Hours after the MLB finally announced that he’ll be banned through the end of the 2014 season, A-Rod made his season debut as the Yankees lost to the White Sox 8-1. In an emotional press conference prior to the game, A-Rod said he’s “thrilled and humbled to have the opportunity to put this uniform on again and play major league baseball again.” Though he deflected questions about the performance-enhancing drug scandal, he described the past seven months as a “nightmare.”
“I’m fighting for my life,” A-Rod said. “I have to defend myself. If I don’t defend myself, no one will.” He certainly didn’t get any love from the crowd in Chicago. There was sustained booing as A-Rod first stepped to the plate, and by the eighth inning the crowd was chanting, “A-Roid, A-Roid.” One announcer said of the jeers, “What would you expect?” but it still made for an awkward end to Alex’s terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.
