Alex Rodriguez, the embattled New York Yankee who missed all of last season under suspension from steroid use, did a good deed that could help him ease his way back into fans’ good graces.
When he learned popular Yankees broadcaster John Sterling had lost everything he owned in a New Jersey fire, Rodriguez immediately called Sterling and offered him use of his luxury Manhattan apartment, according to the New York Daily News.
It was a show of compassion many did not know Rodriguez possessed, as he has been painted in his time with the Yankees as a “phony” and a “cheater.” This gesture, done quietly and revealed only when Sterling shared the information, surely will move the meter for some on how he’s perceived.
The enormous fire in Edgewater, N.J., took out an apartment building and left Sterling homeless..
“We talked right after the fire. Alex felt terrible about it,” Sterling told the Daily News. “He offered me his place in Manhattan to stay in when this happened. I guess he was in Florida.”
Of course, a conflict of interest would come into play if Sterling had accepted A-Rod’s offer.
“I’m rooting for Alex,” Sterling said. “He’s a friend.”
But it will not prevent him from being objective, Sterling insisted.
“I’m going to report on exactly what happens. The question mark surrounding Alex is legitimate. What does he have
John Sterling
left?” Sterling said. “How will he do? I know he was working very hard when I spoke with him. We’re all waiting to see if he has any of the old A-Rod left. I can’t answer that. How would I know? How would anyone know? You can’t predict baseball. You can’t predict Alex.”
Sterling, the Daily News reported, started out in a hotel before a generous Yankees fan offered a temporary home in Upper Saddle River, N.J. Sterling also received an invitation from Orioles manager Buck Showalter to stay at his apartment in Baltimore, but preferred staying close to New York.
Sterling is staying in a hotel for now and hopes to move into a new apartment that is under construction before spring training.
