* Alex Rodriguez is a great baseball player with a ton of stats, an effortless swing, a good glove and good baserunning instincts. He excelled on poor teams like the Mariners and the Rangers – and that is where he should be. The Yankees haven’t had a bit of luck since they got him. He does not belong in a Yankee uniform because he has the heart of a loser. There is a big discrepancy in lifetime stats, but I would take Scott Brosius over Rodriguez in a New York minute.

RJ WALSH

Ramsey, N.J.

* I now know why I turn first to The Post’s sports section, rather than the front page: I care more about Alex Rodriguez‘s conquests on the ball field, and with his Courage for Life Foundation, than about his supposed backdoor slider with an over-the-hill, Kabbalah-ist pop tart.

T. KING

Manhattan

* It’s hard to ignore Hank Steinbrenner’s comment that players must focus less on being “good people,” by doing charity work a day after Alex Rodriguez spent the day with a cancer patient from Pittsburgh and drove him from the airport to a Yankees game. Maybe I’m the only one, but I’m having trouble finding the correlation between fulfilling a sick child’s wish and quality at-bats. It was ill-advised and bad timing on Steinbrenner’s part. Kudos to Rodriguez, who has gone from Yankees fans’ favorite scapegoat to beloved third baseman in a few short years.

DAN MAHONEY

Troy, N.J.

Attaboy, Johan

* A Mets player, Johan Santana, finally has the clout and the guts to call out his teammates for playing like gutless losers and the result is that he’s taken to task? The Mets’ 2008 season is officially doomed.

JOHNNY STYNE

Manhattan

* I was just waiting to see how long it would take Johan Santana to start with the “I’m doing my job, their not doing their jobs” routine. I refer to the Mets’ 3-2 loss to the Yankees at Shea Stadium on June 28. Heck, Santana even claimed the umpire was squeezing the strike zone, further rationalizing his four walks. Truth be told, Santana’s once dominant self now reveals a pitcher who is quite good, but also quite beatable.

TED DEL GUERCIO

Lafayette, N.J.

Jagr: Pro & con

* In this age of selfish, self-absorbed, prima donna, superstar athletes, Jaromir Jagr was a breath of fresh air. He was a classy superstar who played big in big games, was always clutch, took a beating every night and never complained, didn’t whine about his contract and was always available to media and fans. Rangers GM Glen Sather is nuts for letting him go. Jagr was a hero for kids of all ages and will be sorely missed. I know that I speak for all Rangers fans when I say thanks for the memories, Jagr and best of luck in Russia.

GEORGE CHRISAFIS

Franklin Square, N.Y.

* Jaromir Jagr was quoted as saying he regrets he didn’t score the necessary 84 points needed to guarantee another year on his Rangers contract. But during the playoffs he came out and said he did not play at the same level of intensity during the regular season. As a longtime season-ticket holder, I deeply resent being told by my team’s star player that he didn’t put forth 100 percent effort at the games I paid 100 percent for. When Jagr turned it on, he was dazzling, but frankly, he insulted every Rangers fan by admitting that he didn’t turn it on until the playoffs. It’s just as well he didn’t get those precious 84 points, after all.

JEFF BUKANTZ

Montville, N.J.

In a real Rut

* Thanks, Phil Mushnick, for your insightful column on Rutgers sports [Equal Time, “Big-time disgrace,” The Post and nypost.com, June 30]. Many alumni have suspended our support of Rutgers for the reasons you so well articulated. This is in spite of my recent election as a Loyal Son, steady contributor and staunch supporter for 50 years. The campus is in disrepair, classes have been cut back, scholar-athlete Olympic sports eliminated, the President does nothing to honor his much-revered professor father – all this contributes to make the place an academic cesspool. If the current administration would only show a modicum of support for academics versus pre-professional sports, I would happily renew my support of the school that provided me with many of the skills needed to make my way in life as a responsible citizen of our country.

GEORGE OHYE

Naples, Fla.