A-Rod is getting one ugly Farewell Tour.
The decision by the New York Yankees to give Alex Rodriguez his unconditional release after tonight’s game in the Bronx has become the final distraction of a once Hall of Fame career that went terribly wrong. A-Rod may be one of the greatest talents to ever play the grand old game, but his career has never been the same since he denied, then admitted, then denied again taking performance enhancing drugs and sitting out an entire season under suspension.
After refusing to play Rodriquez in the first two games of their series in Boston, the Yankees’ Joe Girardi was clearly looking forward to managing his team of also-rans without A-Rod. He said his job was not to worry about farewell tours, as if that is what the .200-hitting A-Rod is getting since it was announced the Yankees would release him and then pay him the balance of his 27-million-dollar contract to be a special advisor. A special advisor to what, the New York fans and media are crowing.
Girardi actually started the latest controversy by first saying he would try to get A-Rod into as many games as possible before his agreed retirement. Then he continued to leave him out of the starting lineup, causing him to apologize and to say he misspoke. The Yankees aren’t going to the post-season after dealing three of their best players before the trade deadline, and they are now a team in transition, trying to decide who will be on the roster next year and who will be replaced by a suddenly revitalized farm system.
Clearly, it’s been torture for the ex-slugger with 696 home runs who no longer deserves to be an everyday player and a manager used to competing in August and September for a playoff spot. Unlike the beloved David Ortiz, whose second half slump has not taken the spotlight off HIS farewell tour, A-Rod will leave the game with little fanfare and lots of critics. The only thing everyone in New York seems to agree on these days is that it’s time for a change, however poorly it has been handled.
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