Pete Rose was one of the most hard-nosed players to ever sprint around a Major League Baseball diamond. Like most others who give 110% percent on a daily basis, the playoffs were important to baseball’s all-time hits leader. He appeared in 67 playoff games and had over 300 plate appearances and a .321 batting average in the postseason.
Rose doesn’t think Robinson Cano has a whole lot of meaningful fall baseball in his future. During an appearance on ESPN New York 98.7 FM’s “The Michael Kay Show” on Wednesday, Rose was asked about the massive contract Jay-Z was able to help Cano secure. He didn’t pull any punches.
“He [Jay Z] got him a big raise, but he got him an extra 30-day vacation — and it’s called October,” Rose quipped.
I don’t know if I’d write the Mariners off just yet. If Cano is the same player in Seattle that he was with New York, he should provide the M’s with one of the game’s best middle-of-the-order bats for several years to come. Not only that, but Seattle’s brass has said it is not done dealing after signing Cano and has been exploring some intriguing trade possibilities.
As for Jay-Z, he did his job and then some. People were accusing him of costing Cano $50 million just hours before news of the $240 million deal surfaced. Not only that, but he may have gotten the Mariners to outbid themselves for his client.
Right now, everyone is thrilled. If the Mariners miss the playoffs for the next four or five seasons, we can revisit Rose’s vacation theory.
