Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
The question that everyone has on their minds with New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez inching closer to 3,000 hits: how should fans react when the inevitable feat occurs?
In Wednesday night’s 2-1 win against the Miami Marlins, A-Rod recorded career hits 2,996 and 2,997. That means he is a mere three hits away from joining the 3,000-hit club. Considering the Yankees have seven consecutive games at home, the chances of him recording his 3,000th hit at Yankee Stadium are high. As in, it is definitely going to happen in front of the Yankee faithful.
The New York fans I know absolutely hate Rodriguez. He is a cheater and gives the game of baseball a bad reputation. Of course, that sort of talk occurred before he became the heartbeat of the 2015 Yankees. He is still very much disliked, but not nearly as much as he was prior to the start of the season. In fact, he may be flat-out beloved by the time September rolls around.
A poll conducted by silive.com in February showed 36.82 percent of fans can forgive Rodriguez for all the wrong he has done, 36.82 percent of fans cannot forgive him, and 26.36 percent of fans wanted to wait to see how he performed this season before making a definite decision. Since A-Rod is batting .274 with 12 home runs and 33 RBI and is a big reason the Yankees are one game out of first place in the American League East, it is safe to say he has been forgiven by those who were undecided.
Just because he has been forgiven, though, does not mean fans necessarily like him. As in most sports, A-Rod has proven his worth. He has shown the capability of performing at a high level without using performance-enhancing drugs. More importantly, the Yankees are winning this season thanks in large part to the production he has provided. For that reason, the majority of fans are going to forgive him right now. Some will even go as far as to say they like him, which results in people wearing his jersey at the ballpark.
Still, how should fans in New York react when Rodriguez becomes the 29th player in history to join the 3,000-hit club?
The obvious answer is to support him. It will be a defining moment. Whether PEDs played a role in helping him reach 3,000 hits becomes irrelevant because baseball will refuse to put an asterisk next to his name. There will be the countless fans who will never admit A-Rod hit 3,000 hits, just as there are fans who believe Hank Aaron is still the true home run king. Then, there will be the fans who will cheer loudly when the 3,000th hit is recorded, more or less because they just witnessed one of the greatest feats in sports.
Hate him or love him, Rodriguez is going to be a part of history whether we like it or not. And, for Yankees fans, it is a part of history that can never be scrubbed away once the 3,000th hit occurs.
Michael Terrill is a Senior Writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @MichaelTerrill, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
