Seattle is presently 5 games out of first, and 4 games under .500.
I am not slamming A-Rod for the Yankees woes. I am simply stating that it seems his teams don't do well until he is gone. Is he a distraction? Is he a disruption?
As for the Yankee woes, they can be placed squarely on the desk of George Steinbrenner. Poor moves and signings, a la Jaret Wright, and zero farm system. Witness they had a Double A pitcher called up to start in place of an ailing Randy Johnson. Double A? What does that say about the farm system?
And A-Rod did not leave Seattle last year, so your suggestion that they are doing worse without him is rather a stretch of a few years. Actually, the major portion of the Mariners short-lived success was after A-Rod, Ken Griffey, Jr. and Johnson were all gone.
Not to mention Kevin Brown. That guy is long overdue at the glue factory.
He's both. A-Rod is a great player, but, because of his astronomical salary, ownership caters to his every whim. He was vetoing trades the year before the Rangers cut him loose!
He reminds me of a couple of my clients: they produce revenue, but they're so demanding they're not profitable to the company.
Perhaps you should actually, oh I don't know, know what you're talking about before you make such assertions. ;) As I noted earlier in the thread, A-Rod not only made the playoffs with the Mariners, but his team beat the Yankees in 1995! And it wasn't just one time but three. But it's easier to make him the scapegoat for the Yankees, than to actually look at what's really going on with the team.