Watch: A-Rod ends Yankees career playing third base

Joe Girardi had a change of heart.

Just days after saying he wouldn't play Alex Rodriguez in the field for his final game, New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi sent his star to third base for the ninth inning of Friday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays, before removing him after one out to a standing ovation.

It was the 41-year-old's first appearance at third base since May 19, 2015.

After reliever Dellin Betances struck out Mikie Mahtook to open the ninth inning, Ronald Torreyes emerged from the dugout to take over at third. A-Rod hugged all of his teammates before slowly leaving the field, and acknowledging a standing Yankee Stadium crowd with several waves and cap tips before disappearing into the dugout.

"(Girardi) came up to me after my last at-bat and said, 'I'm thinking of putting you at third base,'" Rodriguez told YES Network after the game. "And I got more excited than probably (daughters) Natasha and Ella would.

"I just want to thank Joe Girardi for the opportunity."

The one-third of an inning at third base was A-Rod's 1,194th career game at the hot corner. He played 1,272 games at shortstop during the beginning of his career.

Rodriguez closed out his Yankees career with a 1-for-4 performance that included a first-inning RBI double.

(Video courtesy: MLB.com)