Top image: Aspen Photo / Shutterstock.com
Tall, green-eyed and handsome, ‘The Latino Adonis’ was born in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood, a lively Dominican enclave with a tradition for producing lively athletes and musicians. Already a strapping, bulked-up 6’2″ and 220lbs by the age of 12, Rodriguez was recruited by the Western Christian School of Miami, Florida, which he led to a national high school championship in 1993 with the awesome batting average of 573. Already suspected of ‘juicing’ on steroids in high school, Rodriguez skipped two offers from the University of Miami as both a football quarterback and a baseball shortstop to join the Seattle Mariners. Avoiding college, where urine testing for young athletes is much more stringent, Rodriguez advanced straight from the minor leagues to the majors.
From1993 to 2000, Rodriguez was the handsome young star of the Mariners before becoming a free agent with the Texas Rangers and signing a contract for $63m. With the club suddenly broke after a number of bad business decisions by its owners Tom Hicks and George Bush, Jr., partly as a result of his high wages, Rodriguez was traded to the New York Yankees in 2004. And, although he’s often been accused of being a lazy, self-absorbed player with very little of the ‘team’ ethic about him, Rodriguez has won three different American League MVP (most valuable player) awards, a World Series ring from a win in 2009, and two golden glove awards.
Always suspected of taking huge doses of HGH (Human Growth Hormones) and a number of steroids, Rodriguez somehow managed to avoid testing. Thought of as a sort of latter-day Latino heartthrob, up there with Enriqué Iglesias, Jon Seda and Ricky Martin, A-Rod made the league look good and his replica shirt sales were in the millions. ‘Why mess up a good thing?’ seemed to be the prevailing attitude among the ownership and executives of Major League Baseball. But, as with both Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds in the National League, ‘juicers were getting bigger and bigger. The ever-increasing size of Rodriguez’s head, feet and physical bulk in general became food for comedy fodder on American nightly chat shows on T.V. At any rate, thanks to a whistle blower somewhere in the MLB hierarchy, and despite numerous profuse denials on Rodriguez’s part, this was confirmed in 2009, when he failed a number of tests, and it turned out that A-Rod had already been caught ‘juicing’ at least six times. Having developed what physicians call ’round’ pectorals, doctors found he had put on 15lbs in weight over just one year and suffered from a steroid-borne disease called gynecomastia.
Beyond the alarming drug abuse have been Rodriguez’s nocturnal pursuits. A divorced father of two, Rodriguez has dated scores of newsworthy adult and Hollywood stars including Cameron Diaz, the sexually voracious Kate Hudson, and pop star Madonna. Suffering from a gambling problem, sometimes with poker, Rodriguez has been accused by many Yankee colleagues of ‘tipping’ pitches to opponents and having friendships among a number of bookmakers. Beyond the adult stars, hookers and strippers he dates, Rodriguez seems to own a preference for trysts with drag queens and transvestites. Most recently Rodriguez was subpoenaed to testify in the court case involving the State of New York against an infamous Manhattan brothel Madame, Kristin Davis.
Currently dating WWE wrestler Torrie Wilson, Rodriguez is involved in litigation with Major League baseball, especially its chairman Bud Selig, who is currently considering banning Rodriguez for life.
