A-Rod tells MLB panel he was tricked into taking illegal drugs: Report

Alex Rodriguez said the only dope being taken was himself after claiming he was tricked into taking steroids by Biogenesis proprietor Anthony Bosch.

A-Rod —who is fighting a 211-game suspension by Major League Baseball — claims Bosch duped him into using the banned supplements at Tuesday's arbitration hearing.

According to the N.Y. Daily News, a source with knowledge of Rodriguez’s ongoing hearings in Manhattan, said the embattled Yankee and his lawyers have presented a case based partly on the idea that Rodriguez believed the substances he procured from the Biogenesis anti-aging clinic were innocent legal supplements.

That defense conflicts with the version told by Bosch — the founder and head honcho of the now-shuttered facility — who spent part of Monday and almost all of Tuesday testifying before the three-person panel that will decide on the appropriateness of the 211-game doping ban MLB commissioner Bud Selig imposed upon Rodriguez in August.

Bosch, who is cooperating with MLB, has spent much of that time validating a vast trove of Biogenesis documents as well as his own electronic communications with Rodriguez. The league believes the evidence reflects a deep dealer-source relationship. If the Biogenesis products were legitimate, MLB argues, why were they so expensive and why were the transactions so secretive?

Attorneys for Rodriguez will likely begin their cross-examination of Bosch on Wednesday, attacking his credibility during the closed-door hearing as they have for several months now — pointing out that MLB’s investigators paid Bosch for his evidence and offered to drop him from a lawsuit if he cooperated with their probe. They may also point out that Bosch is the subject of federal and state criminal investigations in Florida, and that he was fined $5,000 by the Florida Department of Health for holding himself out as a doctor.

By claiming that he was given banned drugs when he thought he was getting legal supplements, Rodriguez is tearing a page from the playbook that guided other tainted athletes. Barry Bonds told a grand jury in 2003 that he thought the creams he got from his BALCO-affiliated trainer, Greg Anderson, were something like flaxseed oil. Roger Clemens claimed he thought the intramuscular injections he got from his trainer, Brian McNamee, were shots of vitamin B-12 and lidocaine.

That sort of alibi got Clemens into trouble when he couldn’t explain why the injections took place during furtive visits to supply closets and an upper East Side apartment, and why he needed an unauthorized strength coach to give him shots instead of a team doctor.

Such claims have met minimal success in courtrooms, but they sometimes work in the confidential confines of a sport’s drug program. Olympic sports have the highest standard of what is loosely termed "strict liability," where an athlete is almost always held responsible for substances found in his or her specimen regardless of intent.

A-Rod's post-season hearing is expected to continue through this week but can't continue next week due to scheduling conflicts. They may pick up once again later this month or in November if necessary.

A-Rod supporters protest 211-game suspension outside MLB offices

Alex Rodriguez may be a pariah in almost every ball park in America after his involvement with the Biogenesis doping scandal became public — including at Yankee Stadium — but he had plenty of fans showing support outside the Manhattan offices of the commissioner of baseball during the first day his arbitration hearing Monday.

The beleaguered A-Rod has found some support in the baseball doping scandal from Hispanics Across America, whose members can be seen waving Dominican flags and sporting No. 13 T-shirts outside the league's Park Avenue offices.

Rodriguez, who is fighting a 211-game suspension handed down by Commissioner Bud Selig for allegedly violating the game's collectively bargained drug policy in an arbitration hearing this week, greeted a large group of supporters waving signs and Dominican flags as he arrived for the hearing Monday. And Tuesday he will be supported by HAA, which says it plans to send a message to Selig, arbitrator Fredric Horowitz and even Yankee President Randy Levine that they are responsible for what the group describes as an unfair suspension.

According to the group's press release, protests will continue through the week with a possible 24-hour vigil in front of the MLB's headquarters from Thursday into Friday.

"We want the arbitrators, MLB and the NY Yankees to hear us loud and clear. We are the fans, we are the people," HAA president Fernando Mateo said.

"The punishment does not fit the crime, said Mateo —who was hospitalized after an altercation with a security guard Tuesday morning. "A-Rod is innocent. If A-Rod is found guilty by association a 50-game suspension like every 1st time offender would be fair."

A-Rod had awkward run-in with Hank Aaron: Report

Just before Alex Rodriguez broke Lou Gehrig’s grand slam record last weekend, the beleaguered Yankees ball player had an awkward run-in with one of baseball's truly all-time greats — Hank Aaron.

Rodriguez was dining at the celebrated Manhattan restaurant Nobu when he spotted Aaron at a nearby table, reports Page Six of the N.Y. Post.  A-Rod approached the legendary Hammerin’ Hank —who was dining with New York Lizards owner Andrew Murstein — and said, "Mr. Aaron, I just wanted to introduce myself. I think about you every day when I play. You’re an inspiration to me."

(In case Aaron didn’t know who he was, he added, "My name is Alex Rodriguez," claims the Post.)

Aaron said in August of A-Rod, "I just want [him] to get his life straightened out. Forget about baseball, get back on the path on being the young man I saw maybe 15 or 16 years ago."

Wonder if A-Rod recommended the red herring?

A-Rod breaks Lou Gehrig's major league grand-slam record (VIDEO)

Lost in all of the controversy surrounding New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez these days is the fact that the maligned slugger has hit a lot of home runs — tainted or not.

A-Rod's legacy in pinstripes might get even more complicated after he crushed a grand slam Friday night passing Yankees icon Lou Gehrig to become the all-time MLB grand slam leader with 24.

Rodriguez's seventh-inning blast, an opposite-field shot to rightfield, broke a career grand-slam tie with Gehrig and led the Yankees to a 5-1 victory over the Giants.

"It's hard to think about things like that right now," Rodriguez said about passing the Iron Horse. "We're really in a sprint to the end here and every win is huge for us."

A-Rod came to the plate mired in a 1-for-25 slump and the Yankees entered the night with five losses in their last six games.

The Yankees, who have eight games left, are three games behind the Indians for the second wild-card spot.

"I saw where I was 1-for-24, 1-for-25, whatever it was, but I thought for the most part I was swinging the bat decently well, but that's baseball," said A-Rod, whose 654th homer moved him within six of fourth-place Willie Mays on the all-time list. "One swing can turn a lot of things around."

At least for one night.

MLB surprises A-Rod's lawyer by waiving confidentially clause before 'Today Show' appearance

Alex Rodriguez's high-powered mouthpiece Joe Tacopina was blindsided by "Today Show" host Matt Lauer when the famous criminal defense lawyer  claimed he was anxious to talk about Rodriguez and his case against baseball — as he fights to overturn a 211 game ban he was given for his part in the Biogenesis scandal — but wasn't allowed to because of MLB's confidentiality clause.

Little did Tacopina know he was about to be ambushed in a gripping display of legal gamesmanship.

Appearing on the nationally-televised interview Monday, Tacopina said, "If the Vice President of Major League baseball would be good enough to waive the confidentiality clause, I would love nothing more than to talk about Alex's Rodriguez's testing history and various things. I would love nothing more," 

Lauer was more than prepared for that response and surprised the attorney by revealing that baseball had sent him the confidentially waiver overnight. He said that if Tacopina signed it, then “everyone” on both sides could talk. 

“They sent us a letter saying that if you’re willing to sign this letter," Lauer said.  "That they are willing to waive the confidentiality clause in the Joint Drug and Prevention Program, that they’ll be allowed to talk about everything and you’ll be allowed to talk about everything. 

“They said that would include all prior violations of the program committed by Rodriguez, all documents, records, communications, text messages and instant messages related to Rodriguez’s treatment by Anthony Bosch.”

A suddenly tongue-tied Tacopina offered to read the letter that Lauer claimed MLB had just sent over.

“Listen. We would love nothing more than to be able to discuss the testing history, the scientific evidence and the tests of Alex Rodriguez under this JDA drug program, nothing more,” said Tacopina before clamming up and going on the offensive in the interview.

He declined to sign the letter.

"Here’s what I’m prepared to answer. Alex admitted back in 2001 and 2002 that he had used performance-enhancing drugs as a member of the Texas Rangers when it was not banned (NOTE: Baseball had a banned substance list then, but did not yet discipline for PED use). He has said since then he has not. I will tell you this: This letter, if they had sent it to me last night, I would have been prepared to answer . . ."

"If he will answer that question,"Lauer interrupted.  "Doesn’t he owe people the answer to that question before you start pointing fingers at people?"

Tacopina responded, "Let me say this to you first: The reason we’re sitting here today . . . we had this scheduled for last week but we had to cancel. We saw Alex was all over the news. They want to try this case in the media. What has been going on has been outrageous . . . anonymous leak after anonymous leak after anonymous leak. It doesn’t stop. And it has to stop. They are perverting this process. The process should not be perverted."

It was just another interesting turn in the "bumpy road" A-Rod warned everyone about.

Alex Rodriguez paid for Anthony Bosch's attorney: Report

Alex Rodriguez prepared us when he said the next seven weeks would be a "bumpy road" and we can expect "a story like this" every day — now it seems A-Rod might have run into a pothole that even his legal team can't fill.

The latest bombshell involving A-Rod, according to ESPN's "Outside the Lines," claims the embattled New York Yankees player made two payments for former Biogenesis chief Anthony Bosch's attorney. T.J. Quinn is reporting that the New York Yankees third baseman's retainer payments are part of the evidence Major League Baseball has proving he interfered with the PED investigation.

According to Quinn, Rodriguez paid a $25,000 retainer in February before a $50,000 wire transfer was rejected in April. A-Rod's camp says the second payment attempt was a mistake and asked for it to be returned. A spokesperson for Susy Ribero-Ayala, Bosch's attorney said this:

"A retainer was paid (via wire transfer) by a representative of Alex Rodriquez (sic). Ms. Ribero-Ayala accepted this payment on behalf of Anthony Bosch as payment for his legal representation," the statement says.

"In April 2013, Ms. Ribero-Ayala received an unsolicited and unwarranted wire transfer from A-Rod Corp. The funds were immediately returned. Mr. Rodriquez (sic) does not have any involvement in Mr. Bosch's legal representation."

MLB also has email exchanges discussing the second transfer. Ribero-Ayala said she was unaware why she had received the money and returned it upon request. Quinn says the evidence shows failed negotiations between A-Rod's camp and Bosch's attorney, at best. Neither side offered comment.

Rodriguez was suspended a record 211 games for his ties to Biogenesis earlier this month. He has appealed the ban and returned to playing third base for the Yankees. Fifty games is the typical penalty handed down to first time offenders, but A-Rod received more because he allegedly interfered with the investigation.

You're going to need a bigger shovel this time A-Rod.

A-Rod hit by Dempster pitch in first at-bat against Red Sox (VIDEO)

Alex Rodriguez was hit by a Ryan Dempster pitch in his first at-bat against Boston Sunday night, prompting both the Yankees and Red Sox players to clear the benches and bullpens in a tense scene at at Fenway Park.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi ran onto the field during the nationally-televised game, threw his cap to the ground and was ejected. He was tossed during a heated argument after plate umpire Brian O'Nora warned both teams against further trouble. Girardi loudly insisted to O'Nora that Dempster intentionally took aim at A-Rod two times before finally nailing him on a third attempt.

Dempster's fastball hit Rodriguez in the second inning with a 3-0 pitch. Dempster threw his first pitch of the inning behind the legs of Rodriguez, missed inside with the next two pitches and then threw a fastball that glanced off A-Rod's elbow pad and deflected into his back setting off an explosion of cheers by the Sox faithful.

GIF

Rodriguez was recently suspended 211 games by Major League Baseball in a drug case. He is appealing and allowed to play until there is a decision.

John Lackey has 'a problem' with A-Rod playing during appeal

A Yankees-Red Sox series usually doesn't need any sub-plots to ramp up the drama but — with all of controversy surrounding Alex Rodriguez's doping charges and his subsequent suspension and appeal — one player just couldn't ignore spouting off about A-Rod's visit to Fenway Park this weekend.

Red Sox starter John Lackey doesn’t think Rodriguez should be playing while he appeals a lengthy suspension related to Major League Baseball’s investigation into Biogenesis and performance-enhancing drugs.

Interestingly enough, Lackey is scheduled to start Saturday’s game against A-Rod and the Yankees in Boston.

“I’ve got a problem with it. You bet I do,” Lackey told the Boston Globe on Thursday. “How is he still playing? He obviously did something and he’s playing. I’m not sure that’s right. … It’s pretty evident he’s been doing stuff for a lot of years I’ve been facing him.”

While 13 other players accepted lesser bans, Rodriguez is appealing his 211-game suspension. Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria has also voiced his displeasure with A-Rod being on the field during baseball’s playoff push.

Lackey admitted it’s been discussed in the Red Sox clubhouse, adding that some people have “strong feelings” on the topic.

“Sure, we talk about it,” Lackey said. “But talking to the media about it is a little bit different.”

Lackey’s comments should make an important three-game series at Fenway just a little more spectacular— as if it needed any more help. 

“He took me deep the first time I faced him as a rookie, and he admitted to doing stuff back then,” said Lackey, referring A-Rod’s prior admission to using PEDs while playing for the Texas Rangers from 2001-03. “There are a lot of things I want back from him.”

New York is 8.5 games behind first-place Boston in the AL East and six games in the wild card race.

A-Rod's 'inner circle' outed other players in PED investigation: Report

A blockbuster report from "60 Minutes" claims New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez's inner circle obtained and leaked documents that implicated Milwaukee Brewers slugger Ryan Braun as well as his own Yankees teammate, catcher Francisco Cervelli, in the doping scandal that has swept over Major League Baseball.

The leak came in February — just days after the weekly newspaper Miami New Times published documents in January detailing Rodriguez's alleged use of performance enhancing drugs.

The "60 Minutes" report says — whether it was a tactical legal maneuver or not — A-Rod's group basically named names and threw a teammate under the bus.

According to "60 Minutes," the handwritten documents of Anthony Bosch —the key witness in Major League Baseball's PED investigation — revealed comprehensive doping regimens that Bosch had engineered for a host of professional athletes. His cooperation with MLB has resulted in the suspension of Rodriguez and 13 other major league players.

Braun and Cervelli's names were redacted in the Miami New Times documents. Members of Rodriguez's camp at the time obtained unredacted versions and leaked them to Yahoo! Sports, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. The unredacted documents also implicated Baltimore Oriole Danny Valencia, who MLB later investigated and cleared.

In a statement to "60 Minutes," Rodriguez lawyer David Cornwell said, "The allegations are untrue and are another attempt to harm Alex -- this time by driving a wedge between Alex and other players in the game. While Alex focuses on baseball and repeatedly states that he is going to respect the appeal process, the drumbeat of false allegations continues.

The report continued:

The revelation that members of Rodriguez's camp at the time leaked documents implicating other players to the media could present significant problems for Rodriguez's legal team as they enter the arbitration process to appeal his suspension. Baseball officials say they levied a harsher suspension on Rodriguez because of his continued use of PEDs over multiple years as well as his attempt to "obstruct and frustrate" MLB's investigation.

Rodriguez's case is set to be heard by arbitrator Fredric Horowitz in the coming weeks. If MLB were to present evidence that Rodriguez's camp knowingly leaked additional Bosch business records, it might demonstrate that Rodriguez's camp had not only obtained them to keep them out of the hands of investigators, but that he actively sought to interfere with baseball's investigation by releasing other players' names. 

In early April, accusations arose that Rodriguez had purchased at least some of Bosch's business records. Rodriguez's spokesperson at the time flatly denied the reports.

Rodriguez has denied any connection to Bosch and his clinic, and says he was never treated by him, advised by him, and that the Miami New Times documents implicating him are not legitimate.

On July 22, Braun accepted a 65-game suspension for the remainder of the 2013 season for taking performance-enhancing drugs. And on Aug. 5, Cervelli, along with 11 other players, accepted a 50-game ban. MLB has suspended Rodriguez for 211 games. Rodriguez is appealing.

Just when you think A-Rod has hit bottom — he sinks even more.

A-Rod being cut from animated Yankees' film at a big cost

The New York Yankees might have just found one way to rid themselves of Alex Rodriguez — the editing room.

Rodriguez, who did his own voice work as the cartoon version of himself in the upcoming animated Yankees film "Henry & Me," will be removed from the film's final version due to fears from investors that the third baseman — who is currently appealing a 211-game suspension for his alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs— will hurt the marketability and profitability of the children's picture.

Though the producers and Yankees ownership gave their full support to the film and in February,  Hank Steinbrenner — who voiced his father's role — gave a big thumbs-up to A-Rod's part in the production. They can still offer their opinions about whether Rodriguez should be included in the final version. But the ultimate decision falls upon a group of eight or nine investors, who despite being fans of Rodriguez, believe that the controversy surrounding him will detract from the family-oriented film centered around perseverance and belief.

"We have investors that we have to answer to, just like the Yankees," said executive producer Ray Negron, a longtime Yankees adviser, whose children's books served as the inspiration for the film. "If ownership decides that this is a direction that we have to go, meaning our investors, we have to listen to ownership. That's just the way it is. It works just like a team. It's the same thing."

In a screening shown to a small group of reporters on Wednesday morning in Midtown Manhattan, Rodriguez was still in the film, hitting a home run with the help of the main character Jack, a boy battling cancer, and later visiting the protagonist in the hospital.

Rodriguez originally was cast in the role to replace Hideki Matsui, who had joined the Los Angeles Angels in 2010, but the retired Japanese star will be brought back to replace Rodriguez.

Though Rodriguez only has a few lines in the approximately one hour film, he is featured in 49 sequences. Producer Joseph Avallone said the editing process to remove Rodriguez will take four to six months and "cost a fortune."

"I love Alex Rodriguez, but I love kids more, and at the end of the day, we don't want to get caught up with everything that's happening right now," Negron said. "This is too important a message of what we're trying to relay to kids and we don't want to get caught up with that.

"We'll need to raise more money, but it's worth it if it means getting a good product out to the kids."

Negron later said that Rodriguez knows, "we have to do what we have to do," and "he'll understand" but that the Yankees slugger had not been informed of any changes yet.

The film, which chronicles the Yankees history and features team stars from the past and present, was originally going to be released in 2010, but will now hit a small number of theaters, primarily in New York, in April. It will then be released on DVD.

It stars Richard Gere, Chazz Palminteri and Paul Simon, along with Yogi Berra, Reggie Jackson, Bernie Williams, CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and now, Matsui. Each actor in the film agreed to donate their salary from the film to their individual charities. And $2 from each DVD sale will also go to charity.

There's always "Adult Swim" Alex.

A-Rod to Cano: Field other offers and leave Yankees

Alex Rodriguez may not have a lot to say to Major League Baseball but behind closed doors, A-Rod is allegedly a regular chatterbox when it comes to giving New York Yankees teammate Robinson Cano career advice.

A-Rod has reportedly been spreading the word behind the scenes that Cano should give pause about re-signing with the Yankees and explore the free-agent market.

Sources told the N.Y. Daily News' Confidenti@l page that Rodriguez —who is appealing a 211-game suspension for alleged PED use —has been a fly in the ear of the free-agent-to-be, Cano — and told him to listen to other offers and sign with a different team.

The 30-year-old Cano — who will make $15 million this season — told pals he really wants to stay in pinstripes but might be asking considerably more than the Yankees are willing to shell out. The team in return is afraid of long-term boondoggle like the contract Cano's advisor, A-Rod, currently has.

Cano's contemporary, Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia  — who just inked a seven-year, $100 million contract last month — might be used as a measuring stick to Cano's worth.

The Yankees certainly need Cano.  He was only one of two All-Stars (retiring Mariano Rivera is the other) on the aging and injured Yankees team looking to downsize their payroll and Cano would be the cornerstone of the franchise going into the next decade.

Cano and Rodriguez are close off the field, and Cano’s agents are Brodie Van Wagenen and A-Rod’s pal Jay Z, through the mogul’s firm Roc Nation. And Cano has never said a bad word concerning A-Rod throughout the Biogenesis investigation.

“We all know what kind of player [A-Rod] is, what he can bring to the game,” Cano told The Daily News in June. “He can change the game with one swing.”

Cano's representatives didn’t get back to Confidenti@l, but Rodriguez spokesman Ron Berkowitz says A-Rod plans to be with the Yankees for the four years left in his contract and “obviously would want Robbie right next to him. This rumor is 100% not true.”

And we know how certifiable A-Rod's camp is.

Hal Steinbrenner says Yankees 'need' A-Rod, but he must 'act professionally'

Hal Steinbrenner ignored the pink elephant in the room when asked questions about Alex Rodriguez's looming 211-game suspension and legal woes with Major League Baseball. But the New York Yankees owner said he made it clear to his embattled third baseman about the team's expectations when he donned the pinstripes once again.

“Look, as I told him when I talked to him in Tampa, we need him. We do. That’s just obvious,” Steinbrenner told the N.Y. Daily News before Tuesday’ game against the Angels at Yankee Stadium. “We’ve still got our injuries and my hope is that he comes back and continues to improve and stay healthy. He has to perform, and he has to act professionally.”

When we last heard from Steinbrenner discussing the A-Rod situation back in June, he acknowledged "there have no doubt been times that we’ve been disappointed" in A-Rod since he signed his $275 million contract in 2007, adding that the organization wanted Rodriguez “to act like a Yankee” if and when he returned to the team.

The three-time AL MVP played in his seventh game Tuesday following offseason hip surgery and since MLB slapped him with a ban last week that was intended to cover the remainder of this season and all of 2014 for the 14-time All-Star's involvement in the Biogenesis/PED scandal. Because he was suspended under the joint drug agreement in the CBA, Rodriguez is eligible to play until his appeal his heard.

“I’m not going to get into that, at all. We’re just waiting to hear the way everybody else is,” Steinbrenner said.

When asked if he’s disappointed that A-Rod and other past and present Yankees — including Francisco Cervelli — who accepted a 50-game ban — have been linked to PEDs, Steinbrenner added, "Like I said, I don’t have any comment on it."

As for Yankees' disappointing showing so far this season — they were 61-57 and 5.5 games out in the race for the second wild card berth in the American League, but have won 4 of the last 5 on the current homestand —  Steinbrenner pointed to the unusually high rate of injuries his high-priced team has endured all year.

"It’s bad policy to lean on excuses, but it’s also bad policy to ignore the facts. We’ve had at least 15 different guys on the DL, several of them multiple times. It’s mostly been on offense. When you’re playing with those kinds of injuries it’s tough to play against teams that are fairly healthy. That’s just a fact,” Steinbrenner said. “But I will say the (recent 2-6) road trip was very disappointing to me."

Like it or not, it sounds like there's a pinstriped elephant in the room now.

A-Rod beefs up legal team with top criminal lawyer

Alex Rodriguez is bringing in a heavy hitter to bolster his legal team as he prepares to go nine innings against Major League Baseball in its case against A-Rod in the Biogenesis PED scandal.

A-Rod has hired top New York criminal defense lawyer Joe Tacopina to back up his legal team as the Yankees slugger prepares to get ready for the fight of his career, reports Page Six of The New York Post.

The third baseman is facing a 211-game suspension, millions of dollars in lost salary and a big Scarlet C(heat) on his already tainted career.

Tacopina — who has successfully handled many high-profile cases which looked like lost causes— and has defended the likes of acquitted ex-NYPD officer Kenneth Moreno and disgraced NYC politician Hiram Monserrate. He has joined Rodriguez’s team and is expected to make a series of media appearances — including interviews with ESPN and the morning shows — to defend A-Rod next week. 

A source close to Rodriguez's camp told Page Six, “Joe is a fighter, and that is what Alex needs right now. He has been brought on to reinforce the trial team, there’s a possibility this could go all the way to federal court. Joe is known for putting the hammer down, he’s going to take on the Yankees and take on MLB.” 

While Tacopina declined to comment last night, sources tell us A-Rod’s camp believes the Yankees want out of his contract, and their delivery of a letter fining him $150,000 just before his comeback last Friday “was seen as an attempt to break his spirit.”

Fan who caught A-Rod home run ball willing to sell it back to slugger

Yankees fans sounded a little confused after Alex Rodriguez blasted his first home run since returning to the team last week. Some cheered, some booed and others were just settling in when A-Rod's solo shot sailed into the left-field seats Sunday.

One guy who was rooting for A-Rod did catch the slugger's perversely-notable home run ball during the Yankees 5-4 victory over the Tigers. The lucky New Jersey native thinks the third baseman is being wrongly targeted by Major League Baseball but would gladly sell the ball to the highest bidder —including A-Rod himself.

“I probably will sell it, to be honest with you, get the best price for it,” 41-year-old Craig Foskey said. “I’ll sell it back to [A-Rod] if he wants it.”

“You know what? I’m good with A-Rod,” Foskey told The New York Post. “I have no problems with A-Rod. If he cheated, he cheated like everyone else. He should get penalized like everyone else. I think his penalty is too harsh.”

That doesn’t mean Foskey plans on giving Rodriguez a Good Buddy Discount for the ball, assuming he wants it. And he’s not exactly going to root for A-Rod to hit any homers from here on out either.

“Get suspended for life,” he said jokingly. “That would be nice.”

Hmm. The last home run ball of A-Rod's tainted career —what would that be worth?

Foskey said it’s the luckiest moment of his life -- “if [the ball] is worth a lot of money.”

“I duck popcorn in hand — see, I didn’t lose any popcorn — so I duck and the ball literally hits the back of my chair over my head,” he said in his play-by-play. “It bounces next to me and my buddy tries to grab it with the guy in front of us, and it rolled back and I scooped it up.”

Foskey calls himself a Yankees fan — but far from a diehard. He said this was his second game of the year and he had never caught a foul ball before yesterday.

Asked how much money he would want for it, Foskey said he wasn’t sure, but he “would love to have a conversation” with Rodriguez.

So would a lot of people.

A-Rod benched Saturday but 'overwhelmed' by fans' reception Friday

It gets harder and harder every passing day to figure out if Alex Rodriguez actually gets it.

One night after blowing off the media and a less-than-triumphant return to the Bronx, A-Rod addressed  the same reporters who waited patiently at his locker to get a response to the Yankee Stadium reception he received Friday night.

"It was awesome, just an amazing experience," Rodriguez said of his return to the Bronx. "The fans are incredible, such great energy and such a great response. It was pretty overwhelming. I was having a hard time keeping my emotions in check… So much better than I even dreamed of. I just felt the love walking around the city. What people are screaming (is) pretty incredible. This city is the greatest city in the world."

The Yankees' pariah, who faces a 211-game ban from Major League Baseball, went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in his first game back in New York since last season's postseason. He was not in the Yankees lineup on Saturday.

"Just a day, it's a quick turnaround and he's coming off an injury," Joe Girardi said before Saturday's game against Detroit. "(I'm) just trying to manage it and keep him on the field the rest of the year."

Rodriguez received a mixture of applause and boos in his first game back but it was all Bronx cheers by the end of the game.

"For the last 14 years there's always been a mix. Do you ever get 100% of anything?" he asked. "Even Chicago was a mix. Boston's going to be a mix – well, maybe not Boston. But I was overwhelmed. Yesterday was a day I'll never forget."

Detroit starter Rick Porcello was probably A-Rod's biggest supporter at the end of the night.

"Yesterday (starter Rick) Porcello had some nasty sinkers and I obviously helped him out a little bit," he said. "I think after 10 or 12 games I'll have a better idea of where I'm at. The big thing for me is getting my legs under me."

The third baseman also dismissed reports the he'd been disciplined by the Yankees for seeking a second opinion for his quad injury a month ago.

"Maybe they sent it to my lawyers, but I'm not really going to talk about that," he said.

Rodriguez was pulled from Friday night's game for defensive purposes in the ninth inning and was not at home plate to celebrate with the Yankees after Brett Gardner's walk off single in the tenth inning. Still, Rodriguez says he was not upset by his manager's decision.

"He has a plan, I trust Joe," A-Rod said. "He's going to do the best for me and for the team…Joe and I have great communication. I have great trust and respect for him and he's going to manage it properly."

"If I didn't think he could play defense, I'd DH him," said Girardi.

Despite not being in the lineup, Rodriguez says he's been proud of the team's recent determination.

"(Last night) I had a tough night at the plate, but the good news is we came back and won," he said.

"The last few days I've thought the team has shown a lot of fight and the past two nights we could have easily scored seven, eight, or night runs. We keep putting ourselves in a position to get the big hit. I think we will. I think the other day we drew something like seven or eight walks, got eight or nine hits. That's usually a form of eight or nine runs. So hopefully that follows starting today."

Girardi miffed at fans cheering A-Rod getting hit by pitch (VIDEO)

Alex Rodriguez's return to the New York Yankees lineup has been met with about as much warmth as one would expect the scandalized third baseman's comeback could muster — especially in front of the Chicago home crowd.

After Monday night's barrage of boos in his 2013 major league debut, A-Rod finally got a little love from Chi-town — even if it came attached to a 93-mph fastball to the elbow from White Sox hurler Chris Sale.

Rodriguez was grazed by a Sale pitch in the third inning. And the fans who had booed Rodriguez for two nights, finally got to sarcastically cheer the Yankees' pariah. 

Afterwards, a miffed Yankees manager Joe Girardi scolded the mean fans.

"There is something wrong with that," he said after his team's 3-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox. "I often think it starts from the adults. If it were their child would they want him to be hit? Because the kids are only going to repeat what the adults do." 

Said Rodriguez of the cheers: "I didn't hear that. It was the weirdest thing. I forgot to put my elbow pad on — probably the first time in 2,000 at-bats. Walking up to the plate, I said, 'Whatever you do, don't get hit in the elbow.' On the second pitch, I got hit on the elbow. I couldn't believe it. I love the fans in Chicago." 

Rodriguez claimed the ball barely hit him.

Wait until Girardi hears the home town fans at a packed Yankee Stadium Friday night. Time to bring out the ear muffs.

New York Post's front page tells A-Rod to 'Just Go'

It's not a headline as iconic as "Headless Body in Topless Bar," but the New York Post expressed what they consider Yankee fans' feelings loud and clear with Monday's front page featuring a photo of Alex Rodriguez and 160-point, block letters spelling out "JUST GO."

According to the New York tabloid:

Yankees fans have had enough of Alex Rodriguez — and would like to see the PED-linked prima donna take a long walk out of The Bronx for good.

While the defiant Yankees third baseman awaits his fate from MLB Commissioner Bud Selig Monday morning, fans, reportedly fed up with the drawn-out Biogenesis scandal, believe that A-Rod cheated and should accept the ban and leave.

Rather than mourn the loss of the high-paid superstar, many Yankees fans said they believe the team would be better off if A-Rod would take his $29 million salary and just go away.

The suspension ruling that is expected today comes just as A-Rod is ready to get off a long stint on the disabled list, where he was recovering from a hip injury. He has the right to stay on the team as he appeals any suspension, so he may be in the lineup tonight even if Selig bans him through 2014.

The prospect of an embattled and humiliated Rodriguez taking the field had people flocking to Twitter yesterday to mock him.

“Hey @AROD, you should juice up as much as you can while you appeal your suspension. You won’t win, [might] as well go out with a bang,” said a user who took the name “Not Aroid.”

Another user named Quanell said: “Hey @arod ! Great example you are setting for kids. Why don’t you quit and admit cheaters don’t win? Take your dirty money and go away.”

Fans even took shots at A-Rod's former Hollywood romances.

“Biggest lesson learned from this whole @AROD scandal is that you should NEVER let Cameron Diaz feed you popcorn,” he said.

Expect to see more than a few of these front pages at Yankee Stadium when the team returns on Friday — if A-Rod is still around. Maybe with the headline: "Clueless Slugger in Endless Ban."

Jeter likely to land on disabled list again in 'nightmare' season

In a twist of fate nobody could have foreseen a couple of days ago, it looks like Alex Rodriguez has a better chance of being in Monday night's lineup in Chicago than Derek Jeter does.

While Rodriguez defiantly claimed he would be suiting up against the White Sox — despite his impending suspension — Jeter looked totally dejected on Sunday evening after the Yankees 6-3 loss to the San Diego Padres. With the prospect of yet another trip to the disabled list with a strained right calf muscle more than likely, the Yankees' Captain sounded more than just frustrated.

“It’s been terrible,” Jeter said. “It’s been a nightmare. The whole season’s been a nightmare.”

After tweaking his calf last Sunday, Jeter underwent an MRI on Saturday night. The examination revealed a Grade-1 strain. Manager Joe Girardi indicated the team would make a decision on Monday in Chicago. Alex Rodriguez could replace Jeter on the roster. Jeter said he was not sure what tests, if any, he would undergo before the matter was decided.

Jeter compared the pain to a “deep bruise.” He spent Sunday receiving treatment. He indicated he was not available to pinch hit. He rested these past two days, but offered no assurances that his condition had improved.

“The odd thing is there was no play where it happened,” Jeter said. "Usually, you feel it on a particular play. I didn't feel it on any particular play. We got out to Los Angeles and I began to feel it [Sunday] night and [Monday] on the off day."

Jeter already missed the first half of the season with a twice-broken left ankle. He injured his right quad in his first game back, on July 11, and landed back on the disabled list. He could not recall how he injured himself on this time. There was no particular play that caused it, he said.

“I’ve been pretty fortunate in my career not to have to deal with too many things,” the 39-year-old Jeter said. “Now it seems like I’m dealing with them a lot at one time. So I have no choice to move on. Hopefully it heals quickly, and I can get back out there.”

It would have been interesting to compare the response from the Chicago crowd each time A-Rod or Jeets went to the plate.

Selig once posed with fan wearing ominous 'A*Roid' T-shirt

Get a load of this photo taken a few years ago of baseball commissioner Bud Selig posing with a fan wearing an "A*ROID" T-shirt. Taken four years ago at an All-Star game event —and recently posted by Deadspin — it makes you wonder if the commish was oblivious to the intended message or he was smiling because he had a plan knowing one day he would hold Alex Rodriguez's future in his hands.

As the day of reckoning nears — and Selig considers invoking his power as commissioner to keep A-Rod off the field, maybe forever — the photo becomes funny in a twisted sort of way.

Jay-Z team goes to bat for A-Rod

While Alex Rodriguez prepares to face the music in the looming Major League Baseball PED investigation, the beleaguered Yankees player has one famous friend singing the third baseman's praises — and it sounds like A-Rod is still OK with Jay-Z.

While A-Rod's suspension looks imminent, last week, according to The New York Post,  Jordan Siev, a lawyer for the rapper-turned-entertainment mogul-turned-sports agent's pop star wife, Beyoncé, represented A-Rod in a telephone conference with Yankee executives.

On the call, Bomber General Manager Brian Cashman, President Randy Levine and Tampa-based trainer Tim Lentych discussed with Siev the time frame for A-Rod’s return to the team.  

Oddly, there was no union official or lawyer on the call, which took place the day after Rodriguez dispatched a tainted New Jersey doctor on a media tour to say he was healthy and ready to return to the field.

 Rodriguez told WFAN he brought Siev on to “make sure everything is documented.”

 “No more mix-ups.”

 Rodriguez is also using publicist Ron Berkowitz — whose Berk Communications represents Jay Z’s new Roc Nation Sports enterprise — as a spokesman.

Before anyone jumps to the conclusion that Jay-Z's sports agency Roc Nation — which was recently approved by MLB and the NBA — was looking to sign A-Rod, sources quickly squashed that notion.

The sources said that it’s not likely that Roc Nation is eager to sign Rodriguez at the moment, noting that his alleged doping issues will make it hard for him to attract sponsorships and he already has a longtime agent Dan Lozano

“Alex has been friends with Jay and Ron for years. It’s not unusual that they’d want to help or give advice where they can. But I don’t believe they are talking about signing him,” one source said.

“He already has a great agent.”

A-Rod and Jay Z have been kicking it together for a long time. They’ve teamed up for celebrity poker games and charity events and have sat courtside at Knick games. The rapper rode on the championship float with Rodriguez at the Yanks’ 2009 parade, and A-Rod  rang in the new year with Jay Z and Beyoncé in 2011.

Yesterday, another A-Rod rep, attorney David Cornwell, told ESPN that Rodriguez’s camp is “focused’’ on appealing any suspension that Major League Baseball might hand down.

While Rodriguez waits for the MLB ball to drop, Jay-Z just wants to have his buddy's back. He knows A-Rod is going to need all the high-profile support he can muster.