10 best moments from A-Rod's final game
Alex Rodriguez's tumultuous ride with the Yankees came to an emotional close Friday when baseball's most polarizing player appeared in what could be the final game of his career.
Rodriguez, who will be released by New York and retained as a special adviser, went 1-for-4 with an RBI double and returned to third base in his pinstripes finale during a night of nostalgia and reflection at Yankee Stadium.
The evening began with a bang, literally, when a huge thunderclap punctuated an announcement about A-Rod's career in pinstripes during his stormy farewell ceremony.
A-Rod, with his two daughters by his side, was honored with a jersey plaque, video message from his first manager Lou Piniella, and celebrated by Yankee legends Reggie Jackson and Mariano Rivera.
Moments later, after rain cut the ceremony short, the sun came out, the sky cleared, and A-Rod was greeted by Yankees fans with one last roll call.
A-Rod tipped his cap and delivered his greatest offensive moment of the night a half inning later followed by another standing ovation, when the 14-time All-Star smacked an RBI double to the right-center gap in his first at-bat of the game and celebrated with big-time emotion.
Two groundouts and a strikeout later, the baseball world had to wait another seven-and-a-half innings until another memorable moment. Was it ever worth it. With the Yankees up 6-3 in the ninth inning, manager Joe Girardi told A-Rod to get his glove for an epic final appearance at third base.
Girardi pulled him after the first out of the inning, and A-Rod embraced his teammates as he exited the 2,784th, and possibly final, game of his career to a standing ovation.
A-Rod patiently waited in the dugout for the last two outs of the game before his final trip onto the field, where he soaked in the moment and took home a souvenir.
After pocketing some Yankee Stadium dirt and saluting the crowd, A-Rod was joined by his two daughters again for perhaps the most touching moment of the night.
The tears kept flowing from there, as Girardi put aside the controversial last couple days and broke down while discussing A-Rod's final game and third-base farewell. "If this is the last time he played," he said. "I wanted it to be something he never forgot."
It appears Girardi got his wish. A-Rod, who has notably refrained from the "retirement" word this week, all but confirmed it Friday night, resigning himself to the fact his Yankees farewell will be "tough to top."
(Videos courtesy: MLB.com)