New York Yankees: Alex Rodriguez officially off team payroll

After retiring from baseball in 2016, Alex Rodriguez served as special advisor for the New York Yankees until the 2019 MLB season. Now, his time with the team is officially over.

Alex Rodriguez‘s time with the New York Yankees was filled with incredible highs and even lower lows. From the moment he took the field with the team in 2004, having shifted over to the third base even though he was defensively better than the shortstop at the time, Yankee fans had a difficult time warming up to A-Rod.

Before the 2019 season started, Rodriguez revealed that he had not been invited to Yankees spring training. While some found it odd, it seems there’s a reason for it. According to The Athletic’s Marc Carig, as of the 2019 season, A-Rod is no longer the special advisor to the Yankees.

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No official announcement was made, but it’s true: Alex Rodriguez is no longer paid by the Yanks.

Despite winning AL MVP awards in 2005 and 2007, even though he carried the team to their 27th World Series, none of it was good enough for the Bronx faithful. Then, as if things couldn’t get any worse for the slugger, the Biogenesis scandal broke.

Instead of taking the hit and owning up to his mistakes – if that’s what you would call them – he doubled down. A-Rod sued the players union and worse, sued the New York Yankees, all the while throwing his own teammates under the bus. All of this is depicted in Billy Corben’s documentary “Screwball.”

Then, something incredible happened.

After serving a year-long suspension for his role in the Biogenesis scandal, A-Rod did a profile on ESPN entited, “The Education of Alex Rodriguez.” In it, Rodriguez reveals the difficulties of his year-long suspension and describes hitting rock bottom.

It was the most honest we had seen A-Rod be in his entire career, and it seems that a huge weight was lifted from his shoulders. Then, in 2015, after serving his suspension, Rodriguez returned and has since delivered to the world a master class on how to rehabilitate one’s persona.

Since then, A-Rod has done everything right. He retired from baseball mid-season in 2016, just four home runs away from 700. He then transitioned to a role as special advisor to Hal Steinbrenner, receiving the remainder of his contract in that role.

What’s more, he delivered insightful analysis on Fox Sports and was hired as an analyst on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball, all the while showing the world his business chops by showing up on shows like Shark Tank and even starring in his own show Pivot in which he helps retired athletes with their finances.

Now, A-Rod is one of the most revered baseball figures in the world. How did he do it? Beats me, but I’m glad to see him excelling at the game he loves most.