Sid Rosenberg: A-Rod deserves to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame

The seemingly never ending saga that is Alex Rodriguez’s Major League Baseball career will be coming to an end Friday evening in the Bronx.After a 22-year run and on the heels of teammate Mark Teixeira announcing his retirement at season’s end, baseball’s most notorious villain will hang up his cleats for good.

Over A-Rod’s career he has amassed 3114 base hits, 2084 runs batted in, 696 home runs and a whopping $410 million dollars playing for the Mariners, Rangers and Yankees.When he broke into the league in 1994 I don’t think anyone could have expected what was to come from A-Rod.One of the most physically gifted baseball players the game has ever seen had his ups and downs during his career both on and off the field.We all know about the repeated PED scandals, but we forget that he did – in fact – have positive impact on the game.

Despite what your perception of Alex Rodriguez has been, the man showed up to work everyday with a smile on his face and played the game that he loved with a child-like enthusiasm.Being able to enjoy what you do for a living is something that a lot of people never get to do and A-Rod took full advantage of the opportunity he had (and then some).It’s unfortunate that he will be mostly remembered for using steroids, but to watch him go out every day and play was a treat because you could see how much fun he had playing baseball.His spirit was contagious and every time he stepped onto the field you could feel his spirit.

The next stage in A-Rod’s life will most definitely an interesting one because we know he cannot stay out of the spotlight for long.Every year when the baseball writers vote for who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame, A-Rod’s name will be brought up.I believe that he deserves to be in the Hall despite the steroid controversy he brought upon himself.It takes a man to admit he is wrong and A-Rod has done that numerous times now. That shows the character he has.

Also, it’s not like A-Rod is the only guy being considered for the Hall of Fame that has had issues with PEDs in the past.Quite honestly, it would not surprise me if it came out that maybe 20 percent of the players in the Hall of Fame used some sort of PED in their career.

In an age where being in the spotlight comes along with all eyes are on you at all times, it was inevitable that A-Rod was going to get caught.It seems like every three weeks a player is suspended in some level of baseball for using illegal drugs, but those players are not in the spotlight that A-Rod had shined on him.

A-Rod had one hell of a career, and the future for him is brighter than most people may think.Whether he ends up working for an MLB team, or a television network, his friendly demeanor and personality will be an asset to the baseball community as a whole.