As everyone's been saying since he strode to the plate with two outs in the ninth on Friday, it was appropriate that Alex Rodriguez was the last batter standing between the Texas Rangers and their first World Series.
After all, so many of the franchise's struggles the past decade were born when former owner Tom Hicks signed Rodriguez to a $252 million contract in 2000.
And while that signing was Hicks' mistake, there's no mistaking that A-Rod played for the Rangers from 2001-03, the period in which he admitted to using PEDs in a clubhouse where other users were called out by positive tests (Rafael Palmeiro), the Mitchell Report (Juan Gonzalez), Jose Canseco (Ivan Rodriguez) or their own selves (the late Ken Caminiti).
So when Neftali Feliz caught A-Rod looking to set off a Lone Star state celebration, there was a sense of everything coming full circle in the Metroplex. From the overspending and overbulked ways of the early 2000s to the team-first $55 million bargains of 2010, Rangers fans were able to watch a physical representation of the triumph.
"Unbelievable how things just come around and, out of all people, I'm the last guy up there," A-Rod told reporters after the game. "I'm sure it made it a little bit sweeter for them."
While you couldn't have written that ending any better, the truth is that the Rangers pitching dominated A-Rod and the New York Yankees offense long before the ninth inning of ALCS Game 6. A-Rod hit .190 (4-for-21) over the six games. While he doubled twice and drew three walks, he never left the yard once. In comparison, Rodriguez hit .429 with two doubles, three homers and eight walks against the Angels in last year's ALCS, also a six-game affair.
Joining A-Rod in his struggles at the plate were Nick Swisher (.091), Brett Gardner (.176) and Mark Teixeira (.000), who was injured in Game 4. The Yankees' team average of .201 was their lowest batting average in a seven-game series since they hit .183 against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2001 World Series. In comparison, the Rangers hit .304 off Yankees pitching and outscored New York in their four victories by a combined score of 31-6.
Seeing those statistics, it's no wonder why A-Rod was in the position to provide the ending he did.
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Mike Bell John van den Berk Marnicq Bervoets Fritz Betzlbacher Dave Bickers
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