Alex Rodriguez’s Strange Journey and What It Tells Us About Talented Athletes

“When I arrived in Texas in 2001, I felt an enormous amount of pressure,” Rodriguez said. “I felt like I had all the weight of the world on top of me, and I needed to perform — and perform at a high level — every day. Back then, it was a different culture. It was very loose. I was young, I was stupid, I was naïve. I wanted to prove to everyone that I was worth being one of the greatest players of all-time. I did take a banned substance, and for that I’m very sorry.” – Alex Rodriguez circa 2009

Alex Rodriguez is one of the most talented baseball players of all time. When he first entered the league, he had every tool in the book and was already thought to have the potential to be one of the greatest. He even proved himself worthy of the most lucrative contract in baseball as of 2001, when he signed a then-record 10 year, $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers.

During his first three years in Texas, Rodriguez averaged 52 home runs a season, with a .305 average and a .615 slugging percentage. On top of this, he averaged about 135 RBI per season. His peak season of 2002 included 57 home runs and 142 RBIs. He was truly talented and thought to be the one of the all-time greats…until he tested positive for performance enhancing drugs in a 2003 test (although it wasn’t revealed nor admitted to until 2009).

Around 2009, MLB really started to crack down on the usage of PEDs. As a result, many players flew under the radar, or simply could not be proven to have take the drugs, that had played the game before that.

Rodriguez was the subject of speculation and criticism from fans as well as the media until he started producing in the 2009 season. He slashed a .286/.402/.532 line with 30 home runs and 100 RBIs. He helped to lead the Yankees to a postseason berth. From there, he received more criticism because Rodriguez had rarely come through, during the postseason, in his career. That season was a different story as he had many clutch at bats to help the Yankees claim their 27th championship.

Then, in 2013, he was found to have used PEDs again through a biogenesis clinic in Miami. He, at first, denied all allegations of using PEDs. Eventually, however, he admitted to the usage and was suspended for the entire 2014 season. During this time, many were calling for MLB to ban A-Rod from the baseball.

Alex Rodriguez essentially became the face of evil and became MLB’s biggest villain. It got to the point where, while appealing his suspension in 2013, he was intentionally thrown at by then Red Sox pitcher Ryan Dempster. It was obvious that he was wanted out of the league.

When he had finally served his suspension and made his return to baseball, fans were upset. Rodriguez was also expected to play at a horrendous level as he was a 40-year-old man rehabbing two hip surgeries and he missed an entire year of competitive baseball.

He would arrive to stadiums and walk up to bat to nothing but boos. Finally, his natural talent came out again and he had a good year, for a 40-year-old at least. He ended 2015 with a .250/.356/.486 slash line and 33 home runs to go with 86 RBI. On top of that, he played 151 out of 162 games.

By the end of the season, Rodriguez was receiving loud applauses and praise. People went crazy when he hit his 3,000th career hit for a home run off of Justin Verlander. And, in 2016, if and when he hits career home run number 700, people will go crazy again.

So what happened to the boos and animosity toward Rodriguez? What happened to wanting him out of the game? What even happened to the people that claimed they would not support Alex Rodriguez or the Yankees?

All of the naysayers were vanquished by the on-field performance of Rodriguez. This is, honestly, the case of all MLB players nowadays. They can cheat, steal, or just do bad things, but as like as it does not impact their game, they are still paid and still cheered on.

Now, for Rodriguez, it’s a matter of how much longer those cheers will keep coming.