Jayson Stark presents ESPN’s annual baseball mid-season awards. After weighing the relative strengths of Alex Rodriguez and Magglio Ordonez, he sides with Ordonez as the AL mid-season MVP. His argument reveals an anti-Yankee bias. While conceding that A-Rod has “had a more eye-popping year,” his dismisses A-Rod’s accomplishments because “the Yankees haven’t been a factor in the division or wild-card races for more than about 20 minutes all season.” Yet, Stark’s NL MVP is Matt Holliday. Holliday’s Rockies enter the All-Star break at .500, half a game ahead of the Yankees. If being a major factor in the division or wild-card races were so crucial, Holliday should be disqualified along with A-Rod.
Stark’s bias aside, A-Rod has been far more valuable to his team than any other player in baseball and precisely because the Yankees have been playing so poorly. In April, with Wang injured, Mussina pitching poorly, and Rivera blowing rare save opportunities, A-Rod’s bat kept the Yankees in games they deserved to lose. And, now with Giambi injured, A-Rod’s homers are that much more valuable.
As far as statistics go, A-Rod and Ordonez are fairly comparable. Ordonez’s OBP is better, A-Rod’s SLG is better. Combined, A-Rod comes out on top by a hair. But there’s one statistic that removes all ambiguity. In the 9th inning, A-Rod is hitting .542 with 7 HR and 18 RBI. His OPS in the 9th is a whopping 2.145, which includes two grand slams. So much for A-Rod’s reputation for not hitting well in the clutch.