Updated: Oct. 17, 2005, 2:38 AM ET A-Rod's mom: Uncle's death affected performance Associated Press
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- Alex Rodriguez played poorly in the Yankees' American League Division Series loss in part because he was saddened by the death of the uncle who raised him, the slugger's mother said in an interview published in a local newspaper Sunday.
Lourdes Navarro said her son kept the Sept. 30 death of his uncle to himself because he was committed to helping his team win.
"I think he should speak with the team and tell them that his uncle, who was like his father because he raised him since he was 8, died in a hospital in Miami," Navarro told Listin daily newspaper.
Navarro didn't say what caused the death of Augusto Bolivar Navarro, who was her last surviving brother.
Rodriquez was hitless in last Monday's 5-3 loss to the Anaheim Angels that sent the Yankees home for the year, and finished the five-game series with no RBI and a .133 batting average.
"I know how much he suffered from the death of his uncle without being able to do anything, from listening to me crying and not being able to be there," she said, suggesting some New York fans were being unfair to her son.
"I would like ... for the baseball fans to know that my son is a great human being, that they're seeing a human and not a robot, that he can fail, especially when there are reasons like this," she said.
Navarro said Rodriguez spoke with his uncle for three hours by phone the day before he died.
"We buried him in Santo Domingo ... [Rodriguez] didn't come because of the high sense of responsibility that Alex has for his work," she said.
Rodriguez, baseball's only $25 million-a-year player, is a strong MVP candidate after batting .321 during the regular season with 48 homers and 130 RBI.
Updated: Oct. 17, 2005, 2:38 AM ET A-Rod's mom: Uncle's death affected performance Associated Press
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- Alex Rodriguez played poorly in the Yankees' American League Division Series loss in part because he was saddened by the death of the uncle who raised him, the slugger's mother said in an interview published in a local newspaper Sunday.
Lourdes Navarro said her son kept the Sept. 30 death of his uncle to himself because he was committed to helping his team win.
"I think he should speak with the team and tell them that his uncle, who was like his father because he raised him since he was 8, died in a hospital in Miami," Navarro told Listin daily newspaper.
Navarro didn't say what caused the death of Augusto Bolivar Navarro, who was her last surviving brother.
Rodriquez was hitless in last Monday's 5-3 loss to the Anaheim Angels that sent the Yankees home for the year, and finished the five-game series with no RBI and a .133 batting average.
"I know how much he suffered from the death of his uncle without being able to do anything, from listening to me crying and not being able to be there," she said, suggesting some New York fans were being unfair to her son.
"I would like ... for the baseball fans to know that my son is a great human being, that they're seeing a human and not a robot, that he can fail, especially when there are reasons like this," she said.
Navarro said Rodriguez spoke with his uncle for three hours by phone the day before he died.
"We buried him in Santo Domingo ... [Rodriguez] didn't come because of the high sense of responsibility that Alex has for his work," she said.
Rodriguez, baseball's only $25 million-a-year player, is a strong MVP candidate after batting .321 during the regular season with 48 homers and 130 RBI.
I still like Arod and I'd luv to give him the benefit of doubt here. However, I'm just not sure if he's got the gonads for extremely high pressured crunch time.
It's not just the Tradition.....its Aura and Mystique
So, because his Uncle passed away (with all respect to him), we are supposed to let Arod off the hook, and forget about his 2 hits in the ALDS, and his 0 RBIs?
Thats ridiculous. Does anyone remember what Brett Favre did, a day or so after his father died last year or two years ago or whenever it was? He rose to the occasion and had one of the best games of his life. Clemens performed well a couple weeks ago when his mother died.
I'm just saying, I feel bad for Arod that his uncle died, but it is no excuse.
I'm not saying he should have done what Favre did. That is asinine. I DON'T, however, want to hear excuses. If this was such a big deal (and believe me, I do not mean to downplay this event in any way, it is terrible) then he shouldn't have played. Nobody even knew anything about this before the series.
If you're going to take the field, don't complain and make excuses for your poor performance afterward. It's the same thing with injuries. If you're hurt, DON'T take the field. Nobody wants to hear you b!tch about an injury after the game if you got wrecked (much like Kevin Brown did last year in Game 7.)
If you aren't able to play, then don't. If you take the field, live with the consequences. Don't come out with excuses after the fact.
I realize A-Rod didn't say this, his mother did. In that regard, I do not aim that directly at A-Rod, but moreso at the fans that think he should get a pass simply because of this.
Lets put it this way. If you are the best player in the league and something like this happens, don't you think you would try to play through it because you at less than 100% are still better than most everyone in baseball and thus doing the best for your team?
I'm not saying its the sole reason for his performance, but we all know and look up to the athletes that play through pain or tradegy because they believe that it is best for their team for them to play with whatever they have, because that is almost definately better than what anyone else would do.
If Alex had stood up and said he couldn't play, I GUARENTEE everyone here would be out calling him a p**** and ranting about it.
blankman wrote:Lets put it this way. If you are the best player in the league and something like this happens, don't you think you would try to play through it because you at less than 100% are still better than most everyone in baseball and thus doing the best for your team?
I'm not saying its the sole reason for his performance, but we all know and look up to the athletes that play through pain or tradegy because they believe that it is best for their team for them to play with whatever they have, because that is almost definately better than what anyone else would do.
If Alex had stood up and said he couldn't play, I GUARENTEE everyone here would be out calling him a p**** and ranting about it.
Hindsight is 20/20.
Yes it is.
I don't want to hear excuses from him, or any other Yankee fan trying to defend his performance. If he had said something about this before-hand, maybe people would have been more understanding while his slump was going on. But NOBODY wants to hear excuses after the fact.
He sucked. Big time. That is the bottom line. I'm not going to hold it against him, but it's the truth. Hopefully he comes out next year and puts up the same type of season he did this year. But I do not want to hear excuses from him after the fact. Just admit that you blew (which he did, and I give him credit for that.) You can't blame his mom for defending him, but I don't want to hear anything from him or fans trying to justify his pathetic performance.
blankman wrote:Lets put it this way. If you are the best player in the league and something like this happens, don't you think you would try to play through it because you at less than 100% are still better than most everyone in baseball and thus doing the best for your team?
I'm not saying its the sole reason for his performance, but we all know and look up to the athletes that play through pain or tradegy because they believe that it is best for their team for them to play with whatever they have, because that is almost definately better than what anyone else would do.
If Alex had stood up and said he couldn't play, I GUARENTEE everyone here would be out calling him a p**** and ranting about it.
Hindsight is 20/20.
Yes it is.
I don't want to hear excuses from him, or any other Yankee fan trying to defend his performance. If he had said something about this before-hand, maybe people would have been more understanding while his slump was going on. But NOBODY wants to hear excuses after the fact.
He sucked. Big time. That is the bottom line. I'm not going to hold it against him, but it's the truth. Hopefully he comes out next year and puts up the same type of season he did this year. But I do not want to hear excuses from him after the fact. Just admit that you blew (which he did, and I give him credit for that.) You can't blame his mom for defending him, but I don't want to hear anything from him or fans trying to justify his pathetic performance.
Why is it better to hear the excuse before rather than after?
I understand you don't want to hear excuses from him, but he HASN'T MADE ANY EXCUSES. I don't know what his reaction is to his mom's comments. He might be mad at her for making it seem like there was another reason for it, for all we know. But I get the impression you're mad at him for what his mom said, which doesn't make sense. And I agree with Blank, it's a little nuts to expect the possible league MVP to step aside because he's feeling sad inside.
blankman wrote:Lets put it this way. If you are the best player in the league and something like this happens, don't you think you would try to play through it because you at less than 100% are still better than most everyone in baseball and thus doing the best for your team?
I'm not saying its the sole reason for his performance, but we all know and look up to the athletes that play through pain or tradegy because they believe that it is best for their team for them to play with whatever they have, because that is almost definately better than what anyone else would do.
If Alex had stood up and said he couldn't play, I GUARENTEE everyone here would be out calling him a p**** and ranting about it.
Hindsight is 20/20.
Yes it is.
I don't want to hear excuses from him, or any other Yankee fan trying to defend his performance. If he had said something about this before-hand, maybe people would have been more understanding while his slump was going on. But NOBODY wants to hear excuses after the fact.
He sucked. Big time. That is the bottom line. I'm not going to hold it against him, but it's the truth. Hopefully he comes out next year and puts up the same type of season he did this year. But I do not want to hear excuses from him after the fact. Just admit that you blew (which he did, and I give him credit for that.) You can't blame his mom for defending him, but I don't want to hear anything from him or fans trying to justify his pathetic performance.
Why is it better to hear the excuse before rather than after?
I understand you don't want to hear excuses from him, but he HASN'T MADE ANY EXCUSES. I don't know what his reaction is to his mom's comments. He might be mad at her for making it seem like there was another reason for it, for all we know. But I get the impression you're mad at him for what his mom said, which doesn't make sense. And I agree with Blank, it's a little nuts to expect the possible league MVP to step aside because he's feeling sad inside.
When did I say I was mad at him? I said that I know he didn't say it. I said that is how I feel towards fans trying to use this in his defense, and what I would use if he tried to come out with it.
Bottom line is, I don't want to hear excuses for his pathetic performance right now, from ANYBODY. There is no defending it.
Cafe Home
Fantasy Football
Fantasy Basketball
Fantasy Hockey
by blankman » Mon Oct 17, 2005 1:31 pm 
