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Sorry, Marlins, Alex Rodriguez says he’s done
Tuesday’s Say Hey, Baseball includes A-Rod staying home, Hunter Pence’s ridiculous catch, and Coco Crisp’s concern about the A’s.
Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images
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The Marlins lost Giancarlo Stanton, and Justin Bour was already on the disabled list. So, they considered bringing in Alex Rodriguez after the Yankees released him, maybe hoping a change of scenery and a playoff chase would rejuvenate him. That, or Jeffrey Loria wanted A-Rod whether it made sense or not just because he’s fixated on the idea of him, and, well, that’s how the Marlins sometimes do things. Regardless of the why or the actual interest level, the Marlins won’t be signing A-Rod, as his publicist told the world that Rodriguez is staying home.
It’s not that much of a shame for Miami, considering A-Rod was forced out by the Yankees due to a total collapse of his abilities at 41. Still, healthy and capable bodies aren’t easy to come by this time of year, and that’s how they might have ended up thinking about A-Rod in the first place — just in case there was something left there. The Marlins do still have internal options, at least, so it’s not all bad, and they are currently tied for a wild card spot.
It’s also for the best for A-Rod, who had a decent enough start to the year outside of his batting average — his OPS was .705 on June 5 — but then saw everything else slip by the time mid-August rolled around. Maybe there’s something left. There very likely is not, though, not when he just went through a stretch of too many strikeouts with too few walk and not enough power. Those were the swings and decisions of desperation and just trying to hang on, and while the Yankees might have forced him out earlier than his contract stated, it still beats another 6-7 weeks of futility dragging down the very end of his career.
- Hunter Pence fell down but also made a glorious grab.
- Miguel Sano had an MRI on his elbow, and luckily for both him and the Twins, it came back clean.
- Coco Crisp believes the A’s are trying to keep his option for 2017 from vesting.
- In other A’s news, Jed Lowrie’s 2016 is over after surgery to remove a bunion from his foot. Said bunion might be part of the reason his season was a disappointment, as he played through it before hitting the DL.
- Where are baseball’s surprise contenders this year? The Orioles and Marlins are little surprises. Where is the big one? We demand answers, baseball.
- There are pros and cons to the Red Sox signing Jonathan Papelbon. Let’s be real, though: mostly cons.
- The Astros will send Cuban infielder Yulieski Gurriel to Triple-A instead of Houston, which is a bit of a surprise.
- The Padres traded for 23-year-old shortstop Luis Sardinas, reuniting general manager A.J. Preller with the former Rangers prospect. It’s expected that Sardinas will join San Diego before long so that they can get a look at a prospective shortstop for 2017.
- It’s too early to talk about the Phillies and the wild card, but since this sort of thing could slip away at any moment, let’s talk about it anyway.
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