by Matthew Angell

As first reported by ESPN, New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has decided to retire after the 2017 season.

This announcement comes as no surprise, as A-Rod’s massive 10-year $275 million contract will be expired upon the completion of that season.

Despite the expiration of his contract, A-Rod told ESPN’s Andrew Marchand that the main reason for his retirement is about being around his kids more.

“I won’t play after next year. I’ve really enjoyed my time. For me, it is time to go home and be dad,” Rodriguez stated to ESPN.

He will be retiring at the age of 42 after a long illustrious and controversial career that is still in the making.

As many are aware, Rodriguez was caught using Performance enhancing drugs twice. Prior to the 2009 baseball season, A-Rod admitted to taking PED’s during his tenure with the Texas Rangers from 2001-2003 due to the high amount of pressure on him to perform. In 2014, A-Rod was suspended for the entirety of the season due to his involvement in the Biogenesis baseball scandal. He reportedly received HGH from the anti-aging clinic, Biogenesis of America and was suspended along with 13 other ball players.

For the last two seasons of his career, with 687 home runs under his belt, Rodriguez will be chasing greats like Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds on the all-time home run record.

Rodriguez needs an attainable 27 home runs to pass Ruth. Furthermore, he needs to average 34.5 home runs in the next two seasons to pass Aaron and 38 a year to pass Bonds by the end of 2017. For a 40 year old ball player, this is not an easy feat.

Whether he passes these records or not, A-Rod has experienced a great deal of success throughout his 21 years in baseball.

For instance, he is a three-time American League MVP award winner, a 14-time All-Star, a 10-time Silver Slugger Award winner, a two-time Gold Glove Award winner and a 2009 World Series Champion.

Whether you call him A-Rod or A-Roid, there’s no doubting the greatness of Alex Rodriguez throughout his time in baseball.