Remember, this is the same guy that got boo'd regularly last year at Yankee Stadium.
From Bryan Hoch:
Alex Rodriguez stepped out of the batting cage on Thursday at George M. Steinbrenner Field, glancing up into the field-level seats behind the Yankees' dugout.
The feeling may not follow him around the Grapefruit League, and it almost certainly will not be present when Rodriguez ventures into Boston's Fenway Park later this year. But on this gray afternoon, everything A-Rod saw -- and heard -- was acceptance.
Two days after Rodriguez publicly admitted that a cousin, identified as Yuri Sucart, repeatedly injected him with performance-enhancing drugs, Yankees fans again voiced their support for A-Rod by welcoming him to camp with open arms.
"No matter what happens or what has occurred in my life, the baseball field is where I feel most comfortable," Rodriguez said. "That's what I feel that I was born to do. It's what I do best. There's definitely a comfort level for me between the lines."
As Rodriguez walked off the field, young fans clamored for his autograph. He unstrapped the sweat-soaked white batting gloves he used in a session against right-handers Brian Bruney and Joba Chamberlain, flipping them onto the dugout roof, where they were snapped up by school-aged children.
Could you imagine if being outed as a cheater is the thing that finally gets the Yankees fans to support this guy?If there are any ill feelings about Rodriguez's admissions that he used performance-enhancing drugs during all three of his seasons with the Texas Rangers, they are not being voiced during the Yankees' Spring Training camp. As Rodriguez continued his workouts at the complex, he was greeted only by supportive comments for a second successive day.
"It was nice," Rodriguez said. "I know they're Yankees fans, but it's a start."
Either way, A-Rod shares a similar feeling with many Yankees fans, and it's that he's ready to move on and he's excitement about this year's team:
"It seems like I've turned a corner here," Rodriguez said. "It's nice being back out there, running around with my teammates, throwing and hitting a baseball. I felt really good. I'm excited about this team."
9 Comments:
Boo him for no reason during the regular season, cheer he when he does steroids. Makes total sense.
Idk man, I mean those fans who booed him didn't know this was going to happen. I guess they just are finally realizing hes human and made a mistake, so they are showing him some support. Hopefully it carries over into the Stadium as well.
Maybe a lot of people are fed up with the overkill by the press and are supporting him to express that. I haven't seen so much insane media scrutiny since the Clinton/Lewinsky thing, and this time it's even more ridiculous because A-Rod, you know, is just a baseball player.
Good point Rich.
That may be the reason.
... or at least one of the main reasons.
Great! This is good news. Let's win it all in 2009!
Mike
People will go back to booing when the regular season starts and Alex, again, fails to deliver in clutch situations.
Raven you beat me to the punch. This will last about as long as his next bad at bat. When you get right down to it this whole issue is secondary for me. The main problem with A-Rod is whether or not he is a winner and so far that hasn't been the case.
I think Alex is just one of those guy's who put's up huge numbers that do not translate into big wins for his team (at least the wins that mean the most).
Raven and Brad,
You guys are probably right.
Post a Comment