The Yankees on Friday announced that to honor DH Alex Rodriguez' 3,000th hit, they "will have a special pregame ceremony" on Sept. 13 before the game against the Blue Jays, according to Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY. Rodriguez said he was in "disbelief" when he heard the Yankees’ plans. This is because after Rodriguez admitted to using PEDs, the Yankees "refused to acknowledge when he passed Willie Mays with his 661st homer." Nightengale: "Then again, there was no $6 million marketing bonus tied to Rodriguez’s 3,000th hit, joining Derek Jeter as the only Yankees in history to reach the milestone while playing for the Yankees" (USATODAY.com, 8/15). Rodriguez: "I never thought a year ago that I would be getting any ceremonies, that’s for sure. There was a thought that maybe I wasn’t going to play baseball ever again. To be celebrated at home, I’m just honored and flattered." Yankees GM Brian Cashman: "It certainly shows how far he’s come, how far we’ve come. Mistakes can happen, and you can move past it over time" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 8/15). ESPN N.Y.'s Wallace Matthews wrote perhaps "not coincidentally, the ceremony happens to take place on Week 1 of the NFL season, when even the eyes of New Yorkers are likely to be diverted away from Yankee Stadium" (ESPNNY.com, 8/14).
