All Things Bubba

Well, Yankee fandom is in an uproar over the SI report that A-Rod tested positive for steroids. Some fans feel betrayed that their hero is a cheater. Some never liked A-Rod, and this just confirms their opinion of them. Some think the reporter, Selena Roberts, is just out to get A-Rod.

Me, I'm not surprised. There have been allegations of juicing against A-rod before. Canseco may be a sleazeball, but given his track record, I believe him, at least when the subject is 'roids. He said A-Rod was a juicer, so I'm not exactly shocked by this article.

I’m also not surprised that A-Rod was warned. If you read the Mitchell Report, it’s pretty clear that everyone was complicit: the league, the teams, the players’ union. Players were routinely warned of upcoming testing, even though they weren't supposed to be.

Pete Abe is apparently away this weekend, but Sam Borden is covering the story at LoHud. He says that Selena Roberts is an excellent and deeply respected journalist, known for doing accurate and thorough work. He criticizes A-Rod for not warning the Yankees this was coming. (He knew, since Ms. Roberts gave him a chance to tell his side of it.) He points out that A-Rod flat-out denied using steroids, more than once. He says A-Rod should fess up, like Pettitte, not try to cover up, like Clemens. And he thinks this will not be good for the Yankees. A-Rod has always been easily distracted by this kind of off-the-field drama, and this is probably bigger than any of the other controversies that have swirled around. Unlike she-male strippers, "Slapgate," sleepovers with Jeter, fooling around with Madonna, etc., this affects the core of his baseball identity.

The denizens of Bronx Banter predict that A-Rod will "handle the situation in the worst possible way imaginable, because he always does," and refer to him as the "human PR disaster." I know what they mean.

I am really wishing the Yanks hadn't re-signed him. He's a great player, but I'm just so tired of the never-ending A-Rod circus.

Labels: steroids