The lightening rod has struck again. And with that, his critics will surely strike back.
Alex Rodriguez woke up Saturday with 1,999 RBIs to his professional name. How he was aided in getting them—his immense offensive talent, his teammates being on base and, of course, the drugs—is irrelevant to the record books.
By the time he laid his manicured head on a Baltimore hotel pillow, A-Rod had taken down another milestone. His 666th career home run produced RBI Nos. 2,000 and 2,001 on Saturday, making him just the second official major league player to, somewhat literally, have a ton of RBIs.
Alex Rodriguez becomes the 2nd player to reach 2,000 RBI since the stat became official in 1920. pic.twitter.com/6UJ4oRTvKY
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 14, 2015
He trails only Henry Aaron’s 2,297 in the Major League Baseball hall of records since the game did not tally RBIs before 1920. Aaron holds the all-time unofficial record, with Babe Ruth (2,214), Cap Anson (2,075) and now the game’s all-time most controversial player as the only others in the club.
Career RBI leaders (since baseball actually was played before 1920): Hank Aaron 2297, Babe Ruth 2214, Cap Anson 2075, Alex Rodriguez 2001.
— Tyler Kepner (@TylerKepner) June 14, 2015
People will undoubtedly scoff at Rodriguez’s numbers. He brought that criticism on himself when he decided to tangle with performance-enhancing drugs only to be outed twice, the second squealing costing him all of the 2014 season.
His team, the New York Yankees, barely acknowledge his feats anymore because of all of it. One home run no more special the previous or the next, 2,000 RBIs no different than No. 1,999 except for the fact that they are helping keep the Yankees afloat in the thick American League East as Rodriguez vies for the league’s Comeback Player of the Year honor.
But just because the Yankees brass has decided not to honor, or pay, Rodriguez when he reaches certain milestones, it does not mean it is not special. Baseball loves its record book, and like it or not, A-Rod is all over it and in rarefied company.
Not Barry Bonds, not Lou Gehrig, not Stan Musial, not Ty Cobb or anybody else who has ever played the game aside from the others mentioned before have collected 2,000 RBIs. When a player is better than those men at anything that has to do with playing baseball, he should to be appreciated.
Rodriguez’s PED scandals have not just tarnished his reputation. In the eyes of many baseball players, executives, media members and fans, they have scribbled all over the hallowed record book with a brightly colored permanent marker, transforming a masterpiece into a joke.
Rodriguez is obviously not the only player to do so, but he is the best and most heavily scarred. He is the face of an era, in the most despised way possible.
Because of that, it is easy to ignore his greatness or simply brush it off as a product of synthetic [insert substance here]. It should not be that way.
While an RBI is not a great way to determine a player’s production or value, it still means something. And reaching a number that only three other magnificent offensive players before him have should not diminish the entirety of Rodriguez’s accomplishment.
The same can be said about his 600th home run, or when he recently passed Willie Mays on the all-time home run list. It will hold true again next week when Rodriguez becomes the 29th member of the 3,000-hit club.
People might not like how or what he used to get there, but the sheer impressiveness of the feats should not be lost on them, or anyone.
And that Rodriguez is this productive as he approaches his 40th birthday is impressive as well. Considering the last time we saw him in the batter’s box before this season he was a mess, his 11 home runs and .883 OPS as the team’s No. 3 hitter are almost shocking.
7 of A-Rod's 12 HR this year have either tied the game or given the Yankees the lead.
— Katie Sharp (@ktsharp) June 14, 2015
Then we remember that we are talking about maybe the most prolific hitter the game has ever employed, with or without the artificial flavoring.
In a society that loves to forgive its stars after it chastises them, there is none of it for A-Rod. He’s for too long attempted to fool baseball fans and lie about it. And in a game that is rooted in and sometimes defined by its history, that is something a player just can’t do, no matter how great he is or was.
As long as he remains healthy, Rodriguez will keep on knocking over milestones and climbing higher in the record book. Baseball and its fans will continue to despise him for it. It’s just how things works these days when it comes to Rodriguez.
Even if that is the case, though, his accomplishments should still be appreciated and celebrated.
All quotes, unless otherwise specified, have been acquired first-hand by Anthony Witrado. Follow Anthony on Twitter @awitrado and talk baseball here.
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