[新聞] A's empathize with A-Rod's N.Y. story
炒熱明天球賽氣氛。
From: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/13/AS.TMP
A's empathize with A-Rod's N.Y. story
Susan Slusser, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, April 13, 2007
(04-12) 19:06 PDT -- Even if Yankees fans outnumber Oakland fans this weekend
at the Coliseum, as occasionally happens, New York third baseman Alex
Rodriguez is likely to get a warmer welcome here than on his home field.
Or at least less grief. Rodriguez, long considered the top all-around player
in baseball, has a turbulent relationship with the Yankee Stadium crowd. When
he's not performing up to expectations -- and expectations for him are off
the charts -- he is showered with boos. Rodriguez, who has a sensitive side,
appears hurt by the verbal abuse now and then, and that seems only to make
matters worse.
"I'd take it personally, too," Oakland third baseman Eric Chavez said. "If
you're the best player in the game and you're treated like a bum, you should
be upset. I wouldn't be as nice about it as he is. I'd say, 'Fine, screw
you.' "
New York fans like to vent, and Rodriguez is the highest-paid player in
baseball, at $25 million per year. He's a natural lightning rod.
"He can hit a grand slam and then strike out the next inning and get booed,"
said Dan Haren, who is starting for Oakland tonight. "That kind of goes with
the territory with that contract. You get the criticism and you get the
praise."
Adding to the dysfunctional drama is the fact that Rodriguez can opt out of
his record $252 million deal after this season, prompting numerous "will he
or won't he?" articles and talk-show segments.
Oakland designated hitter Mike Piazza was a major sports figure in New York
for years when he was with the Mets and he's not surprised by the reaction
Rodriguez elicits.
"It's one of those things that is New York," Piazza said. "It's not a
personal thing. You can't take it personally, because when you do, it
intensifies. Obviously, it's frustrating for him, because this guy can change
a game in an instant, and then the fans turn right around, too. It's happened
to me, too, and it can get you down. It's exhausting.
"You play under a microscope in New York, especially when you're someone of
A-Rod's stature. Everything you say or do is going to be scrutinized. That
might make you want to lash out, but you have to realize that it's going to
be a rollercoaster there. You've just got to ride out the lows, make them
less intense."
The ups and downs for Rodriguez are already extreme, even just a week and a
half into the season. He was booed almost from the first moment of Opening
Day, when he made an error in the top of the first and struck out in the
bottom of the first. He banged a homer later in the day, then at end of the
week, Rodriguez beat the Orioles with a grand slam in the team's final
at-bat.
Since then, the two-time MVP has been piling up the home runs, with a
major-league leading six (compiled in the first seven games -- he's the first
Yankees player to start out that fast). Rodriguez is batting .355 with a
major-league leading 16 RBIs and a 1.065 slugging percentage, and he's tied
for the league lead in runs, with 10.
"The guy is putting up pretty good numbers but he's in a no-win situation,"
Chavez said. "If he goes off and hits 50 homers and drives in 130 runs, maybe
there will be some role reversal. Maybe there will be a little more
cheering."
Haren pointed out that Rodriguez is not a one-man show. The Yankees as a
whole are on an offensive roll, with a .348 batting average and a league-high
52 runs.
"Obviously, A-Rod is swinging the bat really well," Haren said. "I'm looking
forward to facing them -- you look at the boxscore and Johnny Damon is
hitting .556, Derek Jeter's hitting .400. It's going to be interesting to go
through the tape and see where they're getting their hits. One through nine,
they can all get you, but it will be fun for me. And I hope we get more A's
fans than Yankees fans."
That's one sentiment Rodriguez might support.
--
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