The A-Rod effect

Steve Goldman goes for the sweet spot of baseball/politics convergence and sees a similarity between the rejection of A-Rod by many NY Yankees fans and the last two democratic candidates for president.

In 2000 and 2004, the Democrats nominated presidential candidates who, if you put their qualification down on paper, were far more qualified for the presidency than Bush, a fellow who had little experience outside of Texas, a state that doesn't ask much of its governor, who was tongue-tied, who had a checkered business background, who probably ducked out on the National Guard, and hadn't exactly grown in office. He was, however, a far superior actor to the other guys, who couldn't get out of their own way. He had his line and he stuck to it. The picture and the words were in synch.

In contrast, the opponents presented a picture that created cognitive dissonance. They talked about being strong for the country, but did not or could not respond to political attacks. They changed tactics daily. Al Gore even changed color sometimes, taking the stage for one debate with some orange tan-in-a-can product smeared all over him. John Kerry, of course, voted for things before he voted against them and passively accepted his own swift-boating. The actions didn't match the resumes.

Alex Rodriguez is the same way. The results in the record books are brilliant. The view from the stands somehow seems smaller, and the sound emanating from the post-game clubhouse compounds the picture, with quotes that don't match what happened in the game. Savvy baseball fans may know intellectually that they should appreciate A-Rod, but viscerally they reject him, and the visceral trumps the intellectual every time.

If you've ever gotten nauseous on an amusement park motion-simulator (like Disney's "Star Tours") you've experienced the most violent version of this effect. Motion simulators are very good at taking a ride vehicle and synching it's movements with that of a film projected in place of the vehicles "windows." Unfortunately, they are not perfect and for many people the human senses demand perfection. When the movements suggested by the film don't quite match up with the movements of the ride vehicle, the body gets panicky. "My perceptions aren't aligned with the motion I'm experiencing!" the brain thinks. "What could have caused that? I know! I've been poisoned!" When your body thinks it has been poisoned, it takes action to purge itself. The next thing you know, you're off the ride and you have your head down a garbage can. That's the A-Rod Effect, and it works in both baseball and politics.

Well said, sir. I would even take the similarities further. In the clubhouse, the press often take on a role very similar to the "boys on the bus" following the presidential campaign. Writers covering the ball club tend to feel that they're memebers of the team and feel both deferential to the players they cover and often resentful as well, just as do the campaign press. Forced to listen to the same speeches or post-game platitudes day after day, they get bored and try to find new ways to cover the same story. "Gore says he invented the Internet." "A-Rod and Jeter don't get along." When they see a chink in the armor or an unscripted moment they are quick to pounce and can act like mean girls in the cafeteria.