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The A-Rod Show: Coming To A Circus Tent Near You

ESPN/The Associated Press

The lengthy interview Alex Rodriguez granted ESPN left many questions unanswered.

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By JOE HENDERSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 17, 2009

TAMPA - As late as Friday, the New York Yankees were trying to downplay the inevitable Alex Rodriguez question-and-answer session with the media about his use of performance-enhancing drugs.

After watching how a mass interview session this time last year with pitcher Andy Pettitte turned into a nationally televised grilling, the Yankees planned to make A-Rod available in a limited setting – perhaps the dugout at Steinbrenner Field or some other location where the media crowd would be cramped.

They definitely had no intention of using the large tent that Pettitte used just outside the field. The idea was that A-Rod would say basically that he had already 'fessed up to ESPN and that there was no sense in repeating himself.

Well, that's all changed.

The big tent, fitting for the circus that is about to hit on North Dale Mabry Highway, will be used this afternoon when Rodriguez meets the media for his first news conference since his mea culpa with the Worldwide Leader. It will be nationally televised, and media will be coming from just about everywhere.

So much for downplaying.

Many Unanswered Questions

It had to be expected, though. When arguably the game's biggest star – and certainly its richest – admits he cheated, that's just about as big as it gets in baseball. And incredible as it might seem, even the lengthy interview A-Rod granted ESPN and reporter Peter Gammons left many questions still unanswered.

For instance, A-Rod told Gammons he couldn't be sure exactly what drugs he took from 2001 to 2003 while with the Texas Rangers. That doesn't seem likely.

He also dodged questions about how he obtained the drugs. That's something the feds might like to know as part of ongoing looks into illegal drug use in Major League Baseball.

Absurdly, he attacked the character of Selena Roberts, a columnist and reporter with Sports Illustrated who helped break the story. Rodriguez claimed to Gammons that Roberts, a former sportswriter with The Tampa Tribune, stalked him and tried to break into his house to get information. Rodriguez recently called Roberts to apologize for those statements.

The interview today will no doubt be heavily scripted, with A-Rod and his advisers trying to limit his exposure. It could get ugly, though.

The New York media, traditionally aggressive, has had many days to stew about A-Rod's grant of an exclusive interview to ESPN on the subject. Most feel that even though he admitted his drug use, he owes a full disclosure of all the details in this case.

Want More Penalties

Since the Sports Illustrated story brought new attention to a long-time problem in baseball, there have been cries for new penalties for steroid users. Commissioner Bud Selig told USA Today he might consider a suspension for A-Rod and even suggested removing the home run record of Barry Bonds – another suspected steroid user.

Although baseball now has rules that mandate 50-game suspensions for positive drug tests, there were no such regulations in place when Rodriguez was using. Also, there were 104 players who tested positive for drug use in 2003. The tests were supposed to be confidential, but A-Rod is the only player who has been publicly identified.

Rodriguez, with 553 home runs in 15 seasons, is considered the player most likely to break Bonds' all-time mark of 762.

All of those subjects and more will be in play today during a session that will no doubt be one of the all-timers. It would be futile to try and downplay this. When the game's best player commits one of the game's biggest sins, a big tent is the only appropriate setting for a circus like the one we're about to see.

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