"I'd Rather Have What I Have Today": A-Rod's Shocking Confession 

Alex Rodriguez says he has made peace with the idea that he will never be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, explaining that letting go of the obsession was necessary for his own mental health.

In a recent interview, the former New York Yankees superstar said years of therapy helped him “divorce” himself from the desire to be enshrined in Cooperstown, even though his career statistics place him among the most accomplished players in Major League Baseball history.

“I have a life today that I didn’t have for the first 40 years,” Rodriguez said. “If I went to the Hall of Fame, in a weird way, I would be hollow inside. I would still be in a lot of pain. I would rather have what I have today.”

Rodriguez retired with 696 home runs, 2,086 RBIs, 3,115 hits, three MVP awards, and a World Series championship in 2009. Despite those credentials, his admission of performance-enhancing drug use and his record suspension during the Biogenesis scandal have kept him well short of the 75 percent voting threshold required for induction. He has never received more than 37.1 percent of the vote.

Now 50, Rodriguez says the emotional work he began after his 2014 suspension reshaped how he sees his career and himself. He detailed much of that process in the recent HBO documentary series “Alex vs. A-Rod,” which focuses heavily on his therapy, including work with psychologist David Schnarch, who died in 2020.

Rodriguez described himself as a “recovering narcissist” and said therapy forced him to confront long-standing behavioral patterns rather than framing himself as a victim of circumstance.

“At first I thought, ‘What am I doing here?’” he said. “But the longer I stayed with it, the more it changed how I see my past. Not as a victim, but as someone responsible for his own actions and learning from them.”

While Rodriguez says he is at peace with his Hall of Fame fate, he has not entirely let go of criticizing the system. He has pointed out what he sees as hypocrisy in the induction of former commissioner Bud Selig, who presided over baseball during the height of the steroid era, while players linked to PEDs remain excluded.

“All of this happened on his watch,” Rodriguez said recently, arguing that it is inconsistent to honor league leadership while permanently sidelining players who operated within that environment.

Rodriguez has publicly congratulated former teammates who were inducted, including Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia, and maintains that other stars from the era, such as Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, deserve Hall of Fame recognition despite their controversies.

Asked directly whether he believes he belongs in Cooperstown, Rodriguez has been unequivocal.

“Of course,” he said. “I knew the rules, I broke the rules, and if that’s the penalty, that’s on me. But yes, based on baseball, I deserve to be there.”

For Rodriguez, however, the pursuit of legacy has shifted. He now works as a television analyst, remains active in business, and is part-owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Hall of Fame, once a defining goal, is no longer the measure of his self-worth.

“That’s not the point anymore,” he said. “And honestly, that’s what finally gave me peace.”