Submitted by Kevin, Nov 2, 2007 18:14

Your analysis of A-Rod's worth is, as usual, a breath of fresh air amidst all the exhalations of both delusional Yankees fans and the "Young Elephants" (good name for a band, bad idea for an ownership group). If anything, Rodriguez will likely be worth even more to the Yankees in his later years because he will probably be chasing (and breaking) Barry Bonds' tainted home-run record. And even if the numbers didn't add up in terms of inflation, the fact remains that the Yankees need A-Rod more than he needs them. They are, as you point out, a team with an aging lineup, declining production, and an uncertain pitching staff. For all of their bravado about replacing A-Rod, this is unlikely to happen as they have little to nothing to trade with, and not so much as a single, promising position player in their farm system. This is how business works in the real world. If you don't provide yourself with alternatives, you're forced to pay top dollar for the only talent available. The Yankees simply don't have the cards in this negotiation. The Steinbrenner family now pretends not to understand this, although the only reason anyone has tolerated this bunch of louts for so long is their occasional willingness to bring high-priced stars to New York. If they really don't get it, I'm sure they'll learn in a few years when the fannies start to thin out in the seats of their new stadium. And if Hank and Hal really wanted A-Rod to appreciate the wonders of the Yankee tradition, maybe they should have done a few, rudimentary things to make him feel wanted, such as playing up his Washington Heights origins, defending him against the vicious media attacks that he and his wife have been subjected to, telling their leading drug user and first baseman to shut up, and persuading Derek Jeter to move over from a position A-Rod played much better for the good of the team, rather than sulking childishly over a passing insult. Kevin

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