Alex Rodriguez Hits Homerun No. 661

Alex Rodriguez Hits Homerun No. 661; Passes Willie Mays on Career Homerun List

By Ryan Queler

With one swing of the bat in the third inning of a tied game between the Yankees and Orioles, Alex Rodriguez etched his name into MLB’s history books forever, sending a Chris Tillman changeup into Monument Park en route to his 661^st homerun of his historic, yet frequently debated career.

The fans in Yankee Stadium, whom have switched off cheering and booing Rodriguez throughout his entire tenure in pinstripes, stood on their feet to acknowledge A-Rod’s 661^st homerun, significant because it places him in sole position of fourth place on MLB’s all-time home run list. Willie Mays, a former MLB legend and Hall of Famer, now sits alone at fifth place, with 660 homeruns.

“A-Rod has faced a lot of negativity throughout his career. As his best days are clearly behind him, I think the Yankees and their fans should embrace and cheer for A-Rod, rather than treat him like an opposing player. If you told me last year that Alex Rodriguez would be leading this Yankees team, I would never have believed you, but that is exactly what is happening right now,” said Spencer Pearl, a lifelong Yankees supporter.

It was only one year ago when Rodriguez was watching baseball games from home, suspended for the entire season due to his steroid use.

“All of it is pretty crazy. A year ago today, I never thought that I would get a curtain call or be hitting in the middle of the lineup for the New York Yankees, helping our team win. Or when I started playing baseball at the Boys and Girls club in Miami when I was 9 years old. I wish my father was around to see this moment,” Rodriguez said.  

Albeit all the steroid allegations, questions about his ego and overpaid contract, 661 homeruns is an unbelievable feat, considering only three players in MLB history have ever hit more: Barry Bonds: 762, Hank Aaron: 755, Babe Ruth: 714.

The Yankees acknowledged the historic homerun, making notice of it on the stadium scoreboard, but the aftermath of the homerun has already begun ongoing debates regarding whether or not he should receive the $6 million bonus for passing Mays, which was written set-in-stone in his contract signed with the Yankees in 2007.

When it was agreed upon in 2007, Rodriguez’s prospective bonuses for breaking certain records were labeled as “marketing agreements,” that the Yankees would pay to promote milestones that he was in reach of.

Written in his massive, 10-year and $275 million contract is the agreement of $30 million of homerun milestone bonuses. Still, the Yankees front office has stated they have no plans to pay A-Rod the bonuses: “We have the right but not the obligation to do something. And that’s it. It’s not ‘you do this, you get that,’” said Brian Cashman, the general manager of the Yankees.

The Yankees do not believe A-Rod and his milestones are no longer a profitable marketing opportunity due to his repeated connections with performance enhancing drugs.

While everyone seems to be focused on whether or not he should receive his bonus, Rodriguez has claimed he has matured from his past litigious ways, and is focused on performing at a level to help the Yankees win games: “I’m just happy to be playing baseball. That’s family business. That’s nowhere near where my energy is these days. My energy is playing the game tonight. Just baseball… “I’ve been in a good place for a while now, and it’s just fun to be playing baseball. I’ve learned my lesson. The old (A-Rod) is gone.”

One baseball fan took a completely different approach to the argument on how to handle the contract bonuses: “donate it,” said Eli Davis, a Baltimore Orioles fan: “I think the best way for A-Rod to improve his image would be for himself and the Yankees to reach an agreement to find an appropriate cause to donate the money to, such as a steroid abuse counseling class.”

As of today, Rodriguez is hitting .240 with 7 homeruns and 19 RBIs, leading the first place American League East Yankees to a 20-12 record.