Ichiro > A-rod

You have some pretty valid arguments, but the majority of them have some key flaws. You're young and inexperienced, however...so it's understandable. One CRUCIAL rule of thumb in debating is to make sure that cited information is 100% accurate. False facts are devastating to your reputation. You said that it was basically Rodriguez' first season at 3rd base, which is completely wrong. That horrible error streak took place in 2006. His first season at 3rd was with the Yankees in 2004. And even if it was his 1st year at third, it was well into the season...giving him plenty of time to adjust. Also, major leaguers are exquisite fielders, due to the thousands of reps and groundballs they've fielded in their life...so no matter what part of the diamond he's at, a groundball is a groundball. Making excuses for a player's mediocrity shows just how overrated he is. I like this quote: "All Ichiro has to do is throw to the cutoff man or straight to the base." Yeah, you're right lol. Throwing a ball 230+ feet without a hop, with perfect accuracy, to home plate while a runner's coming home is no big deal. Anybody can do that. Watch this video... http://youtube.com... Also, A-rod could never rob a home run in his life...I guarantee it. He couldn't do what Ichiro does...especially not the assist Ichiro made in the above video. Now for hitting. A-rod went pro out of high school, not college. So there's some more false information. Shouldn't you be a little more informed about the person you're defending? Also...the Japanese baseball leagues aren't at the level that the MLB is. Although it isn't easy hitting those Japanese pitchers...it's a lot easier than hitting the pro pitchers over here. So...Ichiro's 1st season in the MLB is a relevant comparison to A-rod's, give or take a little. Quit making excuses for mediocrity. Oh and how do you justify this little nickname..."K-rod." Remember that? Remember the pure crapiness of A-rod's plate appearances and strikeouts in that stretch of time? It was so bad that some of his own Yankee fans were calling him K-rod. You also try to combat Ichiro's (year after year) much higher batting averages by saying "Well...A-rod is a power hitter. He takes big swings." Sounds like another excuse to me. Did you ever consider that it might not be the measure of the swing, but instead the difference in hand-eye coordination of the 2 players? Like I said before, Ichiro's weight is way out in front of his body before he even swings, yet somehow still manages to hit line drives consistently. That's pure hand-eye coordination. Size of swing doesn't justify batting average. Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, and Chipper Jones all take big swings (hence their home run numbers)...but all 3 hit for a better batting average than A-rod. And speaking of home runs, Ichiro could be a home run hitter if he wanted to. Have you seen him take batting practice before? He hit 3 or 4 out in a row. But he knows he can be much more consistent and much faster down the 1st base line by sticking to his slap-hitting technique. He cares about the team. I'd rather have a great contact hitter than a great power hitter any day. The chances of Ichiro getting a hit are much, much higher than that of Rodriguez hitting a home run. Therefore, he's a much more consistent threat. And about the stolen bases...Ichiro has more not because he's on base more, but because he's much faster. What about all those intentional walks A-rod gets? He's GETTING ON BASE then, isn't he? Quit making excuses. Ichiro can run laps around A-rod. Period. Oh and most importantly, A-rod isn't a good clutch player. What did he do this postseason? Nothing. He went 4-15 and not a single home run. You can hit 100 home runs in the regular season, but if you don't hit a lick in the playoffs...in matters none. Zip. If Ichiro was in A-rod's spot...he would have gone at least 8 or 9 for 15. I guarantee it. Oh and I'll be delighted to answer your question. My answer is that I'd rather have Ichiro...because like I said...the odds of hitting a walk-off home run are slim...and even slimmer compared to Ichiro getting a clutch base hit. Who would you rather have up in the bottom of the 9th with the winning run on 3rd? All you need is a base hit. Who would you rather have as a runner on 3rd when a wild pitch occurs? Who would you rather have on the basepaths when you wanna steal a base? Who would you rather have execute a suicide squeeze? Base hit consistency and speed on the basepaths are the best tools a hitter can have.