Tag Archives: Alex Rodriguez

Learn words through baseball news: Cacique

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In the Miami New Times article, it was revealed that one of Alex Rodriguez‘s code names was “Cacique”.

So what does Cacique mean?

Well, according to Dictionary.com:

ca·cique

[kuh-seek] Show IPA

noun

1.

a chief of an Indian clan or tribe in Mexico and the West Indies.

2.

(in Spain and Latin America) a political boss on a local level.

3.

(in the Philippines) a prominent landowner.

4.

any of several black and red or black and yellow orioles of the American tropics that construct long, pendent nests.
…
So now you know!

The End of A-Rod

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Today was the end of the Age of A-Rod. Oh, he might not realize it yet, although I suppose he might, but I would be shocked if he plays again, and if he does play, I doubt he will even be a shadow of the shadow of his old self. Because, today, he was named in a Miami New Times (a news weekly in… Miami) report on an anti-aging clinic called Biogenesis. In addition to Alex Rodriguez, the New Times noted mentions in files that indicate that Melky Cabrera, Yasmani Grandal, Bartolo Colon, Nelson Cruz, Gio Gonzalez as well as Jimmy Goins, the strength and conditioning coach of the University of Miami baseball team. Gonzalez and Cruz, to the best of my knowledge, had never been linked to PEDs before today, although Gio Gonzalez’s case is seemingly connected to things that may not be banned and they listed no specifics on Nelson Cruz.

However, make no doubt, this is a story that, at least initially, is all about Alex Rodriguez. Remember, in 2009, he had claimed that he had ceased using performance-enhancers in 2003, but this report seems to suggest otherwise. This also likely means that he was using PEDs during the 2009 postseason, the one postseason where Alex Rodriguez hit like the elite player he was during the regular season.

And so, Alex Rodriguez, who already could be out the whole season due to his injury, and who has a gigantic albatross of a contract, now has been shown to possibly be a liar and a continued cheater. The New York Yankees, no doubt, want him to just sort of disappear, and are no doubt going through his contract looking for something, anything that could provide them an out. It’s doubtful that they can.

But it’s possible they won’t need to: with his injury, Rodriguez could, maybe, decide to call it a career. While it seems unlikely that he will, it could be the only way he’ll be able to escape this on anything even remotely resembling his own terms.

Time will tell what happens.

Action and Reaction, Winter Meetings, Part 1

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Throughout the Winter Meetings, I’ll react to the acts that are going on in Baseball.

Action:

Reaction: I saw Lidge pitch once when he was with Houston. It was the year after he’d had his soul eaten by Albert Pujols, who sent a go-ahead home run in the NLCS so far into the night that I believe one of the Mars rovers recently discovered it. He got the save, if memory serves, but it was during one of the down points of his career. You see, Lidge was a player who was either lights-out or a heart attack waiting to happen, great one year but not-so-great the next, and injury-prone often (he mentioned on MLB Network this morning that he’s had 9 surgeries over his career). Overall, however, he had a good career, and as he retires he goes out with 225 saves, two All-Star Games, he played a role in a combined no-hitter against the Yankees,  a World Series ring and appearances in two other World Series.

Action:

Reaction: Oh, Alex Rodriguez. It never seems to end for him. With every successive year, his contract with the Yankees becomes even more of a albatross, and as his body breaks down and production decreases, it’s also becoming clear that the one saving grace the Yankees might have had- the attention that would come when Rodriguez could break Bonds’ HR record- is highly unlikely.

Action:

Reaction: And so it begins for the Tampa Rays, who many- including me- think will be a big mover-and-shaker at the Winter Meetings.They have an excess amount of good pitchers. Everybody wants good pitchers. And the Rays aren’t the market where they are able to sign lots of guys to long-term deals once they get expensive (with the exception of Evan Longoria, of course). To flip a pitcher could be a prudent move, for the right prospects. James Shields is the most likely to be dealt, but there have been on-and-off rumblings about David Price for about a year and a half. James Loney, meanwhile, seems like the type of guy who could turn out to be a shrewd move for the Rays. He had an off-year in 2012, but a rebound could give a good new cog to the Rays’ lineup.

Non-Baseball Action:

Reaction: Others might have been more deserving, but it is hard to argue with a MVP, a league title and an Olympic Gold medal.

Keep an eye open for more Action and Reaction throughout the Winter Meetings.