There were too many memories to capture forever, as every moment was a little slice of history.
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Thunder and lightning cut short a pre-game tribute but the ageing slugger on Friday provided the first fireworks of the night for the Yankees by smacking a RBI double in his first at-bat as NY beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-3. “That was really hard for me because there was a strong relationship there, we’ve done a lot together”.
This wasn’t on the same scale as the Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter retirement bashes, but the sellout crowd of 46,459 was definitely behind A-Rod.
He did not have to specify the “screw-ups”: his suspension for being involved with performance-enhancing drugs (after denials that he ever had used them), his suit against Major League Baseball and the Yankees, and his public criticism of the team physician.
A-Rod certainly enjoyed his first trip to the plate. He received a thunderous reception.
Trumbo’s two-run homer in the third inning off Giants starter Matt Cain traveled an estimated 441 feet, landing near the back of the stands in left field. “I disappointed a lot of people but this feels good”, Rodriguez said after the game.
I am not upset that he is done with the Yankees, he constantly choked in the postseason and I felt he was more of a celebrity and less of a ball player. “It’s nice to have contributed”. Being that he is so close to the 700 mark, nothing would shock me to see him playing on another team maybe within a month, if not defiantly by next season. He needed to compose himself several times. “But like I’ve always said, you don’t have to be defined by your mistakes. That’s not the case”, said Girardi. “I have a huge heart”, Girardi said, his voice breaking and then halting.
Rodriguez had slept late, ate his egg whites, stretched and took one final trip to the ballpark as a NY player. In the bottom of the fourth inning he delivered a 2-out 2-RBI single to put the Yankees up 3-2 and hit a 2-run homer to give the Yankees a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the sixth. Not so much about the work of Chris Archer, who allowed five runs in six innings to earn his 16th loss.
If Rodriguez has any second thoughts about his controversial career he’s not letting on. “It’s been an incredible journey”.
As for whether this actually was his final game, Rodriguez did not say he was retiring but also said it would be hard to imagine a better ending while also ending his press conference by saying: “I’m at peace”. But there’s the possibility, albeit small, that another team could sign A-Rod after the rosters are extended to 40 players on September 1, or extend him a contract for spring training.
Rodriguez’s first-inning double would be the extent of his contributions to the Yankees’ win. But one by one A-Rod’s teammates embraced him, and at the end, they chanted his name. “He’s had an awesome career”, Garton said. “I am just going to enjoy tonight”. “He’s a great evaluator”. He did get one final appearance in the field, however, taking over at third base to start the ninth inning.
Owner Hal Steinbrenner already has two prospects in mind that he thinks Rodriguez can help: Jorge Mateo and Gleyber Torres.
He walked off the field for the final time when Ronald Torreyes replaced him. However, Austin has enjoyed an exceptional 2016 campaign in split time between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, as he plays first base, third base and both corner outfield spots.
Schimpf hit a two-run homer in the third.
American League stolen base leader Rajai Davis had three, hoisting his league-leading total to 31.
On a night filled with nostalgia, baseball’s most notorious star of the last two decades drove a 96 miles per hour fastball from Tampa Bay’s Chris Archer into the right-center field gap in the first inning.
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Maybe A-Rod needs to talk to him.
