Alex Rodriguez: All-Star Game snub-worthy?

Anger! Hostility! Frustration! Bitterness! Those may be some of the many feelings that Major League Baseball fans experience when thinking about New York Yankees designated hitter, Alex Rodriguez.

Everyone knows Alex Rodriguez’s story off the field. We know his drug history and the Biogenesis scandal. His personal life took a turn for the worse as well. He had marital problems and had been involved with celebrities like Kate Hudson, Cameron Diaz and former WWE wrestling diva Torrie Wilson. We also know that resulting from his off the field activities he did not play a single game for the 2014 New York Yankees.

As we get closer to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Cincinnati and the trade deadline on July 31, let’s analyze and assess the work of Mr. Rodriguez.

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Heading into the pre-ASG weekend series against the Boston Red Sox, Rodriguez comes into the break having hit 16 home runs, 47 RBI and is currently batting .276 for the Bronx Bombers. Say what you will about the man, his statistics are definitely worthy of membership amongst the American League All-Stars.

Rodriguez’ career has been ‘bumpy’ over his tenure as a professional ballplayer. His career started in 1994 and is still ongoing in 2015, minus a one year suspension. His stops have taken him to play with the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and now the Yankees.

Over his career, no one can deny his records whether ‘clean or unclean.’ He’s made it to the ASG 14 times. He’s also a 10-time Silver Slugger winner, five-time home run champion in the American League, four-time Hank Aaron Award winner, three-time MVP, two-time Gold Glove winner as well as a World Series champion with the Yankees in 2009.

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New York Yankees fans were unsure about the teams transition from the 2014 season into the 2015 season. Their beloved captain, Derek Jeter, retired from playing shortstop after the 2014 season. Rodriguez was on the sidelines. Fans were not sure how the team was going to live-on without Jeter and how welcome Rodriguez would be back on the team.

Detractors were hoping that Rodriguez would flop and be an embarrassment as the designated hitter for the Yanks. However, he has proven that he has not lost much bat speed and has been productive for most of the first half of this season. He has primarily played as the team’s DH as mentioned, but also played some third base. He has also tried, albeit briefly, at manning first base.

American League manager Ned Yost found himself in a difficult predicament. Each club needs at least a single representative. Yost also wanted a third catcher for the AL squad, and from the sounds of it, Rodriguez was discussed with regards to being part of the team. But Nelson Cruz and Prince Fielder were more worthy selections in the DH slot, so Yost couldn’t find a position for A-Rod to utilize. Yost went and selected Russell Martin as his third backstop and Boston Red Sox utility man Brock Holt to fill the quota.

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Rodriguez is not the same player he was during his tenure in Seattle and Texas. He’s 39-years-old now and has an aging body. If Rodriguez was in the ASG, the spotlight would have been on him to produce.

The ‘old’ Alex Rodriguez may have complained and sulked. The ‘new’ Alex Rodriguez is saying all the right things so far this year. He is behaving in a professional manner. He understands the predicament Yost found himself in. Rodriguez is praising Prince Fielder’s inclusion on the roster. This past week, he also threw support toward his teammate Brett Gardner, who was recently named to the starting lineup in place of the injured Alex Gordon. Rodriguez wanted Gardner to be included on the American League roster, and he got his wish.

Rodriguez has, in a sense, ‘paid his debt to society’. He has served his time. He is not perfect. None of us are. While he may not be an All-Star player at the Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati next week, he deserves some applause for a great first half, a professional attitude and approach to the game and being a team player.

Next: Ned Yost kind of got ASG finale vote nominations right

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