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Alex Rodriguez closed out his regular season with a bang today, setting an American League record with seven RBIs in a single inning. Rodriguez homered in his first at-bat of the regular season and as it turned out, he homered in last at-bat of the regular season, too. Rodriguez has always been a tremendous regular season player.

But, alas, A-Fraud, the proof is in the pudding. No matter how many homers he hits and runs he drives in, his legacy will come down to his post-season performance. Career-to-date he has been a choking loser. The playoffs start this week, and if there ever was a season where all the pressure wasn't on Rodriguez, it is this one. Teammate Mark Teixera tied for the A.L. lead in homers and led the league in RBIs. Can A-Rodriguez finally succeed now that he is in a supporting role?

We doubt it. Rather we see A-Fraud likely to play as tight as ever, and if the Yankees somehow lose a Game One his nerves infecting the rest of the team. The Yankees will need timely hitting and some good starting pitching to succeed in the post-season. They are heavy favorites, but without much cause other than the best record in the regular season. The Yankees specialize in beating up weaklings, but struggle against quality opponents. The Yanks were 14 up and 14 down against their playoff rivals the Red Sox and Angels, and a gaudy .665 and 44 games over .500 against everybody else. Ace starter C.C. Sabathia has a history of coming up small in the playoffs. #2 start A.J. Burnett couldn't be more maddeningly inconsistent. #3 starter Andy Pettitt and closer Mariano Rivera, greats that they are, are no longer the players they were a decade ago, which was the last time the Yankees won a World Series.

Labels: baseball, sports