The New York Yankees have the most retired numbers in all of MLB.
But Alex Rodriguez, who spent the final 12 seasons of his illustrious career in pinstripes, is not among those enshrined in Monument Park.
Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz asked Rodriguez when that would change as the two strolled through Monument Park at Yankee Stadium with Kevin Burkhardt and Derek Jeter during FOX’s pregame show Saturday.
Rodriguez offered a quick quip to Ortiz’s question and knows that honor is likely never to come.
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“Papi, you have a better chance of getting your number retired here than I do,” Rodriguez said, per FOX.
Ortiz is obviously seen as a Yankees villain due to the Hall of Fame career he put together with the Red Sox, which included his heroics in the 2004 American League Championship Series that came at the expense of New York.
Rodriguez, who finished playing in 2016, had his ups and down during his tenure with the Yankees. He helped New York to a World Series title in 2009 and was named the AL MVP in 2005 and 2008. He batted .283 with 351 home runs and 1,096 RBIs with the Yankees.
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But Rodriguez’s career was marred when he was suspended for the entirety of the 2014 season due to using performance-enhancing drugs.
That most likely is the black mark that will prevent Rodriguez from getting his number retired with the Yankees and he knows it, too.
But he certainly wishes things were different.
“Yeah, of course it bothers me,” Rodriguez said in October 2023. “It’s less about bother, but of course it would be nice to be recognized in one of the coolest places to be, in Yankee history, but that’s not my decision.”
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Featured image via Zach Boyden-Holmes /The Register via USA TODAY NETWORK
