Opening Day boos don't bode well for A-Rod staying

	Alex Rodriguez atoned for an early error with a two-run home run in the eighth inning. AP

Also in this column:
• A 60 Minutes encounter
• Tigers consider using Andrew Miller
• Gil Meche's revenge?
• More news and notes

While Yankees owner George Steinbrenner remained conspicuously out of sight on Opening Day in New York, as usual megastar Alex Rodriguez was out front for all to see, both the good and bad. And after Rodriguez played goat early and hero late, and after he heard it all from Yankee Stadium fans, Rodriguez's handlers noted how quick the fans were to start booing him.

What may have been the earliest booing for a superstar on record isn't a good sign for Rodriguez to stay a Yankee beyond this year. Neither is the fact that it's been duly noted.

The guess today is that we just witnessed A-Rod's last Opening Day at Yankee Stadium.

Rodriguez, whose opt-out clause will allow him to play elsewhere next year, appropriately and humorously likened his up-and-down day to the "stock market." In what has to at least tie a record, he actually managed to incite boos in both halves of the first inning of the opener, first by over-running a popup (and embarrassingly missing it entirely), then by pathetically swinging through a Scott Kazmir 3-and-2 pitch well out of the strike zone with men on base.

"I kind of started like a moron -- I felt really goofy out there," said Rodriguez, who went from bear to bull (to steal A-Rod's stock analogy) within nine innings, eventually singling, stealing and scoring the winning run, then topping that off by hitting a home run to center field in the Yankees' 9-5 victory over their personal piñata, Tampa Bay.

The man just can't help but be a lightning rod for criticism. Bloggers are already getting on him for his "worthless" home run. The man can't win. Had he not scored the go-ahead run earlier, I suppose his home run wouldn't have been so "worthless."

A-Rod attributed his early flub to "Opening Day jitters," and while fielding pop-ups are his one true weakness, it's fair to say that he may be among the more nervous superstars ever. In spring training there was some discussion among Yankees pitchers about how nervous it makes them when the ball is hit to him. Rodriguez at times can appear to be an emotional wreck.

But of course, he can also wreck the opposition, as he did late, with his hard single and run, then finally with the two-run bomb. It was imperative that A-Rod make amends there, because as Yankees great Reggie Jackson said, "If not, it's going to rain on you ... and we rain boos here."

Eighty more games of rain is going to be quite a storm for A-Rod. I don't think he was kidding when he said that whether he opts out may depend on how the fans respond to him. In that regard, day one probably didn't help.

More Opening Day observations

• There was a moving tribute to pitcher Cory Lidle, who died in a plane crash on Oct. 11, and an impromptu one for beloved Yankee Bobby Murcer, who's battling brain cancer. Murcer looks great and gracefully accepted the adulation of the fans from the broadcast booth, where he visited his partners and joked to lead broadcaster Michael Kay that he shouldn't emphasize the Devil Ray name "Baldelli." Murcer, who lost his hair to chemotherapy treatments, stole the show.

• Bernie Williams, who's still waiting in the wings in case an opportunity arises, received one of the biggest responses from fans without even being there. A chant rang out from the bleachers: "We want Bernie." My guess is that a few of his former teammates were chanting along.

• To pay tribute to Williams in their own way, Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui made some of the worst throws from the outfield that anyone has seen in years.