Statistically speaking, Rodriguez is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he may never get in because he was suspended a then-record full season in 2014 for performance-enhancing drug use. It was the second time he had admitted to using PEDs.
The Yankees had essentially made Rodriguez a full-time bench player this season one year after he was a vital member of the lineup during his 33-home run comeback in 2015. But he never could get going in 2016, hitting just .204 with 9 home runs and 29 RBIs in 62 games. His OPS is .609.
Rodriguez recently sounded at peace with being cut, saying he would go home to Miami to spend more time with his daughters. Rodriguez mentioned his daughters this spring when he told ESPN he planned to retire following the 2017 season.
Rodriguez was drafted by the Seattle Mariners as the No. 1 pick in 1993. By 1996, at 20, he was an All-Star and second in the MVP voting after leading the league in average at .358 and home runs at 36.
By the time he was 25, he left Seattle for Texas for what was then the largest contract in American sports history, a 10-year, $252 million deal that exactly doubled the $126 million the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Kevin Garnett was due to earn.
Though he personally produced for the Rangers, the marriage would last only last three years. After winning the MVP in Texas in 2003, Rodriguez was nearly dealt to the Boston Red Sox, who were still in the middle of their 86-year championship drought. A trade for Manny Ramirez was agreed upon, but it was foiled by the MLB Players’ Association, which wouldn’t allow Rodriguez to give back money from his initial contact.
With Derek Jeter at shortstop andAaron Boone — who had just beaten the Red Sox with a game-winning home run in Game 7 of the American League Championship Serie — at third base, the Yankees did not have a need for Rodriguez. But when Boone tore ligaments in his knee playing pickup basketball, Cashman swooped in, dealingAlfonso Soriano and Joaquin Ariasfor Rodriguez. The Rangers chose Arias over a minor leaguer named Robinson Cano, who was on a list of players from which Texas could choose. Texas also paid $67 million of the $179 million that Rodriguez was still owed.
Rodriguez agreed to move from shortstop to third base in order to play next to Jeter. Rodriguez went on to win three MVPs, and he finally shook off his postseason troubles by leading the Yankees offensively during their 2009 World Series run.
Prior to that season, Rodriguez first admitted to PED use after a Sports Illustrated story outed him.
Rodriguez said after the SI story that he was a changed man, but his involvement in Biogenesis and subsequent fight to try to overcome the allegations led him to file lawsuits against baseball, the players’ association and a team doctor. He questioned the integrity of then-commissioner Bud Selig, as well as other executives, during a controversy-filled attempt at a defense.
There was a thought Rodriguez may never play again after the suspension, but with the Yankees still owing him $61 million, Steinbrenner decided to let him return.
Rodriguez, looking for forgiveness, carried himself with contrition and helped lead the Yankees to an AL wild-card berth in 2015.
This year, though, he and the team have not had the same results.
ESPN’s Andrew Marchand and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Article Appeared @http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/17238209/alex-rodriguez-play-final-game-new-york-yankees-friday-become-adviser