Alex Rodriguez has announced his retirement from baseball after being released by the New York Yankees.
The 41-year-old has accepted a front office job as a special adviser and instructor.
โThis is a tough day,โ Rodriguez said.
โI love this game and I love this team. Today, I say goodbye to both.
โThis is also a proud day. I was 18 when I broke into the big leagues. I never thought I could play for 22 years. I want to thank the Steinbrenner family for giving me this opportunity and making me part of this team and giving me the opportunity to stay involved and mentor the next generation of Yankees.โ
While he is a 14-time All Star, his career was also tainted by his use of performance enhancing drugs, which saw him miss the 2014 season after accepting a 162-game suspension.
Rodrigues has hit 696 home runs in his career, behind onlyย Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) in Major League Baseball history.
