If you follow professional baseball as closely as I do, which is not at all, you may not be aware that the New York Yankees are in the World Series this year. Well, they are. And what makes this a Buddhist news item is that one of the stars of the team is rumored to be "flirting" with conversion to Buddhism.
Third baseman Alex Rodriguez, known as A-Rod, is dating actress Kate Hudson. Kate is said to be a devout Buddhist (Tibetan, I think) who has been spotted at A-Rod's baseball games holding brown mala beads. Sportswriters speculated that A-Rod's relationship with Miss Hudson helped his post-season play. And there is much gossipy speculation that Rodriguez is converting to Buddhism to please Kate Hudson.
In the recent past, Rodriguez also was linked to singer Madonna and her practice of Kabbalah. Rodriguez also once admitted to steroid use. By all accounts, he is an all-around great baseball player whose messy life sometimes gets in the way of his game.
But the sportswriters have noticed a change in him lately. Jeff Blair writes for the Toronto Globe and Mail: "What if Rodriguez's performance in the recently-concluded American League Championship Series really means he has finally found peace with his inner dimwit?" Maybe all he needed was some mala beads.
well, mala beads are just miniature baseballs, anyway
— right?
I realize one should not think badly of others but I find Rodriguez’ interest in Buddhism to be spurious. Between his steroid episode and the lies he repeated, the outsize salary he makes, the way he runs his businesses (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/07/sports/baseball/07roberts.html?_r=2&oref=slogin and other articles in the past), I am not convinced.
People can change, surely. I’m just not positive this is the case here. We’ll see. If he does, that would be excellent.
As one who enjoys the game and A-Rod’s performances (for I view sports as I do theater) I’ll attest to numerous signs of some changes.
First, I don’t accept gossip about his dating life as fact. So I dunno if his friendship with Madonna encompassed more than simply, that.
Second, he had his first serious injury this year. For the first time in his long career, no expectations were on him to be the team offense leader. His marriage ended, which can be another positive release, too.
Something transformative happened to the Yankees, too. It wasn’t the highly touted trades. I think the lesser-heralded Nick Swisher added a missing element. Team joker, team razzer, whatever you call him, quite a few players remarked how loose the clubhouse was because of his attitude. In Steinbrenner’s domain usually, it’s all serious business and I think the guy reminded them that despite the hard physical drain, it’s a game, and should be more fun.
So the better workplace atmosphere, the lowered expectations, the emotional release from a failing marriage likely all played a role. For the first time, he talks not like an egotistic superstar, but talks more of the team than of himself. And I believe I hear genuine humility there, too.
It’d be cool if Buddhism played a key role, but I suspect several things occurred to change him. Whatever it was, I changed from someone who rooted for him to play well, to someone who now finds him likeable.
Dear Barbara,
I don’t understand, of all the things in the would that Buddhism, could have an answer for. Buddhist Sport!
So some Net ball player, changes his religion just to pick up a girl. Yanks change their religion like others change their socks.
Barbara, there are many things that Buddhist, can talk about. forget sport.