Two-thousand and fourteen was a tough year for Alex Rodriguez.
The New York Yankees slugger was suspended for the entire 2014 Major League Baseball season for being in possession of banned substances. The Biogenesis scandal threatened to tarnish the legacy he worked so hard to build, but Robert Kraft imparted some wisdom on him that helped bring him out of a dark time in his life.
During a holiday party in 2014, Kraft saw Rodriguez was down and went over to give him a little advice.
“Build bridges. Don’t burn them,” Kraft told Rodriguez, via The Athletic’s Jeff Howe. “You’re a very special messenger, and people will pay attention to what you say.”
According to Howe, Rodriguez wrote the five words on a napkin that he still carries around to this day.
“The lesson was really that the messenger is often as powerful as the message,” Rodriguez told Howe. “It wasn’t just that he told me to stop burning bridges; it was the fact that it was Robert Kraft, someone who I knew would never sugarcoat the honest truth. I knew it came from a place of truly wanting to help me. That was absolutely one of the most important moments of my path back, and really, my entire life.”
Rodriguez later penned an apology letter for his steroid use prior to returning to the Yankees in 2015, and he credits Kraft for helping him at a pivotal moment in his life.
“During my darkest days, he pulled me aside and gave me the tough love I needed to take responsibility for my suspension, my choices and my life going forward,” Rodriguez said. “He is someone I look to for advice across the board, and for daily inspiration.”
Kraft, for his part, is glad he could help out someone he now considers to be a good friend.
“I try to build bridges in my life every day,” Kraft said. “I like to hang out with people I like. I’m very direct and honest with people, for good and bad, and we try to be diplomatic. He is someone who was adored and then went into a little bit of a rough period, and I think he’s shown the mental toughness. I’m just proud of him.”
