http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/30/sports/baseball/alex-rodriguez-fox-sports-tv-playoffs-yankees.html 2016-09-29 19:38:10 Alex Rodriguez Is Headed to the Playoffs, as a TV Analyst Rodriguez, released by the Yankees last month, will work as a studio analyst for Fox Sports with Pete Rose, Frank Thomas and the rest of its postseason crew. === Alex Rodriguez But when the playoffs begin, he will be back where he was last season after the “I had a really good time last year, and I’d be watching every game anyway,” Rodriguez said in a telephone interview on Wednesday. “I love the game, and I see it as my responsibility to convey what I am seeing in the simplest way.” He was, in fact, Rodriguez was never going to be just another 41-year-old ex-Yankee in retirement. He has the fourth-most home runs in major league history, with 696, and the third-most R.B.I., with 2,086. He has Asked if he would ever play again, he said: “Right now, I don’t see it. I hesitate to say ‘never,’ but it’s really hard to top the farewell I had a month or so ago.” He insisted that he was not looking with regret at any unrealized goals. “I don’t know how I’ll feel when the spring comes,” he said, “but right now I’m happy with the way things ended.” Rodriguez watched from a distance as a reconstituted, and younger, Yankees team unexpectedly surged into wild-card contention after the club released him and traded away three top veterans: Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and Carlos Beltran. More recently, the Yankees have fallen back, although Gary Sanchez, the rookie call-up who has hit 20 home runs in 50 games, has not cooled off all that much. “I’ve known Gary since he was a 16-year-old kid walking into our clubhouse, and now I see a superstar on the field,” Rodriguez said. He added that Sanchez’s success was the fruit of the Yankees front office’s patience with a young player. “I love the way we’ve handled Gary,” he said. “If he were on any other franchise, he might have been forced up to the team two and a half years ago. But with our depth, it’s allowed him to mature. I see a kid who’s full of talent and confidence and calmness.” Rodriguez said he was most impressed with Sanchez’s catching. “That’s where he’s most improved,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’ve been taught that the most important thing for a catcher is to help those 11 pitchers. You need to know the 11 personalities — their best and worst pitches — and what pitch to throw when it’s a 3-2 count and two on at Fenway.” As for the Yankees’ success in the second half of the season, Rodriguez said, “I wanted to be a part of it when they were doing well, and I cheer them on every night.” Although he did not know Jose Fernandez, the Miami Marlins pitcher “Obviously, I was a big fan of his exceptional world-class ability and his incredible personality,” Rodriguez said. “He lit up a room. I’m here in the heart of Miami, and the entire community has been devastated by his death.” Rodriguez will start working for the Yankees again next month “Anytime I have an assignment involving baseball, I’m happy,” he said. “Advising some of these young players, not only on what happens between the lines but in understanding that there’s life beyond baseball and how do you prepare for retirement. As mentors, it’s our responsibility to give them feedback.”