Is doing the wrong thing only wrong when you get caught?
After being benched towards the end Game 1 of the ALCS at Yankee Stadium, Alex Rodriguez got caught flirting with, and giving a baseball to, two females in the stands.
Needless to say, Yankees fans were up in arms when they heard this news. But let’s be real - this kind of thing probably happens all the time in Major League Baseball. I don’t think A-Rod invented that move, and I don’t even think he was the first one to do it in a very important game.
So I don’t think the problem was what A-Rod did, or that he got caught.
I think the problem is A-Rod himself.
Because A-Rod doesn’t have credibility built up with the fans. Throughout his career, he’s been his own worst enemy, creating one controversy after another.
In short, outside of his mammoth talent, A-Rod hasn’t given fans much reason to like him.
Imagine if Derek Jeter or Curtis Granderson had done something like give a woman a ball during a game (not that I think they would). Do you think everyone would turn on them so quickly? It’s more likely that they’d find a way to justify the action, saying it was basically innocent, because they have credibility.
It’s like that Capital One commercial that asks, What’s in your wallet?
The Jeters and Grandersons are flush with goodwill.
A-Rod’s wallet is (ironically) empty.
What about you?
Do you build up credibility with your loved ones and coworkers by being consistent and generous with them? Will they be there to defend you when your controversy comes?
What’s in your wallet?
