Alex Rodriguez

Alex Rodriquez

My name is Andrew and my hero is Alex Emmanuel Rodriguez (A-Rod), because he inspired me and a lot of other people to play baseball. He became a household name after he signed a $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers in 2001. Alex won a lot of awards for playing well on the field and he is still making history.

Alex was born on July 27, 1975 in New York City. His parents, Victor and Lourdes, owned a shoe store in Washington Heights, and lived in a small apartment behind it. They hoped to one day return to their homeland with Alex and his siblings, Susy and Joe. The couple worked so they could move back. Victor manned the store and watched over the kids. Lourdes had a job at a car factory.

By the time Alex turned four, his parents saved enough to buy a four-bedroom house in Santo Domingo. Victor and Lourdes opened a pharmacy, and the family lived happily in their new home. The Rodriguezes were very happy in the Dominican Republic, but their shop went out of business and they moved back to Miami, Florida in the United States. It was hard for Alex to fit in at his school because he didn't know a lot of English, but once he learned how to speak it he fit in perfectly.

When Alex turned nine he started to play baseball. He liked it so much he kept on playing year after year after year. He played through junior high and high school too. In high school he was a star in football, basketball, and baseball. At the age of eighteen he tried out for the major leagues. He got drafted to the Seattle Mariners and played the best season in history and became Rookie of the Year.

Later on, Alex played for the Yankees and the Rangers. Alex was one of the top three players that hit the most homeruns in their career, so they started to call him A-Rod since he hits so many home runs. He is the youngest on the list and I believe that he will break the record of the most homeruns hit in a career. Alex is inspiring alot more people to play baseball, and, like I said, he is still making history.