Lone Star

By Chrys Kefalas CPKSPORTS.com Editor-in-Chief

There are good players, there are great players, and then, once every so often, there arises a player whose performance, talent, and personality make him a player for the ages. Alex Rodriguez is that player.

No player was more chastised in the off-season after Rodriguez signed a record $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers. Some proclaimed his signing a catastrophic blow to baseball's economic woes, while others saw Rodriguez as a symbol of everything wrong with sports: Greed, excessiveness, and a loss of loyalty.

He became a villain overnight. Fans began to boo him, wave dollar bills to taunt him, and others just decided to spout the obligatory "you're not worth that type of money" phrase.

Rodriguez suits up, takes in their boos and criticism, and proves he's worth just about every penny Texas Rangers' owner Tom Hicks pays him.

He's played in every game this season for the Rangers, putting together a mammoth year. The All-Star shortstop is fifth in the American League in hits (168), second in home runs (40), third in runs batted in (114), first in runs scored (115), and eighth in batting average (.318)-- a major MVP candidate if Texas had any starting pitching.

"I feel very good about my situation," Rodriguez says. "If I had to do it all over again, I would do it a hundred times, exactly the same way.

"I made a commitment here for 10 years. I think we have the best owner in baseball, the best owner in sports, and I fully believe he's an architect and he's going to win a world championship."

Texas' 61-75 record after a 8-7 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Saturday may test the strength of that belief, so may the next two years as the team undertakes a rebuilding phase.

A losing record and his salary will continue to place Rodriguez in the line of fire. The rumblings have already begun that Rodriguez's signing may force potential Hall of Fame catcher Ivan Rodriguez out of Texas, the only organization he has ever known.

Yet one alone can't carry the burden of the organization's success on his shoulders. Alex has the right perspective.

"My focus is to do what Alex can do; that's it. As long as I keep that in my mind and not try to be a savior, I'm going to be all right."

And, that's all Texas needs from Rodriguez, just typical Rodriguez, not Superman. He's the only shortstop besides Ernie Banks to hit 40 or more homeruns in a season and Alex has done it three times. Last season, Rodriguez tied Mickey Mantle as the fourth-fastest player to reach 150 homeruns. In 1998, he became only the third player in baseball history to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases.

How else to explain why he was the most sought after free agent in baseball history? How else to explain why Tom Hicks decided to pay $252 million for one baseball player?

Plain and simple he's the best to play shortstop and at just 26-years-old there's plenty more to come.

It's more than just stats too.

Despite the constant jeers at visiting ballparks, fans still gather around the visiting dugout begging for autographs. And surprisingly to some, Rodriguez walks over and signs. Before and after the game.

"I've always signed autographs and I always will," says Rodriguez.

Call him what you want: Payrod, an opportunist, whatever. But don't dare blame him for the Ranger's or baseball's problems. In fact, when you think of everything right about today's game, think Alex Rodriguez.

A player worth watching, not loathing; today, tomorrow, and for many years to come.

Article courtesy of CPKSports.com