| ] A-Rod: Love me ... or else Says pressure's on fans to make him want to stay Alex Rodriguez opened up to Mike and the Mad Dog yesterday. TAMPA - Alex Rodriguez has a message for his hometown fans: It's up to you, New York. During an interview on WFAN yesterday, A-Rod opened the door for his departure from the Bronx at the end of the season, saying that the upcoming year was a crucial one when it came to his future in pinstripes. "It's a do or die situation," Rodriguez said. "Either New York is going to kick me out of New York this year, say 'I've had enough of this guy, get him the hell out of here,' and we have an option. Or New York is going to say, 'Hey, we won a world championship, you had a big year, you were a part of it and we want you back.'" A-Rod stressed his desire to finish his career as a Yankee, but his words did nothing to erase the possibility that he will exercise his option to become a free agent at the end of the year. "One hundred percent, that's exactly what I want to do," he said when asked if he could envision himself playing the remainder of his career here. "But I also want to make sure that with the fans and management, I'm wanted here." Rodriguez tried to back-pedal from his remarks after he exited last night's game, saying his comments came as a result of rapid-fire questioning by Mike Francesa and Chris Russo, even though it was A-Rod himself who first mentioned the option during the interview. "You heard some of those questions; that was an absolute dogfight for 15 minutes," Rodriguez said. "I was just basically doing the best I can. There were some pretty crazy questions. Fifteen minutes felt like an hour, being under the gun there. "I have options and we all know that, but I want to be in New York," he added. "That's it." The general consensus among his teammates is that Rodriguez will opt out of his contract, leaving the pressures of New York behind for another destination such as Anaheim or Chicago. Rodriguez tried to minimize that talk early in the spring, but yesterday's comments reopened the subject. A-Rod believes the fans have not been fair to him "all the time," but he mentioned that during his MVP campaign, the Yankee Stadium crowd showered him with affection, giving him 15 or 20 curtain calls. "In 2005, riding the wave of the fans was an unbelievable experience," he said. "Sometimes, you come out a little tired, but the fans get behind you, chanting 'MVP!' and before you know it, you have two home runs and five RBIs." That was a stark contrast to last season, according to A-Rod, when he tried to do too much to appease the booing crowds. "When you try to fight that wave of the fans being negative, expecting you to do things and you're playing pretty lousy on top of it," Rodriguez said, "then you try to do a little more than you have to." Rodriguez pointed out that five or six teams tried to deal for him this winter, but after thinking about it "for a half a second," he and his wife decided to stick it out in New York. "I'm going to be successful in New York with this team," he said. GM Brian Cashman isn't overly concerned about the option becoming a season-long distraction for Rodriguez, since A-Rod has the power to control that. "There's nothing I can do about it; it's his opt-out. Whatever it is, it is," Cashman said. "It's all on him. It's his decision. If he wants to make it a distraction, he controls it." Rodriguez declined to address his relationship with Derek Jeter or any lingering feelings over an article in Sports Illustrated last September in which Joe Torre detailed a meeting he had with A-Rod behind closed doors. The third baseman did acknowledge that 2006 was a miserable year for him, one which he feels will benefit him in the long run. Calling himself "clueless, lost, confused at times," A-Rod said last season was the first in which he simply didn't enjoy playing the game. "To a degree, it was the best thing that's happened in my life," he said. "The last thing I'm going to do is to run away from New York, say New York is too tough. I have an option at the end of the year, and we'll see what happens after that. "If I go out and have four years in New York, win two MVPs and one World Series, I think that's a pretty good job," he added, possibly alluding to his potential departure should he achieve those lofty goals. Of course, that assumes another MVP season for A-Rod and a World Series title for the Yankees - hardly a certainty for a player who has struggled the past two Octobers, going a combined 2-for-29 in the Yankees' two first-round flops. Rodriguez longs for a championship ring to add to his Hall of Fame resume, but it seems that winning the World Series won't be the determining factor in his decision on the option next fall. "This isn't tennis or golf; I can't judge myself that, if we win the World Series, I was successful," Rodriguez said. "I think that's ridiculous. "It's such a team game, but as an individual, you have to help your team win by fielding well, running the bases well, hitting well, hitting in the clutch - things I haven't done consistently here. I hope we win the World Series and I hope I'm a part of it, but I can't judge myself strictly on winning a World Series." This story isn't about to go away any time soon, though Rodriguez is hoping to put it on the backburner until the end of the season. "I think the next time we can talk about this is sometime in real late October," he said. "The bottom line is that I said I wanted to be in New York 100% of the time. That's what I want to focus on." Related Articles | 
