Friday, May 8, 2015
Mott Haven News: A-Rod Breaks Home Run Record *
Mott Haven News: A-Rod Breaks Home Run Record *: A-Rod Breaks Home Run Record * Another Record Home Run Does Not Mean It’s All Good for A-Rod By Rich Mancuso BRONX, NEW YORK, M...
A-Rod Breaks Home Run Record *
A-Rod Breaks Home Run Record *
Another Record Home Run Does Not Mean It’s All Good for A-Rod
By Rich Mancuso
BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY 8- The 661st career home run that Alex Rodriguez hit to the left-center field Thursday night at Yankee Stadium surpassing Willie Mays for sole possession of fourth place on baseball’s all-time list may mean something for the record books. It does not mean that Yankees management will budge and give A-Rod the millions that were a part of his lucrative contract.
And it certainly does not mean that the home run, unless you are sympathetic to A-Rod, is a legitimate milestone.
And despite an overall love fest from Yankee fans that has returned, there are still some who will not stand up and cheer as they did in the Bronx after the so-called historic home run. There are those who will not forgive and forget that Alex Rodriguez did it the wrong way. Then there are those who will forgive, because Rodriguez paid his dues by sitting out all of last year due to a suspension for violating baseball’s anti drug policies.
PEDs to many meant nothing when he rounded the bases with a big smile after the home run. And the next milestone, surpassing Babe Ruth, all of a sudden seems that more probable, but there is that question of accepting every home run hit now as being a part of the record book.
The question of accepting these home runs as a part of the record book will always be a subject of debate. Whether or not Alex Rodriguez has been accepted overall by baseball fans, or for that matter sports fans, who view records as importance is also something that will continue to be a subject of discussion.
The Yankees apparently are not making the home run milestones an important priority. They are happy to have A-Rod back in the lineup, and they should be because this early season comeback has seen him produce runs for a team that had serious issues doing that last season. He has quietly been doing the job and to the Yankees hierarchy, an Alex Rodriguez home run means more towards winning than achieving another milestone, or surpassing Willie Mays or Babe Ruth.
“It’s been a long time since I had a curtain call,” Rodriguez said about the fans in his post game meeting with the media. And there may be more curtain calls for A-Rod in the Bronx if he continues to hit home runs. Because this Yankees team has been hitting the long ball in the Bronx, and because fans will cheer for any type of runs that cross home plate, they will have reason to cheer.
And if it is Alex Rodriguez, and in their ballpark, they will cheer. The Yankees though are having a different approach. Post game media notes did not highlight the milestone home run, and what should have been a headline was highlighted as number three after the important facts of Yankees wins in their last 20 games and the season series record of 2-2 against the Baltimore Orioles.
Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds, they are next after Ruth. A-Rod may not be around that long enough to surpass them, but you can never tell how much longer or how many more home runs he can produce. And take into consideration, and we can assume this is true, for the first time Alex Rodriguez is hitting home runs out of the ballpark without the assistance of Ped’s.
So there is that room for forgiveness, at least from the perspective of fans who are paying big bucks to see A-Rod hit legitimate home runs in the Bronx.
"When you're productive, you re-earn their respect and they pull for you," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said about the fans. "That's the bottom line as players, not just in our sport but in all sports. They want to see their players successful. It really came down to how productive he was going to be, that really determined how he was going to be received. So far he's done a really good job."
And A-Rod overall has been doing the job. It started in spring training by giving the right answers to the media. The proper approach to the answers has continued to be acceptable enough to pass a damage control class.
Consider that Alex Rodriguez praised Mays, the man he surpassed. That he mentioned how proud his late father would have been to see the milestone home run. And he mentioned how important it was to be playing baseball again after sitting out the last year. There was no mention again of rehashing the events, and A-Rod quickly got around the question of the possible battle of his employers not paying the millions that were specified in the contract of surpassing Mays, Ruth, or beyond.
No, that battle may be left for another time as the Yankees continue go about their business of winning games, and doing that with a healthy Alex Rodriguez in their lineup.
Rodriguez said about the fans reacting to the milestone home run: “I thought the reaction was incredible. It was very humbling. We have the greatest fans in the world. They treated me really good all year and it’s fueling the way I’m playing. I’ve said it all along, the league, the Yankees the fans, nobody owes me anything. I’m so grateful to be playing baseball and I’m thankful to everyone.”
The question though lingers and it should: Does home run 661, and more to come be a part of the record books? Those who consider cheating attributed to a majority of those home runs will say they don’t count. Then there are those who say it doesn’t matter, but it should. An admission of guilt after battling the denial of using PEDs is evidence that those home runs are fiction.
In the end the home runs go in the record book. The Yankees as a team won’t have an opinion either way if A-Rod adds to his career home run total. To them that means production coming from a spot in their lineup that was going to be a hit or a miss.
To the Yankees hierarchy, well that is another dilemma and the drama will continue.
Comment Rich Mancuso: Ring786@aol.com Facebook.com/Rich Mancuso Twitter@Ring786
#ARod #Homerun #PED #Yankees #Sports #Bronxnews
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Mott Haven News: Rivera to step down?
Mott Haven News: Rivera to step down?: Rivera to step down? Bx. pol putting pressure in Mt. Vernon race? 100 PERCENT By Robert Press BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY ...
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Mott Haven News: Mott Haven News: NYCFC Winless
Mott Haven News: Mott Haven News: NYCFC Winless: Mott Haven News: NYCFC Winless : NYCFC Winless Drought Extends to Seven Matches By Howard Goldin BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY 4- After a...
Dreamers Protest Obama’s Visit to Bronx
Dreamers Protest Obama’s Visit to Bronx
By David Greene
BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY 6- Nearly 50 students of Herbert H. Lehman College gathered on school grounds to demonstrate against President Barack Obama's historic visit to the Bedford Park school.
Members of the Lehman College "Dream Team" hastily organized the protest to coincide with Obama's little-publicized visit to the school on Monday, May 4.
Many of the student demonstrators chanted slogans like, "Obama, Obama what do you say, how many kids have you deported today," upset that the current administration has not worked out a deal with Congress on immigration.
Christian Beruerio, a member of the Lehman College Dream Team which boasts 50 members at CUNY school's around the state, told the crowd, "I supported Obama thinking that Obama was going to represent the interests of people here in the Bronx" Beruerio continued, "I quickly found out that Obama was no better than Bush. The conditions in which I lived in were no different. I was still unemployed, there was no access to jobs and I'm still struggling to go to school in 2008 and I'm still struggling now working seven-days a week and I still can't go to school."
Fellow Dream Team member Tafadar Sourov fumed, "Obama dishes out billions of dollars to Israel to fuel that settler-colonial genocide state, meanwhile people in Detroit can't even get water."
"People continue to be killed," Sourov continued, "throughout the U.S by police. Black people continue to be killed every 28 hours and what's the best Obama can do? Stay silent on it until people start to riot and then he has to talk about it and the best he can come up with is, 'I'm going to give federal funds for body cameras.' Eric Garner died on camera, what did that accomplish?"
Listening to demonstrators, Lehman student Lincoln Lewis remarked, "Everyone is entitled to their position and opinions and it's good to see them speaking out. I'm not in agreement with some things, but they should speak out."
Asked if he believed if he agreed with some of the demonstrators that President Obama was guilty of war crimes, Lewis replied, "It depends on your definition of war crimes. He could be, but then you'd be opening up Pandora's Box for every president" who could be implicated.
Despite the protest student Stephanie Ramnauth was excited about the visit, "I didn't know until I got to class and they told me the president was here. I wanted to see him because I go here and it's nice to know that the president came to the school.”
#President #Obama #LehmanCollege #Dreamers #Immigration #Bronxnews
Monday, May 4, 2015
Mott Haven News: NYCFC Winless
Mott Haven News: NYCFC Winless: NYCFC Winless Drought Extends to Seven Matches By Howard Goldin BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY 4- After a Sunday night loss to the Seattl...
NYCFC Winless
NYCFC Winless Drought Extends to Seven Matches
By Howard Goldin
BRONX, NEW YORK, MAY 4- After a Sunday night loss to the Seattle Sounders (5‐2‐1), 3‐1, at Yankee Stadium, NYCFC (1‐5‐3) continues to languish in the group below the playoff contenders.
Their six points are only above one club, the Montreal Impact, in the Eastern Conference. NYC’s winless match streak grew to seven after the match on Sunday. For the Sounders, on a hot streak, the win was their third straight and their fourth in the last five matches.
The first goal of the match was scored in the 23rd minute. Obafemi Martins scored his fifth goal of the season, which tied him for first place in the MLS. The native of Nigeria has played the last 12 seasons against top competition in Europe. The striker has played
That was the only goal of the first half. Mehdi Ballouchy knotted the score at 1 with his second goal of the season at the 54th minute mark. He was assisted by Patrick Mullins, a collegiate standout at the University of Maryland.
Four minutes later, the contest took a dark turn for NYCFC as the USMNT captain Clint Dempsey’s goal returned the lead to the Sounders. The United States football legend with 112 caps for the national team has scored goal or assist in each of the six matches in which he participated this season. Like Martins, earlier in the game, Dempsey’s fifth goal added his name to the top scorers in the league. He was also assisted by Parra and by Martins.
Ten minutes later, Martins the single season goal and points record holder for Seattle, cored his second goal of the evening. His sixth goal now game him the league lead. In a reversal of the previous goal, Dempsey assisted. The assist, his fifth of the 2015 season, tied him for second in the MLS.
After the match, Martins spoke of the high scoring duo of him and Dempsey, “We did our part. We made it work.” NYCFC coach Jason Kreis said of the Seattle strikers, “We came up against two of the greatest strikers in the league.”
The winningest coach in MLS history, Sigi Schmid of the Sounders, discussed his daily game plan for his club, “It’s about getting points, as many as you can, as fast as you can.”
The three points the Sounders received for the victory raised their season total to 16, which brought them to the top of the western Conference standings.
NYCFC coach Jason Kreis, who in the past had great success as an MLS coach, is finding it difficult to accept his club’s losing record, “I didn’t realize it would be this difficult. [I’m having] a lot of sleepless nights. I have little patience.”
The match most looked forward to by residents of the New York metropolitan area will take place next Sunday night as the NYCFC travels to Harrison, New Jersey to play the Red Bulls.
#Soccer #NYCFC #Sounders #YankeeStadium #Bronxnews
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