Alex Rodriguez Deserves a Place In Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park

Despite his status as one of the all-time greatest New York Yankees, it is not clear Alex Rodriguez will be honored with a plaque in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park because of his strained relationship with the team.

Few players in New York Yankees history can match the resume of Alex Rodriguez, but that won’t stop most fans from thinking of him as a hired gun even after 12 seasons in pinstripes.

Becoming the highest paid player in baseball history is always going to put a target on your back, and Alex Rodriguez managed to set that record twice in his 22 year career. Combine that with the multiple allegations of PED use, as well as numerous bizarre dust-ups with teammates, coaches, the media, and the front office.

Rodriguez’s successful 2015 season went a long way towards restoring his public image, but he’s still easily the most hated player in baseball. It’s probably fair to say that the majority of Yankees fans are happy to see him go at this point.

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Still, A-Rod has worked hard to establish himself as a team leader and enthusiastic mentor to the Yankees young players over the past two seasons. He will always be best remembered for the cheating and controversy, but shouldn’t there be room for redemption in his story?

It is difficult to say whether Alex Rodriguez has repaired his relationship with the New York Yankees enough for him to receive the honors he deserves as one of their all-time greats.

Everyone was saying the right things at the press conference in which he announced his retirement, but it is telling that neither Yankees manager Joe Girardi or GM Brian Cashman were up on the stage with him while he spoke, as one might expect.

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Cashman famously once told A-Rod publicly to “shut the f— up,” and Girardi has been bombarded with questions about benching the 41-year-old slugger for weeks, so neither is likely particularly sad to see him go.

The greatest honors a Yankee legend can receive are to be honored with a plaque in monument park and have his number retired. By the numbers Rodriguez should be a shoo in. Despite not joining the Yankees until age 28, he has the sixth most home runs, seventh most stolen bases, 10th most runs scored, 11th most RBI, and 12th most walks in the organization’s history.

He also ranks fifth in slugging percentage, 11th in on base percentage, and sixth in OPS among players who have played at least 1000 games in pinstripes.

There are six monuments and 34 plaques in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park. Statistically, Alex Rodriguez is easily in the top 10-20 players in Yankees history. In order to make the case for him to be honored in Monument Park, he only has to be in the top 40 or so. It seems like a slam dunk.

Should his PED use and general weirdness keep him from being remembered as a great Yankee? I will let Brian Cashman answer that:

"“Well, I’m wearing this 2009 World Series ring right here. I’ll take it off and put it right in front of you guys so you can take a look at it. That’s the ’09 ring — that doesn’t come along to this franchise’s trophy case without Alex’s contributions, significant contributions. He’s obviously had a very exciting career, one filled with some ups and downs clearly, that I don’t feel necessary to go through … The world we all live in, everybody makes mistakes, everybody has problems, everybody made a left turn when they should have made a right turn, and it’s just what do you do after the fact at some point when the balance comes back in play."

Next: What's Next for A-Rod?

Alex Rodriguez is never going to be the most beloved player in Yankees history, but his contributions to the franchise on the field are undeniable. He was the best player on that 2009 World Series championship club, and that alone should earn him the honor of a plaque in Monument Park.