TV-14 | 3 episodes | Documentary | 2025
In 1999, People magazine deemed Alex Rodriguez (nicknamed “ARod”) one of its “50 Most Beautiful People.” Unfortunately, the All-Star lost his luster when he became the media’s poster boy for the performance enhancing drugs (PED) scandal that rocked Major League Baseball (MLB).
Rodriguez will be the first to admit he made mistakes. In fact, he does so immediately in Gotham Chopra and Erik LeDrew’s three-part documentary series, “Alex vs. ARod.”
Shrewdly, Chopra and LeDrew understand that many viewers will be interested only in Rodriguez’s PED controversy, so they open the first episode with an uncomfortably honest segment wherein Rodriguez takes full responsibility for his actions and their consequences. It should be clear to skeptical viewers that they will not duck the issue when they then rewind to start at the beginning.
Rodriguez’s early years provide useful context for everything that follows. We learn that the native New Yorker had been the apple of his father’s eye, absorbing his love for baseball. When his father abandoned the family, the young Rodriguez was understandably confused and resentful. According to Rodriguez, it took him decades to truly heal, psychologically and emotionally.
Of course, a young Rodriguez could still play baseball at a level that attracted the attention of professional baseball scouts. The Seattle Mariners chose him as their first overall pick in the 1993 draft.
Rodriguez recognizes his good fortune in having a manager like former New York Yankee Lou Piniella, who showed great patience developing Rodriguez’s potential. Yankee fans will also be happy to see “Sweet Lou” get prominent screen time throughout the docuseries, speaking with his usual candor.
While the first episode mostly focuses on Rodriguez’s childhood and his years playing for Seattle, the second largely concentrates on his stint for the Texas Rangers, which made him the highest-paid player in the history of professional sports. There was also the blockbuster deal that traded him to the New York Yankees.
Scandals
The third episode will be the only one to interest “hate-watchers,” because it covers in agonizing depth the 2013 PED media firestorm and ARod’s resulting suspension from baseball.
In what might be the only glaring omissions for some, Chopra and LeDrew never force Rodriguez to relive the rumors of his affair with Madonna or his two-year engagement to Jennifer Lopez. His first wife, Cynthia Rodriguez Nicolas, frankly discusses their relationship, mostly expressing surprising sympathy for her ex-husband. (The filmmakers only tangentially address the subject of infidelity, but they unequivocally cast Nicolas in a positive light.)
While the series eschews pure tabloid fodder, it never lets Rodriguez off the hook regarding illicit PED use. Yet the way Chopra and LeDrew frame the discussion could lead many fans to suspect that baseball commissioner Bud Selig came down disproportionately hard on Rodriguez, to use him as a scapegoat. Selig declined the filmmakers’ interview requests.
Regardless, viewers see how Rodriguez finally accepts responsibility for his actions. It is sometimes hard to watch, but it should be keenly instructive for younger players.
Rodriguez perfectly fit the bill for such a scapegoat role because of his “ARod” persona. With their very title, Chopra and LeDrew deliberately contrast the hotshot superstar persona represented by his “ARod” moniker with the lingering insecurity he grew up with, as represented by his birth name “Alex Rodriguez.” They fully establish both sides of the split identity suggested by their title without belaboring the metaphor.
“Alex vs. ARod” probably will not win over the slugger’s fiercest critics. However, Chopra and LeDrew humanize the controversial athlete to a considerable degree for viewers who keep a reasonably open mind. Their talking heads frequently liken him to a Shakespearean hero, whose tragic angst and hubris undermine his greatness. Their presentation and interpretation of his life story make a compelling case for such a comparison.
Hall of Fame
Perhaps more than any other player, Rodriguez’s career encapsulates the best and the worst that the MLB experienced over the last three decades. It will bear watching whether “Alex vs. ARod” significantly shifts the Baseball Hall of Fame voting in Rodriguez’s favor, something Rodriguez repeatedly concedes he has no hope of happening.
In addition to Piniella, viewers hear extensively from Ken Griffey Jr., Rodriguez’s All-Star Mariners teammate, and former Yankee team captain Derek Jeter, whose friendship with Rodriguez was reportedly strained for many years.
New Yorkers will particularly appreciate the commentary from local sports radio call-in host Mike Francesa and sportscaster Michael Kay. Kay is unexpectedly tough, but fair, in his analysis, considering that he works for the Yankees’ YES Network.
Aside from Selig, the film’s most conspicuous absence (his absconded father passed away before production started) would be his agent, Scott Boras, whose sharp elbow tactics quite possibly contributed to Rodriguez’s bad press.
Chopra and LeDrew never neglect the importance of baseball when documenting Rodriguez’s life. In fact, some of the best parts are all about the play on the diamond.
Regardless, his story holds undeniable drama not unlike a scandalous Harold Robbins novel. There is an ambitious young man’s rise from poverty and his subsequent fall from grace with some lurid parts thrown in.
Whether they love him or hate him, viewers will never be bored by the deep dive into his tumultuous career. Highly recommended for baseball fans and those who appreciate a very New York story.
“Alex vs. ARod” is streaming on HBO with the last episode premiering on Nov. 20.
‘Alex vs. ARod’
Documentary
Directors: Gotham Chopra and Erik LeDrew
TV Parental Guidance: TV-14
Episodes: 3
Release Date: Nov. 6, 2025
Rated: 4 stars out of 5
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