Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
November 29, 2002
I-Rod:

Phil Rogers of ESPN.com writes about how Pudge Rodriguez has become an afterthought in the thinking of Texas management:


Ivan Rodriguez's impending free agency evoked a widespread passion back in 1997. But now that Rodriguez has finally reached the marketplace, after three consecutive last-place seasons, the deification of Alex Rodriguez and the rise of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks and NHL's Dallas Stars, he twists in the wind as little more than an awkward public spectacle.

I think part of this has come from the realization that despite shutting down the opponent's running game, pitchers don't do that well throwning to Ivan.

Scouts and even some teammates have long whispered that Rodriguez is too preoccupied to bring out the best in the pitchers he catches. But he didn't seem to handicap a constantly changing pitching staff in 1996-99. The Rangers won three AL West titles with John Burkett as the only pitcher on hand for every playoff run.

Yes, but those weren't exactly great pitching teams.

Rodriguez, who had knee surgery in 2001 and was sidelined with a herniated disc early in 2002, is especially sensitive about concerns that he's headed toward a short career. Some believe he's worn himself thin by starting an average of 135 games a year from 1991-99.

Since when is 12 seasons for a catcher a short career? It seems short because he came up when he was 19, and he's only 31 now.

Maybe the right thing to do with Rodriguez, given his recent injury history and his reputation for not handling pitchers, is to move him to another position. ESPN did a piece a few years ago on I-Rod's quick feet, and how that would let him adapt easily to 2nd base. With his strong arm, the quick feet would work well at third as well. And of course, his bat fits in anywhere. I-Rod strikes me as a Felipe Alou type players, and the Giants need a third baseman, and they may need a 2nd baseman by the time the off season is over. Why not take the money saved on Kent and Bell, and give it Ivan to learn a new position?


Posted by David Pinto at 08:03 AM | Baseball