One of man's greatest pastimes is looking into the future. Who's going to win the game tomorrow? Who's going to finish first? Who's going to win the presidential election?

Sometimes, when I look into the future, I look a generation ahead. That's when I see Alex Rodriguez, a man loved and at peace.

I'm not a Yankees fan. But for some reason, I feel sorry for A-Rod. Here's a guy who hasn't hit under .285 in 13 seasons as a regular, and hasn't hit fewer than 35 home runs in a season since Bill Clinton was president. His on-base percentage has been .375 or better for nine straight years. He's durable, and he has won three MVP awards.

But with Alex Rodriguez, a great many people want to focus on what he is not. He's not clutch. He's not a team player. He doesn't earn his money. He's not a winner.

It's an accident of history that he is viewed this way. Ernie Banks never led his team to a World Series title either, even though the Cubs also had Billy Williams in their lineup and a Hall of Famer making one-fourth of their starts.

For this, Ernie Banks is a tragic hero. People love Ernie Banks. Poor Ernie.

Alex Rodriguez was the American League's Gold Glove winner at shortstop in 2002 and 2003. When he moved on to the Yankees, he also moved to third base. To the best of my knowledge, he has never made a big stink about this publicly.

Pete Rose did the same kind of thing in 1975, and Craig Biggio did much the same thing a generation later. The Reds needed a third baseman, Rose moved over, and was lauded as a fantastic, selfless team player when the Reds won back-to-back World Series.

When the Astros needed a center fielder, Biggio volunteered to play there. "That's Craig Biggio," people said. "He'll do whatever he can to help the team."

A-Rod has also been vilified for a couple of sneaky, underhanded plays. He yelled out so a Toronto fielder would drop the ball. Sorry Alex. Good play, wrong generation. People didn't call it a smart play to save an out. People called it a dirty trick from that overpaid choke artist.

Rodriguez also tried to slap the ball away from Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo in a key playoff game. It was unquestionably a good play. If the umpire hadn't seen it, that play turns the game around. The Yankees had nothing to lose when he did that, and they didn't lose a thing.

Reggie Jackson did the same sort of thing, sticking his leg in the way of a throw in a World Series game. This was also a sneaky, underhanded play, but Reggie got away with it.

Alex Rodriguez once saved a kid's life, for crying out loud. No kidding. A-Rod almost got hit by a truck while making sure an 8-year-old boy didn't. He didn't stick around to make sure he got publicity for being a hero, and he didn't. None of the media even asked A-Rod about it until two days later. By then, everyone was already talking about how Gary Sheffield pushed some bozo Red Sox fan during a game.

Using the baseball-reference.com Play Index, I got a list of players who hit .315 with 50 home runs in one season.

(<http://www.bb-ref.com/pi/shareit/fb7g>) It's a bunch of historic seasons, mixed with players who have a swagger, a presence. Rodriguez did it in 2001, when he hit .318 with 52 homers. The same year, Barry Bonds hit .328 with 73, Sammy Sosa hit .328 with 64 and Luis Gonzalez hit .325 with 57. Sorry A-Rod, bad timing.

I'm not sure why some players are loved and others aren't. Joe DiMaggio was, frankly, a pompous jackass who reportedly insisted on being called "The Greatest Living Ballplayer," even though this was at the very least, open to argument.

Mickey Mantle was a drunk and a lousy husband. But you never saw a huge front-page photo of him with another woman when he was playing. When Mantle admitted shortly before his death that he was also a bad father, somehow this made him more admirable.

I'm not sure that any of us truly can understand the pressures of being a Major League Baseball player. Take a full-time player on a playoff team. The last time he had two honest-to-goodness days off in a row was at the All-Star Break. The last time before that was probably January or February. It would drive me nuts just to think about that, not to mention trying to live up to a multi-million dollar contract.

Speaking of that contract...fellow writer Roel Torres pointed out in the comments section that fans expect more from A-Rod because he has the title of the highest-paid player in the game.

Roel is right. A-Rod has been vilified because of that contract. When Kirby Puckett was elected to the Hall of Fame, he made a point of saying how the honor meant so much because it wasn't something you could buy. "Alex Rodriguez can't get in here with his $250 million contract," Kirby said.

Alex Rodriguez made $28 million this year. I'm not sure where that would rank among the highest-paid movie stars from June 2007 to June 2008, but I know it's not in the top 10.

Will Smith made $80 million during that time period. Johnny Depp, who stars in a series of movies my fiancee gave up trying to get me to watch, took in $72 million.

Eddie Murphy and Mike Myers each made $55 million over those 12 months. I wouldn't watch either of their movies if you bought me dinner and paid for my ticket.

All of those people made twice as much as A-Rod, or more. Most people know that A-Rod makes great gobs of money. Did any of you know how much Mike freaking Myers made in one year? Why don't more people know how much actors and actresses make? Why aren't they the object of such hatred?

My father will complain sometimes about the over-the-top money given to today's athletes. Whenever he does and I'm around, I always say, "Dad, if someone offered you that much money, would you turn it down because you thought it was too much?" He always says something like, "Hell, no."

Of course he wouldn't. Hardly any of us would. If someone offered me $28 million for the next 12 months, I'd ask where I sign and figure out what I had to do later.

Some people will never accept that there will always be someone who has a bigger paycheck, a nicer house, a better-looking spouse, a flatter stomach and fewer gray hairs. Alex Rodriguez is someone who, on the outisde, appears to have more of everything than you or I. Some people are bitter about that, and can't wait to see him fall.

As we get older, we tend to realize, with a chuckle and a shake of the head, the mistakes of our youth. People hated Muhammad Ali because he didn't represent the "Keep your mouth shut, do your job and fight for your country" attitude the nation had come to expect from its sports heroes. People hated Roger Maris because he wasn't the guy who people thought should break Babe Ruth's record. People hated Hank Aaron because he wasn't white. People hated Ted Williams because he didn't kiss anyone's butt.

I know most of you have already made up your mind about A-Rod, but people learned from those mistakes. Hopefully, they'll do the same with Alex Rodriguez.

Matt DiFilippo welcomes e-mails at allthings222@fastmail.fm.