The Yankees were 21-29 at the time and tied for last.

This is supposedly a dumb thing that ARod said:

"8. 'Mine!' - May 30, 2007 Like a regular-season version of his 'slap' play against the Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS, A-Rod yells at Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Howie Clark on a popup, leading him to boot the ball. The Yankees are up by five runs in the ninth inning at that point. 'I just said, "Ha!" ... that's it,' says a defiant A-Rod after the game."

So many things:

1) This was not a dumb thing to say, it was a smart thing to say.

2) You got the quote wrong, but ARod should have said, "Mine! I got it! Get out of the way, Blue Jays scrub third baseman ... I'm pretending to be your teammate and I shall catch the popup."

3) The Yankees were not up five five runs in the ninth inning at that point. They were up by two runs in the ninth inning and ARod's smart play opened the door for three more runs.

4) Even if the Yankees were up by five runs at the ninth inning, it's still a good play. Even if the Yankees were up by twenty runs in the ninth inning, your job is to try to go up by twenty-one.


The Yankees were in last place as the season closed in on the 1/3rd mark.

The Yankees won 11 out of their next 13 and eventually made the playoffs.

If Jason Varitek had made the same play, Matt Marrone would say that it motivated his team into the playoffs.

Oh, and any professional baseball player who is too "classy" to make a play like that should refund his paycheck.