More than that, though, it's just fun to hate on baseball players (and other athletes) for their in-game shortcomings. For those of us who don't appreciate the intricacies of pitches and think statistical analysis is dull and misses the point, baseball is fun partly because we can yell about A-Rod and argue with each other about whether he is a savior or baseball's Satan. I relished every A-Rod screw-up for the opportunity to argue that this perennial all-star and sure-fire hall of famer wasn't worth the uniform he was wearing. It's the passion, man.
So, jeez, how must that last out have felt for Rangers fans? Did you know that A-Rod played for them in the early 2000's after signing the most lucrative contract in sports history (10 years, $252 million)? Did you know that they traded him to the Yankees three years later because they couldn't build a winning team around him and couldn't build a better team while honoring his contract? Did you know that that Rangers may have been experiencing a possible slide into bankruptcy because of his contract but still had to agree to pay $67 million of A-Rod's remaining $179 million in order to trade him?
How about that the Rangers are still paying that $67 million even though A-Rod has since signed another, more lucrative, contract (10 years, $275 million) that is the new "most lucrative contract in sports history?" Or that the Rangers will still be paying him eight years after the Yankees are done paying the second contract? Or that A-Rod the A-[cough] was listed as Texas's biggest unsecured creditor in a bankruptcy claim and objected to the plan put forth in that claim because of the money the team owes him?
Yes, Alex Rodriguez signed the most lucrative contract in sports history to be the centerpiece of a championship Rangers team but was traded after three years because Texas was losing more games than it won and that is the least of it. In the trade, Texas agreed to pay part of the contract that was forcing them toward bankruptcy and are still paying even though Rodriguez is on another team and another ludicrously lucrative contract. Currently, Rodriguez is ensuring that the Rangers pay every penny of what they owe him and playing against them while they pay him. So you can see why that last at-bat might make all this a bit sweeter for Rangers fans: they saw their team make its first ever World Series by striking out the man who embodies, and in no small part helped cause, Texas Rangers failure and who expects to be paid money he could never spend from a contract he doesn't need while he plays the damn team.
P.S. I realize this is not all A-Rod's fault. The Rangers shouldn't have agreed to that contract, Alex Rodriguez is entitled to his money, and the Yankees didn't lose because of one man; there were two outs in the bottom of the ninth, there was no one on base, and the Yankees were down five. But, man, that was fun.
Stop picking on Arod. He's trying his hardest. At the end of his career, which will span three decades, he will be considered the greatest position player in the history of the game. So he had a bad few days. Do you think he's weeping from that? No. Please remove that photo from your site, or I'll personally have Arod come over to your offices and smack you in the head. Lucky for you, he is having a bad few days and probably won't make contact!!!
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