A courteaous A-Rod answers all Biofile questions with thoughfulness. Reveals the moment that made him cry, his closest MLB friends, favorite movies, athletes to watch, people qualities most admired. A very informative read...
Classic Biofile: Alex Rodriguez
By Scoop Malinowski
This Biofile with Alex Rodriguez was done at Yankee Stadium in August of 1996 while A-Rod was a second-year shortstop with the Seattle Mariners and I did Biofiles for ESPNSportsZone, Baseball America and Tribune Media Services. Wow, almost 13 years ago. The standout memories from this interview were that A-Rod was a total gentleman, very nice and he enjoyed the questions, was thoughtful coming up with his answers, smiling often, laughing a couple times, he gave direct eye contact, he even revealed how baseball reduced him to tears.
Status at the time: Seattle Mariners shortstop.
Ht: 6-3 Wt: 195 (now he's 230)
DOB: July 27, 1975 In: New York, NY
Childhood Heroes: "Cal Ripken. Ozzie Smith - just like magic. Dale Murphy."
Nicknames: "Big Dog, Junior Jr."
Early Baseball Memory: "I gave up baseball in eighth grade. Thought I was better at basketball and football. I'm glad I came back...Winning the Pony League championship in San Francisco for the Miami team (age 11). (How did you do?) I did all right. I wasn't a big part of the team hitting-wise but I was a good defensive player. I really enjoyed it. That was awesome. For three months we traveled all over the U.S. And we finally made it to the pinnacle. And we won."
Hobbies/Interests: "Weightlifting, fishing, golf, play basketball."
Favorite Movies: "Scarface, Goodfellas."
Favorite TV Shows: "Silver Spoons. Ricky Schroeder. I liked him. Kind of funny. How I grew up a little bit, without the money. I liked his family. And Martin."
First Job: "Summer camp with Rich Hoffman Baseball School (age 15)."
First Car: "1972 four-door Chrysler (white). Old, Lincoln type. Gave me character [laughs]."
Favorite Meal: "Chicken, fettuccine alfredo, with fruit punch."
Favorite Breakfast Cereal: "Lucky Charms."
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: "Chocolate chip."
Pre-Game Feeling: "Nervous and excited at the same time. (Visualize?) I visualize all the time - going 4-for-4, making nice plays and all that. Doesn't always go that way [smiles]."
Greatest Sports Moment: "Being invited to the All-Star Game ('96). Stepping on the field, my first at-bat."
Most Painful Moment: "Being demoted five times to the minor leagues (in '95). A real hard time...crying, hard times, felt terrible."
Closest Baseball Friends: "I have four of them, is that all right? (Of course.) Derek Jeter, Alex Gonzalez, Jeffrey Hammonds and Jose Canseco."
Funniest Player Encountered: "Ken Griffey Jr.. He's always got something funny to say, always cracking on someone."
Toughest Competitors Encountered: "Chipper Jones. He played against us one year in the Florida State finals with a broken hand. And he pitched real well, something like a two-hitter. Alex Fernandez. Roberto Alomar. Jay Buhner. Randy Johnson."
Interesting Fact: "How I take as much pride as being a good person off the field as on the field. Meaning...I don't revolve my whole life around baseball."
Last Halloween Costume: "Batman."
Favorite Vacation Spot(s): "Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo, California, New York."
Favorite Athletes To Watch: "Michael Jordan. Dan Marino. Ken Griffey Jr. Barry Bonds. Chris Evert. Fred Couples - I got the chance to meet him at the Buick Open when we were in Detroit. Gabriela Sabatini. Anfernee Hardaway. Sugar Ray Leonard. Isiah Thomas."
People Qualities Most Admired: "I like honesty. And I like considerate people."
Scoop Malinowski is the author of "Heavyweight Armageddon: The Tyson-Lewis Championship Battle."
Original Story:
http://www.thebiofile.com/news/biofil...
