By Stephen Hawkins / The Associated Press
ARLINGTON, Texas—Alex Rodriguez doesn’t remember any clubhouse conversations as a young player about still being in the game at 40 years old.
“You talk more about 35, coming into your mid-30s. Forty’s not really talked about,” Rodriguez said. “So, sure, there’s a certain amount of pride.”
A-Rod marked his 40th birthday on Monday night with the New York Yankees’ series opener at Texas. He was the designated hitter and batted third against the team that gave him his first huge contract.
It came a year after Rodriguez turned 39 while serving a seasonlong suspension for violations of baseball’s drug agreement and labor contract.
“I had a lot of time to think and evaluate. It was a dark time, for sure,” Rodriguez said. “To be able to come back this year and look back, and hopefully I’m going to be a better player but, more important, a better person for the next 40 years.”
When asked what a 40-year-old A-Rod would tell the 30- or 20-year-old A-Rod, he first said he wasn’t in position to give anyone advice, including himself. But he then said there was a point in time when hitting home runs and being a great player were all that mattered to him.
“I figured that if I hit more home runs, it would justify for whatever behavior I had off the field,” he said, without being specific. “And I realize today that it’s not that way at all. Hitting home runs doesn’t make you a good father. It doesn’t make you a good friend. And it certainly doesn’t make you a good teammate. And to me, they’re both important.”
Rodriguez went into Monday night’s game hitting .277 with 23 home runs and 58 RBIs. He got his 3,000th career hit on June 19 against Detroit, and this is his 16th career 20-homer season—he is fourth on the major league homer list with 677.
The three-time Most Valuable Player became the 10th current major league player who is at least 40, according to STATS. The oldest is Colorado pitcher LaTroy Hawkins at 42 years, 218 days old on Monday, followed by Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon (42 years, 64 days). The oldest position player is Miami outfielder Ichiro Suzuki (41 years, 278 days).
Yankees Manager Joe Girardi said Rodriguez is extremely productive and reestablished himself as an everyday player.
“I’m going to continue to work hard. I thought April would be my most challenging month. Then as I started getting more repetition, I was hoping to get better and I think that’s happened,” Rodriguez said. “It’s also a nice reminder to me that if you play clean and you work hard, that good things can happen.”
Rodriguez has been with the Yankees since 2004. Just before spring training that year he was traded by Texas only three seasons into the $252-million, 10-year contract he signed after starting his career with Seattle from 1994-2000.
During his three seasons in Texas, he was a three-time All-Star while hitting 156 homers with 395 RBIs. He got a new $275-million, 10-year contract from the Yankees after the 2007 season.
In February 2009, Rodriguez admitted to using steroids while with the Rangers from 2001-2003.
“The fans [in Texas] were always incredible to me. I will always be grateful to [former owner] Tom Hicks and the Rangers for giving me an opportunity at 25 years old to be the leader of a franchise,” he said. “I learned a lot here. I was 25 years old. I was a young kid here, and I had a good time. I tried to do my best as a leader. I did the best I could.”
Three pitchers who became dominant after trades and a rock-solid catcher-turned-second baseman, meanwhile, have a new moniker—Hall of Famer.
Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz and Craig Biggio were inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday and basked in the spotlight one more time with at least 40,000 fans cheering from the sun-drenched field beyond.
For Martinez, the last to speak, the moment was magical as scores in the crowd waved Dominican flags for one of their own. Martinez, who also delivered part of his speech in Spanish, and former Giants great Juan Marichal, elected in 1983, are the only Hall of Famers from the Caribbean nation.
At the end of the ceremony, Martinez beckoned Marichal to the stage and they held their flag high, one last emotional gesture as the crowd roared.
“We waited 32 years for another Dominican,” said Martinez, who wore a patch honoring his nation’s flag on one shoulder and another honoring the United States on the other. “I hope all Dominicans remember this. I don’t think the Dominican Republic will have a better image than me and Marichal on Father’s Day [in the Dominican Republic] to be up there.”
Image credits: AP