What legacy will A-Rod have?

This is the only way it could have ended.  It appears Alex Rodriguez has decided to conclude his baseball career on his own terms.  I expected nothing less from A-Rod.  If his surgically-repaired hips and baseball’s drug-testing policy allow him to play out the last two years of his contract –a contract which totaled more than $252 million and has $42 million remaining on it – then, by golly, he’ll play it out. That part seems simple, straightforward, and obvious. Rodriguez, the New York Yankees current designated hitter and former pariah, told ESPN’s Andrew Marchand on Wednesday (3/23) that he intends to retire after the 2017 season.

By then, the veteran would have played 23 major league seasons, as well as being forty-two years old when his contract is up. Rodriquez was reported as saying “I won’t play after next year,” according to Marchand. “I’ve really enjoyed my time.  For me, it is time for me to go home and be dad.”

In terms of the baseball world, it’s time to do…..what, exactly? The subject of the end of Rodriguez’s career will, of course, bring up that nebulous but pertinent question: What will his legacy be?  In a sport with a history of difficult-to-decipher personalities – from Ty Cobb to Barry Bonds – Rodriguez’s might be the most complex. In terms of his overall career, taking away the HGH and off-the-field problems,  Rodriquez IS a Hall of Famer.

The numbers he produced in 23 seasons support the accolades that have been bestowed on him.  Rodriquez has 687 home runs, trailing only Bonds, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth. Only Aaron, Ruth and Cap Anson have driven in more runs. He has been an All-Star 14 times, an MVP three times, and a home run champ five times. Every time A-Rod approaches the plate, it is a must-see event.  The promise of a mesmerizing swing leading to one of his infamous home runs is irresistible.  He is unmistakably one of the best hitters of this or any generation.

However,, A-Rod’s off-the-field issues have been more than controversial.  It would be difficult to argue that he is a fraud, a cheater and a liar.  Although Rodriquez stated on numerous occasions that he didn’t take performance-enhancing drugs, he then twice admitted to doing exactly that. He was suspended for the entire 2014 season following the Biogenesis scandal, even after he said he had only used PEDs in his younger, more innocent days with Texas.  Yet, he continued to take them while with the Yankees. His every word must be discounted, because he has proven to be at best, unreliable, and at worst, deceitful.

All of this evidence sets up fans and sportswriters to debate this question for the next two years:  Will Alex Rodriquez be remembered more as hitter or as a liar?  The reality is that it appears unlikely Rodriguez will land in Cooperstown, because the Baseball Writers Association of America, which comprises the electorate, has thus far prevented the entry of both suspected performance enhancing drug-users Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.  It should be noted that Bonds and Clemens were never proven guilty of this offense.

Conversely, the writers approved Mark McGwire, an admitted HGH user.

Rodriguez’s case is unique in that even from the aspect of a distant fan, he seemed to always sincerely care about what others thought of him, sometimes to a fault. His every move seemed orchestrated, driven by ego. There are a variety of indelible images from A-Rod’s career, but which will you remember most, the fist pump after his 600th home run or the slap at the arm of Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo in Game 6 of the 2004 American League Championship?

You might choose to remember the celebration of his lone World Series ring with the Yankees in 2009 or Rodriguez staring at his reflection in the mirror, kissing himself, in that vaguely creepy photo shoot for Details magazine.  This is all further complicated by his return from exile last year, which was odd for its silence yet effectiveness. He played in 151 games, so his health wasn’t an issue. He hit 33 home runs and posted an on-base-plus-slugging percentage of .842, so his performance wasn’t an issue.

He made not a peep, sought no attention beyond helping the Yankees to the playoffs — which they accomplished despite being quite flawed.   In some ways, his surgically-repaired hip and age made playing third base every single game too much, thus rendering him a true DH player in this late stage of his career.

As of now,  his career has an official expiration date.  He will make $21 million this summer and $21 million more next season. With 28 more home runs, he will pass Babe Ruth. With 69 more, he would pass Hank Aaron, which seems very unlikely.  It does raise the question that even if he passes the Babe….How will those milestones be marked, both in the Bronx and elsewhere?

In 2014, Derek Jeter played his final season for the Yankees and was feted everywhere, the full rocking-chair-into-retirement world tour. The All-Star Game that summer in Minneapolis was a celebration of Jeter’s career, which was viewed quite simply: He played the game the right way every single night, made nary a headline off the field (save for dating supermodels), and won.

It’s nearly impossible to imagine Rodriguez standing at midfield in, say, Boston, receiving congratulations on a fine career from his old nemeses.  Maybe in Seattle, where it all started for him as a teenager? Maybe Texas, where he first became an MVP?

One thing we do know, Alex Rodriguez will possibly walk away after the 2017 season having earned more than $420 million!  His career has solicited  nearly that many opinions on how he should be remembered, and sadly it will continue even through his retirement.