Alex Rodriguez's Pursuit Of 600 Home Runs Evokes A Confounding Set Of Emotions

Ordinarily, when a player is approaching a milestone, fans will cheer him on and root for him to make history. But Alex Rodriguez is in no way ordinary. And so it's entirely appropriate that the response to his current homer chase, even from a Yankees fan, is complex and uncertain:

I was asked recently what plans we had at SB Nation New York to commemorate Alex Rodriguez' imminent entry into baseball's exclusive 600-home run club. 

Simple question. The answer, though, is anything but simple. Rodriguez is a complicated man, always has been throughout his career. How to feel about him as he nears becoming the seventh player in history to reach 600 home runs -- he enters play Tuesday night in Anaheim with 598 -- is also, of course, complicated.

Why would it be anything else?
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Thus, how is it truly possible to know what to feel or how to react as Rodriguez approaches this latest milestone?

It isn't. At least for me.

One thing is certain - no matter what anyone can say about A-Rod as a player or A-Rod as a person, he didn't fluke his way to 598. While the response to the achievement will be mixed, the achievement itself will be extraordinary.