Alex Rodriguez is one of the most accomplished players in the history of baseball, but his legacy is perceived by many to be somewhat tarnished because of his use of PEDs. Today, Rodriguez is on FOX Sports, contributing to its coverage of Major League Baseball. He believes his criticism of his former team makes it more difficult to get his jersey number retired.
In a recent interview with Evan Roberts and Tiki Barber on WFAN, he admitted that the decision to keep his number in the distribution cycle did not make him happy. Barber asked if he had ever been approached about a possible retirement.
“No,” Alex Rodriguez replied. “With my job on TV – and Tiki, you know this – I’m too critical to the Yankees, and that doesn’t help my case. But I get paid to tell the truth and if you guys ask me a question, I’m going to tell you exactly as I see it and not sugarcoat it because I want my number retired. If it’s not retired, then so be it.”
Rodriguez recognizes the honor of having a uniform number retired and hopes that he is given such a distinction in the future. He remains in the purview of the Yankees organization as a media member, commentating on Yankees games on the Sunday Night Baseball with KayRod alternate broadcast and discussing the team during MLB on FOX studio coverage.
Additionally, he is now colleagues with Yankees legend and Hall of Fame shortstop Derek Jeter, establishing and maintaining a rapport as analysts tasked with breaking down the coverage.
“My relationship with Hal [Steinbrenner] and the organization is fine, but when I’m on television and they ask me a question, I can’t sugarcoat it and make something look or pretend because it’s not. I wish I could say that things were going great and they’re running it like the Phillies and the Braves and Houston and the Dodgers, but that’s not what I feel, so it’s not what I’m going to say.”
Roberts posed a theory he had devised to Alex Rodriguez about his number retirement, stating that the longer the team goes without a championship, the more likely the organization will look to honor his legacy. The Yankees have won 27 World Series championships, the most in the history of Major League Baseball, but have not captured a championship, let alone a World Series appearance, in the last 14 seasons.
“I could buy that theory, but I don’t want that to happen,” Rodriguez said. “I want them to win [and] I want them to turn this around. We have the greatest fans in baseball, and they deserve to be in October. Do you know how difficult it is not to make the playoffs in 2023?”
