Advertisement

Rodriguez, New York Yankees agree on bonuses going to charity

By Larry Fleisher, The Sports Xchange

NEW YORK -- If there is one way to describe what this season has been like for Alex Rodriguez, the best way is to call it "the year of the unexpected" for the controversial slugger.

The latest unexpected events took place Friday on two fronts for Rodriguez.

Advertisement

First, he was able to get the ball from his 3,000th hit from collector Zack Hample in exchange for a signed jersey, two signed bats and a $150,000 donation to the charity Pitch In For Baseball, which Hample has supported since 2009 and is dedicated to maximizing the ability to play baseball in underserved communities.

The second notable event was the announcement that Rodriguez's milestone bonuses will be donated to various charities.

When Rodriguez's current 10-year contract was negotiated after the 2007 season, it contained clauses that called for bonuses of $6 million for every home run milestone reached. The Yankees said that in light of his suspension for PED use and admission of it that those were no longer "marketable bonuses."

Advertisement

"I just thought it was important to do the right thing," Rodriguez said. "Like Zack, I was thinking long and hard about doing the right thing, doing something important for a lot of people and turning a negative situation perhaps into a positive one. I think we all did the right thing."

Rodriguez reached the first milestone bonus with his 661st home run on May 7 but did not file a grievance and that eventually led to the resolution of the dispute with the monies involving charitable donations.

"Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association jointly announced today that the New York Yankees and Alex Rodriguez have amicably resolved their potential dispute regarding Rodriguez's entitlement to bonus monies under the provision of his player contract covering historical statistical accomplishments," the joint statement said.

"As part of this resolution, Mr. Rodriguez and the Yankees have agreed that a total of $3.5 million in charitable contributions will be made by the club, with $1 million going to the following charities that have long enjoyed the support of one or both: the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, the Boys & Girls Club of Tampa and Pitch In For Baseball; and $2.5 million going to the MLB Urban Youth Foundation, which will use the money to further programs and initiatives aimed at increasing youth participation in baseball, particularly in urban areas. Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr. will determine the initiatives to be supported by the $2.5 million contribution after consulting with Mr. Rodriguez, and taking into consideration the focus of Mr. Rodriguez's past charitable contributions."

Advertisement

None of these events seemed possible a year ago when Rodriguez was out of sight and away from baseball and even less likely two years ago, especially after general manager Brian Cashman told ESPN that Rodriguez needed to shut the bleep up for tweeting a picture of himself saying he was cleared for rehab games.

Those comments paled in comparison with what followed: a yearlong suspension for PED usage and Rodriguez threatening lawsuits and giving controversial interviews on New York sports talk radio host Mike Francesa's show.

Those events happened and now it seems like they didn't or were in another lifetime ago for Rodriguez.

"This has been quite a year," Rodriguez said. "Never did I think 12 months ago I would be in a position with 660 and 3,000 with two swings of the bat to be able to influence so many people, kids that are in need. To do this with the Yankees, the union, the commissioner's office, I'm just very proud of us doing the right thing in this situation and I'm especially happy to have the ball back and share it with my girls. That's going to be pretty awesome."

Advertisement

This also was a year that nobody knew what to expect from Rodriguez, who has a .280 batting average, 15 home runs and 45 RBIs.

"Coming into spring training, I didn't know what to expect," Rodriguez said. "I kind of told you guys (media) that before. I kind of made a commitment to myself that I wanted to keep my head down and let my bat do the talking and try to help the team win as much as possible. I think so far, it's been a win-win."

Then there was the development that led to Rodriguez holding a joint press conference with Hample, who caught the milestone home run in the right field seats.

Initially, Hample said he wasn't giving the ball back and tweeted that Rodriguez would have to mug him on 161st Street to retrieve it. Hample apologized for thet tweet and other negative things he said. That was accepted by Rodriguez, who jokingly said he has "a Ph.D in saying dumb things."

After catching the ball, Yankees executives Randy Levine and Lonn Trost met with Hample. Hample said he was not bullied or threatened in the meeting and also reached out to Rodriguez on Twitter before Friday.

Advertisement

"I don't catch baseballs to get rich," Hample said. "When I see a home run ball flying at me, I don't see dollar signs in the air. It's not like that. I do this for fun."

Latest Headlines