BOSTON—Seconds before the first at-bat of his last game at Fenway Park as a member of the Yankees, Alex Rodriguez stepped out of the on-deck circle and motioned toward himself.
The young Yankees fan in the front row paused mid-“A-Rod!” and pressed himself against the netting.
“You want to play a game?” Rodriguez asked him. (Jacob Doherty, 10, did.) “If I do one of the three following things, you get my bat. One, I hit a home run—that’s highly unlikely—two, I get two hits—highly unlikely—or three, we win, and I’ve got a good feeling about that.”
Jacob spent the next eight innings shouting encouragement at his new friend, reminding him to keep his shoulders square and suggesting that he consider a bat flip after a possible home run.