As he moves closer to what will likely be the final game of his MLB career on Friday, Alex Rodriguez is not thrilled with New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi.
A-Rod rode the bench on Tuesday against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. While it’s certainly not a surprise that Girardi kept a player who is hitting .204 out of the lineup, Rodriguez was furious because Girardi hinted over the weekend that the 41-year-old would play in the entire series against Boston.
“I came to the stadium really excited, hoping I would play all three games or maybe two out of three,” Rodriguez said Tuesday, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. “He just said, ‘We’re trying to win games.’ It was surprising and shocking.”
To his credit, Girardi admitted he went back on his word. He said he let his emotions get the best of him over the weekend after A-Rod announced that he was retiring.
“I’m an emotional guy and my heart can get tugged at,” Giradi said. “I think I got caught up in the emotions. I’m human. … I’m not saying he won’t play these next two days, but I’m managing to win the games. This is a very important series for us. This is one of the teams we’re chasing.”
For what it’s worth, the Yankees lost anyway. Fans at Fenway were even heard chanting “we want A-Rod!” at one point, though they were likely hoping for an opportunity to boo their arch rival mercilessly.
Rodriguez will play against the Red Sox at some point before the series ends, and Girardi will obviously have him in the lineup for his final game at Yankee Stadium on Friday. Still, A-Rod couldn’t hide his disappointment.
“He has his opinions and I have mine,” he said. “But like I’ve said from the time I came back from my suspension, it’s up to Joe and I’ll do whatever he wants.”
Just sit back and relax, Alex. You’ll get your acknowledgement from Red Sox fans by Thursday, and from what we’ve heard it won’t be a flattering one.
