In a life that had been the definition of easy and effortless, the last 15 months must have been utterly maddening for Alex Rodriguez. In his first year as a Yankee, he put up statistics that most players would have given their pancreas for, but the numbers were dismissed as not Rodriguez-caliber. In the playoffs, after a solid divisional series, he fell apart in the ALCS. The final indignity was the now famous “slap-play,” where attempted hustle was viewed as attempted cheating. Want more? There are probably more pictures of Rodriguez on the internet right now with purple lipstick and a purse then with a glove and bat. It’s been a fast drop for the best player in baseball. It certainly wouldn’t be far-fetched to assume that, during some sleepless night, staring at the ceiling, Rodriguez has asked himself, “What have I got to do?”

Well tonight we have the answer: 3 Homeruns and 10 RBIs in one game.

To listen to Yankee fans right now, Rodriguez has finally arrived. It required one of the most productive nights in the 100+ year history of baseball for them to say, “OK, this is what we paid for.” One week’s production in 3 hours.

It is only one game; it does not signal redemption anymore than the last 15 months deserved condemnation. But for the first time in his Yankee career, Alex Rodriguez has the right answer to the question, “What have you done for me lately?”

Quite a-freaking-lot.

I believe Alex Rodriguez is a good man who’s been handled his entire life, the boy king who inherited the throne at 10 and has no idea how real folks cope. He’s getting a lesson, one that he’s been able to avoid until now. It’s the lesson of adversity, of how to fight through a persistent case of mortality. What’s most frightening about how Alex Rodriguez comes through this lesson? He might actually wind being a better baseball player.

A few years from now, when Alexander Rodriguez is entrenched at third base or shortstop or where ever he decides he wants to play for the Yankees, the second-guessing and ridicule of 2005 will be a distant memory– for most. Those who called for his trade, or benching, or summary execution will orphan those comments faster than you can say fairweather.

This is part of the lesson for Rodriguez: you don’t get to say I told you so. That is the privilege of being a New York fan– we reserve the right to change our minds, daily if necessary, to reflect what we see on the field. After 30 years, enough of George Steinbrenner has seeped into our marrow that we’ve become him. We want what we want when we want it. And nobody knows that any better right now than Alex Rodriguez.

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