Not Writing About Alex Rodriguez.

Joel Sherman really, really, really doesn't want to write about Alex Rodriguez.

He doesn't want to write about Alex Rodriguez so much, that, if you read carefully, he wrote the same article twice:

"The plan today was to write about the opposite of A-Rod, to praise the 10 most pleasant surprises of 2006. But how do you ignore 1-for-17 with 12 strikeouts? How do you ignore that the overflow caravan of futile support now includes John Wooden? How do you ignore that in the two weeks since A-Rod told us he had been hurt, refused to specify the injuries, but promised he was now healthy and ready to play his best, that he has instead possibly played his worst in the worst season of a great career?

The answer is that it cannot be ignored."

ARod's 2006 is actually very similar to his first season in New York in 2004. You could look it up. The only real difference is maybe 10 more errors, which probably will lead to 2 or 3 more unearned runs. Just to provide some perspective.

In any case, do you know how easy it is for Sherman to ignore the ARod story? Or at least focus on something else for once? Simply write a story about something else. The reading public is ready for it.

At the very least, if you're going to complain about the taxing subject matter, provide some in-depth insight. The only thing Sherman provides is a recap of the boxscores.