Alex Rodriguez set to retire following 2017 season

Controversial star Alex Rodriguez will reportedly call it quits after the 2017 season, when his contract with the New York Yankees ends.

On Wednesday ESPN’s Andrew Marchand broke the news that Alex Rodriguez will retire from baseball when his contract expires following the 2017 season.

Rodriguez has played 21 major league seasons, and the past twelve have been as a member of the Yankees. The end of the 2017 season will bring to a conclusion the 10-year, $275 million dollar contract A-Rod signed with New York in 2007.

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For much of his career Rodriguez has been one of the most polarizing figures in baseball. Many will always associate him with PEDs and the Biogenesis scandal that cost him all of the 2014 season due to suspension. The major contracts that he signed were also easy targets for critics. In 2000 he signed the largest contract in American sports history up that point when he agreed to a 10-year, $252 million dollar deal with the Rangers. He was also the first major league player to top $20 million and $30 million in annual salary.

Regardless of perceptions of A-Rod, he has simply been one of the most productive baseball players in major league history. The career milestones of 3,000 hits and 600 home runs have already been eclipsed, and he’ll likely pass 700 homers this season. He’s a 14-time All-Star, three-time MVP winner, and according to Fangraphs he has accumulated the 13th-most fWAR all time.

Last season saw some change in public opinion regarding the controversial slugger. No one knew what to expect when the 39-year-old returned from a season long suspension. Rodriguez went on to play in 151 games for the Yankees, slashing .250/.356/.486. Not only that but he amassed 33 home runs, his highest total since 2008, and drove in 86 RBIs. By Baseball-Reference’s OPS+ it was his most productive offensive season since 2009. For a player inching closer to 40 who had just endured a long layoff, it truly was a remarkable achievement.

One of the major questions remaining for Rodriguez is whether or not he can make a run at Barry Bonds‘ career home run record. Bonds holds the current mark at 762 with Hank Aaron trailing behind him at 755. If A-Rod were able to match his 33 home runs from this season for two more years that would put him at 753.

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It’s asking a lot for a player in his 40s to hit 30+ home runs in consecutive seasons. It’s almost a certainty that he will finish his career behind Bonds and Aaron, but it will be a fun storyline to watch over the next few seasons.