To the shock of even this diehard Yankee fan, Alex Rodriguez is proving that his tenure in the Bronx won't be entirely marred by failure and ineptitude. A-Rod has indeed delivered countless memorable moments over the past four years (even one in the playoffs!). A look at the top ten New York moments of a much-maligned third baseman:
10. First Yankee Stadium home run (April 24, 2004): It took until his seventh home game in pinstripes, but A-Rod finally went deep in the House that Ruth Built, taking Bronson Arroyo yard in the second Yankees-Red Sox series of the season. Rodriguez had three regular season home runs against the Sox in 2004.
9. Spoiling Millwood's night (Aug. 4, 2005): After stymying the Yankees for eight innings of two-run, eight-strikeout ball, Indians pitcher Kevin Millwood turned the game over to closer Bob Wickman with his team up a run. Millwood's effort went to waste, however, as A-Rod clubbed a game-tying home run to left before Jason Giambi went deep two batters later to give the Yankees the win.
8. Saving Team USA (March 13, 2006): Okay, so this wasn't a Yankee moment per se, but finding 10 noteworthy A-Rod performances requires stretching it a bit. After wavering on whether to play for the Dominican Republic or Team USA during the Inaugural World Baseball Classic, A-Rod picked the Stars and Stripes, and they were lucky he did. Rodriguez delivered a bases-loaded, two-out single in the bottom of the ninth to give Team USA a 4-3 win over Japan in Round 2.
7. Sparking a winning streak (Aug. 4, 2004): Nearly three months to the day of another late-inning home run against the Athletics, Rodriguez hit a walk-off two-run home run off of Oakland reliever Justin Duchscherer to give the Yankees an 8-6 win. The victory set off a five-game winning streak for New York.
6. Walk-off blast against the Braves (June 28, 2006): A-Rod's 100th home run as a Yankee was a memorable one, smacking a two-run, walk-off shot off of Braves fireballer Jorge Sosa to give the Yankees a 4-3 win over Atlanta. The win was especially important for the Yankees, who at the time were in second place behind the streaking Red Sox, winners of 10 games in a row.
5. Ten-RBI game against Colon (April 26, 2005): Facing eventual Cy Young winner Bartolo Colon and the Angels, A-Rod went 4-5 with three home runs and 10 RBI, leading the Yankees to a 12-4 thrashing of the team it would lose to in the 2005 ALDS.
4. Walk-off grand slam against Orioles (April 7, 2007): After the Yankee faithful booed him six minutes into Opening Day for dropping a first-inning pop up, A-Rod quieted the critics - temporarily, at least - in leading the Yankees back from a 7-2 deficit. Rodriguez clubbed a walk-off grand slam off of Baltimore closer Chris Ray to give the team a 10-7 win, which, as it turned out, New York would need to avoid being swept by the lowly Orioles.
3. Leading the way in the 2004 ALDS (Oct. 6-9, 2004): Ah, the lone October performance on the list. In his first postseason series in pinstripes, A-Rod dominated the Twins, tying Game 2 with a 12th-inning double and scoring the go-ahead run in Game 4 after doubling and stealing third. A-Rod hit .421 in the 2004 ALDS - he has not come close to matching that performance in any subsequent postseason.
2. Torching the Mets for seven RBI (July 2, 2006): After an atrocious outing by Jaret Wright, in which the right-hander failed to make it out of the second inning, A-Rod saved the Yanks in the rubber game of a three-game set against the cross-town rival Mets. Rodriguez clubbed a grand slam and a three-run home run, leading the Yankees to a 16-7 blowout win.
1. Spanking Schilling in the ninth (July 14, 2005): With the game tied at six heading into the ninth inning, Curt Schilling, acting as Boston's closer in the weeks after his return from the disabled list, quickly learned he was no Mariano Rivera. A-Rod blasted a go-ahead two-run shot, silencing a crowd of 35,000 strong at Fenway Park and giving the Yankees an 8-6 lead. Rivera then showed Schilling how to close a game, striking out the side in the home half of the inning.
-by Sapna Bansil
