During an interview with Bloomberg on March 21, Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez reflected on their early friendship in the mid-1990s as they began their successful MLB careers.
“In 1995, towards the end of the year, we [the Yankees] were playing Seattle, and you [A-rod] had mentioned that you wished they’d give us a year to get comfortable and hit .260 in our first year,” Jeter recalled during Bloomberg’s “The Deal,” remembering a conversation they had nearly 30 years ago.
Jeter made his debut with the Yankees in May 1995 at the age of 21 and hit .250 in 15 games before being sent back down to Triple-A. Jeter started Opening Day for the Yankees in 1996, won Rookie of the Year honors, and went on to win four World Series championships through 2000.
A-Rod and Jeter Discuss Their First Million in a Cab
A-rod, who debuted with the Seattle Mariners in 1994 at 18 years old, chuckled with Jeter during the Bloomberg interview as they recalled a mid-90s cab ride where they jokingly said they would trade their future career earnings for a guaranteed $1 million contract.
“Do you remember the cab ride in LA after '95? We were both short on cash back then, unlike now,” Rodriguez said to Jeter. “We were like, if we could make a million dollars in our careers and someone offered us a contract for it, I think I would sign it, would you,” A-rod asked Jeter.
“He [Jeter] said, hell yeah, a million dollars is a lot of money,” Rodriguez said. “I’m glad we didn’t make that deal.”
Jeter’s career earnings from the Yankees eventually reached $266 million, while Rodriguez earned $455 million in salary and bonuses, according to Spotrac. Both became team owners after retiring, with Jeter owning a stake in the Miami Marlins and A-rod still owning part of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
A-rod’s Media Mishaps Frustrated Jeter
The deterioration of the close friendship between A-rod and Jeter has been well-documented, with Jeter being upset over several comments A-rod made about him to the media around 2001. A-rod's arrival as Jeter’s Yankees teammate in 2004 brought further complications—and a 2009 World Series ring—from the slugger whose steroid use has kept him out of the Hall of Fame.
“I remember how much I failed and stumbled, and the more I tried, the worse it got,” A-rod told Bloomberg. “Derek used to tell me two things—all you have to do is make contact, you’re so strong, stop striking out. And he would say to me, you don’t have to tell them [the media] anything. When he told me that, it didn’t make sense.”
“I just knew I would try whatever I could to limit distractions in my mind. I would address something once, and that’s it, I wouldn’t talk about it again. The more you talk about it, the more the story continues,” said Jeter, the opposite of A-rod’s frequent media blunders.
Rodriguez said that he used to talk about it every week, even though Jeter didn't want to answer, and he never thought they would get close again due to his own mistakes.
Jeter and A-rod are now on the same team at Fox Sports, where they cover national MLB games with Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz and Kevin Burkhardt. Fans can't seem to forget about their dynamic and history, despite The Captain's desire for the story to go away.
Jeter told Bloomberg that people need to stop being interested in their relationship, as it has been decades and they have moved on. He gets asked more about his relationship with A-rod than his marriage, so he wants everyone to put it to rest.
