to be surrounded by teammates, any one of whom could pick up the team on a given day. I’ve always had the impression that Alex puts a lot of pressure on himself to carry the team – something that’s impossible to do every day, even for him. This season, it seemed like there was a different hero every game. I think that he thrived with the spotlight not on him every game. He certainly seemed a lot more relaxed and comfortable, just happy to be a great player surrounded by great teammates. I was happy to see him finally earn a ring.

“she seems like a sane, down-to-earth woman”

i wouldn’t be too sure about that. she did cheat on her husband with owen wilson. then she drove owen wilson to a suicide attempt. and she is dating a-rod. these are three big warning signs. so lets not pick out the silverware and china pattern on their wedding registry just yet. i also think she knew that if she pulled any nonsense with him this season she’d never be let into nyc again.

I don’t care what Alex or any player does off the field but,
‘I always work better when I feel comfortable – don’t you?’
is a true statement. My Grandfather used to tell me: ‘If you like what you’re doing, you’ll be good at it and if you’re good at something, no matter what it is, you’ll make money.’
Money is of course a metaphor but the point is Alex could not perform his best with all the distractions. He may have liked playing ball but no way he liked the back page stories and all the booing. I can tell you first hand that divorce sucks even if you want it. It takes some time to move on and the fans that booed him hurt the team as much as the opponent. They became just another enemy.
Now that he has more support let’s hope for several monster years in the middle of a (repeat) championship lineup.

Notwithstanding his enormous wealth and fame, I think A-Rod had hit rock bottom with the events of the last year and then the revelation that he was a steroid user. I’ve never been a huge A-Rod fan but …… from a human perspective, I can understand how getting these things out in the open must have been a huge weight off of A-Rod’s back. While I have no knowledge of his personal life, it is so clear in how he handles himself on the field that he is a changed man.

Even A-Rod detractors have always had to admit that he has enormous talent. The interesting thing about this year is …… even though he didn’t put up huge numbers, his contributions were more valuable to the Yankees success this year than in any other year. The tragic thing about A-Rod and Bonds is that ……. w/out steroids, both of them would have had Hall-of-Fame careers probably ending up with somewhere in the mid-500’s of HR’s. They are both enormous talents on their own but their power numbers will forever be skewed by their steroid use. I think A-Rod stands a better chance of making it into the HOF five years after he retires than Bonds will if for no other reason than he at least admitted to his use of steroids (although ……. I still don’t believe it was confined only to those years in Texas).

Seeing how A-Rod changed as a person this year, I became a fan and rooted for him rather than against him. I’ll probably never be able to root for him like I do Jeter, Mo and Pettitte (yeah …. I know, Andy did HGH ….. although I do believe it was on a limited basis and I also believe he fessed up much better than most have done in the MLB). But ….. I can honestly say that I am now in A-Rod’s corner and wish him all the best. Honestly - I could care less if he ever breaks the HR record. All of this is tainted, anyway. I’d much rather see him contribute like he did this year and help bring the Yankees a few more championships during the rest of his contract years.