ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — In the middle of Alex Rodriguez’s 2007 AL MVP season, Jason Giambi watched Rodriguez dominate pitchers nightly.
“Alex is playing like the biggest kid in Little League,’’ Giambi said of a season in which Rodriguez batted .314 with 54 homers and 156 RBIs.
Two years later, Giambi no longer was a Yankee, but Rodriguez again morphed into the biggest kid in Little League during the 2009 postseason, when he carried the Yankees to their 27th World Series title by hitting .365 (19-for-52) with six homers and 18 RBIs in 15 October games.
The developments since that magical ride — a second hip surgery that limited him to 44 games in 2013 and a year’s suspension for being involved in the Biogenesis mess — cast serious doubts that Rodriguez even could be part of a big league roster when spring training opened in February.