Alex Rodriguez will be back playing third base for the New York Yankees sometime in May, his ailing hip healed enough for him to make it through the end of the season, when another operation awaits.
That’s the plan, at least, and the way both the Yankees and A-Rod’s surgeon are talking, it’s pretty much a done deal. A few months of hard work in rehab and Rodriguez will be slugging balls out of the new Yankee Stadium at the same pace he hit them out of the old one.
Or maybe he won’t.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about the A-Rod circus over the last few weeks is that not much is certain. That includes things that were once certain, such as his first ballot election to the Hall of Fame and his eventual place on top of the list of all-time home run hitters.
But here’s one thing that is certain: Rodriguez is the highest paid player in baseball, and the Yankees are on the hook for some $250 million over the next nine years for a player who is now suspect in more ways than one.
the Steinbrenner sons are feeling some pangs of buyer’s remorse.
Being outed for using steroids was bad enough, though the Yankees stood by their man and his story that he quit using them at the very moment he first donned the pinstripes. Yes, he cost the club a lot of future feel-good moments by tainting the home run chase, but all was mostly forgiven in the hope he would help deliver a World Series title or two to the Bronx.
But what happens if this injury is only the beginning? Could A-Rod, who turns 34 this summer and has already logged 15 seasons in the big leagues, be on the cusp of a big decline in productivity over the next few years?
No one can predict that, of course, just like no one could have predicted that Rodriguez would sit on national television before the season began and admit that he was a steroid user. But there are enough cautionary tales from players who have gone before him to suggest that the older an athlete gets the harder it is to stay healthy.
And once the injuries begin, one tends to follow another.
e seasons and eventually slowed his bat.
Until recently, Rodriguez has been amazingly durable, especially during his admitted steroid years at Texas when he played in all but one game over three years. Just four years ago he played in every game for the Yankees, and two years ago played in all but four.
But a nagging strained right quadriceps injury limited him to 138 games last season and, unless he comes back quicker than expected from his hip injury, he won’t play in that many this year. Next year is anyone’s guess, too, because Rodriguez will have to undergo another more extensive operation during the offseason to fully repair his hip.
That has to be making the Yankees almost as uneasy as the fact they can’t seem to sell the pricey tickets close to the field in their new stadium due to the worsening economy. Without A-Rod on the field, those sales will become even more difficult as the novelty of the new stadium wears off.
Unlike most injuries, this one has some positives for both Rodriguez and baseball.
For A-Rod, being hurt gives him a chance to lay low while the furor over his steroid use subsides. The season will be well underway by the time he finally plays and, while he will be booed loudly on the road no matter what, he will likely get a pass from the home fans who care about little other than how many games the Yankees can win.
main steroid-era distractions will be largely silent. Instead of beginning the season with Barry Bonds on trial in San Francisco and A-Rod playing in Baltimore, the season will open with the focus on the field.
The game could be saved some future embarrassment as well. If Rodriguez starts to miss large chunks of games or begins declining at the plate, he, like Griffey, may never reach Aaron’s total of 755 or the official yet suspicious new record of 762 held by Bonds.
Only time will tell because, outside of A-Rod’s massive salary, nothing about him will ever be certain again.
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Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlbergap.org
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