than the team, you better fucking deal with it.

It's too hot in Texas? Good catch, Klyd! It's no hotter than Mexico or Africa, countries that produce long distance marathon winners year after year. Nolan Ryan was from Texas wasn't he? Jeez, so many great players came out of Texas, those remarks are just RIDICULOUS.

The Yanks don't need this. The last thing they want is to have anything take away from their history making opening day at the new stadium this year. All of the Yankee greats will be there. Picture them all standing on the third base line. A great day. Yogi's there. All of them are there. And the great Yankees who have left this planet are all there in spirtit.

Then there's A-Rod. Fans holding signs that say CHEAT. LIAR. A-FRAUD. A-ROID. A-HOLE. And on and on and on. I actually feel like his presence is going to diminish that great day.

As for his records and the Hall of Fame? Hey, no Pete rose, no Barry Bonds, no Mark McGuire, no Raphael Palmeiro . . . sorry, no A-Rod.

Believing this guy might have been this good without cheating and then finding out he's a fraud is tantamount to finding out that Babe Ruth corked his bat. I feel like a jerk, because although I'm not a Yankee fan, as a baseball fan it was nice to think that there were at least a couple of guys who hit all those home runs legitimately over the last ten years or so.

When I think of this era, the only unscathed home run hitters I can think of are probably Jeff Kent and Mike Piazza, and their numbers were nowhere near any of these guys.

But at least they were legit.

They broke the games and the fans trust once again, but what else is new? It is all good, if 103 of them were doing it right?
WE will just keep that to ourselves right....

It is getting to be a way of life in the world. Just look around and see why everything is crashing down around us.
No one has any trust in anything or anyone. People almost expect to hear about another screwing every time they turn on that new big screen TV. There are no standards to be upheld.

Don't worry about pretty boy A-rod. He already has his $$$ and that shame he is showing to the public right now will wash off in the next shower he takes with some Barbie Doll Babe.

Nothing will ever happen to him that really matters. The storm will blow over and life will go on. His lifestyle will not change and his fans will make some lame excuse or lame comment that makes it all seem unimportant.

The only words you will see or hear are from people who get paid to fill the pages or fill the hours of their papers or programs up. They will beat it to death until you are sick of hearing it, and then it will mean nothing to anyone. Because that what we do time and time again.

Is that A-rod having a couple of drinks with Pete Rose over there?...

that's EXACTLY the feeling that I get. exactly the words you said in your 2nd paragraph. thank God I've been able to "forget" this. fuck A-Rod. SI.com has gone from 'favorite website' to 'don't even check in there' because there aren't any news about baseball anymore.

now, who are the guys that are supposed to be clean? I want somebody to like!
I've heard about Kent and Piazza, and I believe Curt Schilling is clean too. he has always been one of my favorite players and I just found a quote from him that said something like "I can't slap my teammates in their butts after they had a great game because it hurts them. That's where they stick in the needles with steroids."

either he's the biggest liar in the world or he's really clean. I've heard about Ken Griffey Jr. and Frank Thomas too. it seems that the best players now will be those who had big injuries and real bad off-years so we know they didn't take PEDs. it's really sad. Pete Rose looks better and better as time goes on.

Sour grapes

---

Sabathia saddled with an aging zoo

You can't help but wonder what CC Sabathia thinks of all this. He knew he was signing with a corporate bully, tossing money into the air like confetti, but he had no idea the Yankees' so-called Bronx Zoo would escalate into full-scale chaos so quickly.

For one thing, the Yankees' so-called powerhouse is hardly that. This is an old and terribly vulnerable team, starting with Derek Jeter, who turns 35 this summer and continues a gradual decline so evident, the stat guys are calling him the worst defensive shortstop in the American League.

The aging catcher, Jorge Posada, is trying to recover from shoulder surgery. So is Mariano Rivera, the storied but 39-year-old closer. Hideki Matsui is coming off his second major knee surgery in two years. Center field, the position with all that Yankees history, has become a grim struggle between Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner.

Nobody knows what to expect from Johnny Damon, Nick Swisher or Robinson Cano - or, for that matter, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte in the rotation. There's no help coming from a farm system that hasn't produced an impact position player since Jeter - 14 years ago. Alex Rodriguez, who has a rather fragile psyche anyway, will find that curiosity and skepticism accompany his every at-bat, now that 156 of his career home runs are officially tarnished.

It's a good thing the Yanks picked up Sabathia and Mark Teixeira for $28.2 billion, or whatever it was, because this is one flawed outfit. And that's just on the field. The A-Rod circus and the residue of Joe Torre's book should make for some really fun times around the clubhouse, and that's a situation Joe Girardi, a manager who likes things nice and simple, won't be able to handle.

And to think, Sabathia's life would have been so much simpler if he'd signed with the Giants. Don't give me this nonsense about "he had to do it" because of the money. He was either going to be an insanely rich Yankee or a ridiculously rich Giant. There are athletes who know the difference, who have settled for less in the name of lifestyle and common sense. CC just might wish he'd joined them.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Wow. I didn't realize Jeter was 35 already. Damn. Time goes by so fast.

you know i like the idea of pete rose being inducted in the hall then any of these damn cheaters...

I heard a local radio talk show host say an interesting thing about Pete Rose. He said he thinks Rose deserves to be in the Hall of Fame, but because he is such a jerk, he should be inducted the year after he dies so that he doesn't get any of the fame, or make money from it. Not sure I agree with it, but I can see him going into the Hall of Fame after he dies.

Every July during inductions, Pete Rose would spend the weekend in Cooperstown. Induction weekend in Cooperstown finds many of the Hall of Famers making appearances to sell merchandise and autographs. Rose has - at least he did during the 90s- his own Hall in Cooperstown, and the lines for him were always the longest. His popularity infuriated Johnny Bench and Bob Feller. Mike Scmidt and Reggie Jackson have been Rose's best advocates in the HoF, but if his induction were left to the members of the HoF, it is safe to say he would never get in, nor would many others.

I had Pete Rose sign a photo for me and my sons about 8 years ago. He would love to put HoF at the end of his signature, but for now settles with adding "4256." I would like to see him inducted even though what he did was a baseball mortal sin.

so, betting on the game and throwing games is considered a mortal sin then what does HGH and steroids consider as?

That's the tricky part for Rose. What he did was a "mortal sin" as a manager. I've heard that one of the rules for HoF voters is character and what the person has done to improve the image of the sport, so I understand why he's not in the Hall now. But as a player he was one of the greatest hitters and played as hard as anybody. It's sad to think that if he had just retired instead of becoming a manager, then he'd probably be in the the HoF.

A serious blow to the sport, but not to the extent of players and coaches betting on and fixing games.

Also, I don't want to suggest that Rose fixed games. But for a manager to bet on baseball, especially a game, in which his own team is playing, is shockingly reprehensible. Gambling is the only thing that came close to destroying professional baseball.

Rose is the only player I've ever seen, for whom I can't find a comparison. For all the other greats there are easy comparisons: Clemens and Randy Johnson; Gwynn and Carew;Brett and Boggs; Carlton and Seaver.

But Rose stood apart. He played many games at three infield positions and the corner outfield spots. He played everything to the max regardless of the time of year or score of the game, and he was unbelievably clutch. If he were reinstated and elected to the Hall, I'd certainly be there to see it.

Joba: Yankees are AL East's best

Joba Chamberlain thinks the team to beat in the AL East this season is the Yankees, though that should come as no surprise. "We're always the team to beat, and we have that in our minds from the get-go," Chamberlain said yesterday. "With the year the Rays had, people are going to look at it that they're the team to beat. But . . . we're always going to be the hunted just because of who we are and . . . we always go with the mindset that we are the best and that's the way you have to play."

Source: Fan Nation

there far from the best in the east...i still see tampa bay as the lead as well as red sox...out of all the teams in the AL i would consider red sox at the top. also i found this on cnn regarding bud selig and his reaction to a-roid.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/12/A-rod.steroids/index.html

Too bad his judgement wasn't on par with his baseball performance. Great baseball players are often times not so great at managing their personal lives.

is there even anybody who personal life screwed up there professional play (without those who used steroids)

The local tv stations carried ARod's news conference live (it just finished). I missed the beginning of it, but from what I saw, it appeared he answered all the questions honestly.

He was asked if the Texas years' stats should stand (the years in which he admitted steroid use) and his answer was that it wasn't up to him to decide. He was quick to point out that his best years (when he was very young and 2007) were done without steroid use.

He just wants to put this all behind him and wants to get on with his career and life.

Dunno if he won over any fans, but at least he spoke his mind.

Time will probably soften the impact of it. I wasn't buying the "young and stupid" lines though. By his own admission his steroid use lasted for three seasons - who knows if it was longer. This was a systematic, conscious, ongoing decision that he undertook. Also, probably more than any other player in the game, he had access to physicians, trainers and professionals around the clock. He had a strict exercise and dietary regiment, so it is incredible that he would inject himself with the "supplements" that he would get with his "cousin" and not know what was in it. I think he was disengenuous, but I don't know if I care that much any more. I think he got some advice from a team of publicists

I think, however, that when his career ends, there will be a cloud of doubt over his place in history. Jamie Moyer and Roy Oswalt ripped his credibility.