Jeter voted most overrated by players

In a Sports Illustrated poll surveying 495 players, 10 percent of them voted Derek Jeter as the game's most overrated, according to the Daily News.

“I don’t want to hear about it,” Jeter told the Daily News before trying to help the Yankees extend their winning streak to seven games in Thursday's matinee. “I don’t want to hear about it. I don’t want to talk about it. All negative stuff I don’t want to talk about.”

Ironically, when SI asked MLB players, “Whom would you pick to build a team around?” in a separate survey last week, A-Rod ranked first and Jeter second.

I love Jeter, but I can't argue. He's a very nice player and a great leader, but do you think he'd get as much attention as he does now if he played for Kansas City or Toronto?

What's curious is that Alex Rodriguez garnered seven percent of the vote. Excuse me? Rodriguez won the MVP last year (the third of his career) and will likely chase after Barry Bonds' home run record someday. That sounds like 34.65 players are extremely jealous of Rodriguez and his contract.

A-Rod can't catch a break

Alex Rodriguez still isn't liked, apparently.

From YouTube:



I have a feeling people will come around when he's about to break Barry Bonds' career home run record.

Via Bronx Liaison

Yankees, A-Rod agree to contract outline

From the Associated Press:

Alex Rodriguez and the New York Yankees have agreed to the outline of a $275 million, 10-year contract, a deal that potentially would allow him to earn millions more if he sets the career home run record.

The amount of the guaranteed money was revealed by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized. A-Rod met Wednesday in Tampa, Fla., with the Steinbrenner brothers but the parameters of the deal were set in place last weekend. (ESPN.com)

It's rather surprising to hear that they were discussing this last weekend.

The contract isn't terrible, considering the circumstances. Last night, I wrote about the contract being "heavily backloaded," with Rodriguez making less money these next three years, meaning he'll make the most money when he's oldest. However, he'll be nearing Barry Bonds' record around that time, so he'll be earning a lot of money for the Yankees anyway.

I am honestly shocked that Rodriguez is returning. I thought he burned all of his bridges during Game 4 of the World Series.

Now it's time to lock up Mariano Rivera and improve the rest of the bullpen. The outlook for 2008 is very much improved.

Breaking news: Bonds hits 756

Barry Bonds has just hit No. 756, and they're playing the theme to "The Natural." How ironic.

I really wish this wasn't happening in San Francisco. This is absolutely disgusting to watch.

Tuesday has the potential to be historic

As we all know, Barry Bonds is on the verge of tying Hank Aaron's home run record at 755. He is currently sitting at 754.

Alex Rodriguez has 499 home runs.

Tom Glavine has 299 career victories.

All three players are scheduled to be playing on Tuesday.

Personally, I hope Rodriguez doesn't homer tomorrow night. I'd like to be there in person for his attempt at his 500th home run on Wednesday.

UPDATE: Here is a much more detailed write up the AP did on this story. Apparently I wasn't the only person to notice this situation.

A-Rod as good as Barry? Hell no

Barry Bonds had something to say regarding Alex Rodriguez's place in history in today's Post.

Here is my reaction to the article on The Bronx Block.

The "hah" incident

By now, I'm sure you've seen and heard about Alex Rodriguez's incident at third base last night against the Blue Jays.

If you haven't, here's a quick recap: Jorge Posada popped a ball up to third base with two outs. As Rodriguez was passing by Howie Clark, he seemed to say something (video clearly shows Rodriguez opening his mouth). The Jays claim he said, "Mine," while Rodriguez claims he said, "Ha." Nevertheless, the ball dropped in and allowed a run to score. Cameras cut to the Blue Jays dugout where they were all staring at Rodriguez.

Critics have undoubtedly compared this to the "glove slap" and the "slide." However, this was probably the most harmless of the three, as no contact was made.

Some quotes:

"I just said, 'Hah!' That's it," Rodriguez said. "Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I don't know what my intention was. I didn't say, 'I got it' or anything like that."

"I heard a 'Mine' call and so I let it go," Clark said. "What do you do? It makes you mad."

"The thing about the Yankees, one of the reasons they're so respected, is they do things right. Always have," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "They've got a lot of pride and a lot of class. They play the game hard. That's not Yankee pride right there. That's not the way they play. I thought it was bush league."

My feelings are that if this was anyone except Rodriguez, no one would care or they would say that he is just doing his part to help his team win. I feel that this play wasn't that dirty, but others will feel differently and the haters now have more fodder to call Rodriguez a "dirty player."

I have a feeling people will come around to liking A-Rod when he is approaching Barry Bonds' all-time home run record. Hopefully he will still be a Yankee at that point.

With the Michael Vick dog fighting saga (among other things), Tank Johnson going to jail, players getting pulled over for drunk driving and possession of controlled substances, etc., all of the criticism Rodriguez gets is unwarranted. He has never been caught doing anything illegal and he is a great baseball player. He does not deserve the treatment he gets.

Source: Associated Press via Yahoo! Sports