After serving the longest suspension in MLB history and missing the entire 2014 season, New York Yankees third baseman, Alex Rodriguez has formally apologized for his actions regarding the decisions that led to his suspension.

“I take full responsibility for the mistakes that led to my suspension for the 2014 season. I regret that my actions made the situation worse than it needed to be. To Major League Baseball, the Yankees, the Steinbrenner family, the Players Association and you, the fans, I can only say I’m sorry”, the official apology stated.

But the most interesting statement came in the next sentence: “I accept the fact that many of you will not believe my apology or anything I say at this point. I understand why and that’s on me”.

And for many, that’s exactly what they are going to do: take his apology with a grain of salt. And in a lot of ways he deserves it. A-Rod lied about his use of PEDs and as a result lost the respect and trust of a large portion of the people in the sports industry, and this apology seems to do little or nothing to fix that for a lot of them.

Most of the criticism surrounds the fact that A-Rod handwrote his apology instead of publicly speaking on the issue. Considering the severity of the problem, it seemed insincere – some would even go as far as to say unprofessional – to not show his face during the apology.

However, we all make mistakes and while there are no excuses for his actions, A-Rod deserves his chance at redemption. No one is asking to forgive his decisions, even A-Rod knows that’s too much to ask for, but we can all move on.

His ability to redeem himself lies completely on his productivity as a Yankee. If he comes back strong and provides an offensive force like in years past then there won’t be much to complain about. But if he doesn’t, then he is an overpaid, sub-par player with a bad reputation hovering over him.

“It was gracious of the Yankees to offer me the use of Yankee Stadium for this apology but I decided the next time I am in Yankee Stadium, I should be in pinstripes doing my job”, A-Rod wrote.