New York Yankees: Alex Rodriguez is enjoying his new adviser gig

Former New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez reported for duty at the instructional leagues in Tampa, Florida.

When Alex Rodriguez announced in August that he was done playing baseball, the New York Yankees simultaneously announced that Rodriguez would remain with the club for the remainder of his 10year/$275 million contract—which was scheduled to end after the 2017 season—and work as an adviser.

Rodriguez reported to duty in Tampa on Friday and he seems to be enjoying his new role already. He spoke with reporters when he arrived. He started off joking about his uniform about which he proudly proclaimed, “It still fits.”

He also gushed about the Yankees’ farm system saying, ““There is as much good young talent that I’ve seen here in all my years with the Yankees, and that is exciting for our fan base.’’ He added, “It’s really an exciting time and really a testament to Damon Oppenheimer [VP of amateur scouting] and Gary [Denbo] and the job they’ve done, both by drafting and then developing. It’s a great one-two combination for us.”

Then he spoke about the end of his playing career and how he came to terms with it. He said it happened Gary Sanchez at bat in Boston on August 10.

“When he hit that ball off [Junichi] Tazawa in Boston when I was there,’’ Rodriguez said, “that did two things for me. I said, ‘Boy, this is about time for me to go and take care of my girls because I can no longer do that.’

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By that time, Rodriguez was already on his way out of New York—his final game in Pinstripes would be two days later.

Rodriguez was spotted talking to players like top prospects Clint Frazier, first round pick Blake Rutherford and the more-than-likely Yankees’ shortstop of the future, Jorge Mateo. According to the New York Post’s Kevin Kernan, Rodriguez worked with the players in the batting cages on Friday and had individual conversations with them.

Rodriguez has also been tweeting from Tampa and it looks like he’s enjoying himself.

And he seems to have a sense of humor about being the old man in a sea of young players.

In his conversation with the gathered media in Tampa, Rodriguez said he’s enjoying life after baseball, especially since it means that he’s spending more time with his two daughters, Natasha and Ella. “I love taking my girls to school,’’ Rodriguez said. “I’m making more round trips with all these events. I never knew how much driving Cynthia [his ex-wife] had to do. It’s good to be more of a part of it right now. They often tell me, ‘Dad, we’re glad you are home.’ ’’

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Being an adviser for the Yankees is not the only gig that Rodriguez has lined up this fall. Fox Sports announced that he will once again serve as a studio analyst during the playoffs. He will make his debut on October 7 on Fox Sports 1 and will cover the National League Division Series.