A-Rod one of Twins' greatest villains
He's finally gone.
Probably.
Decorated infielder Alex Rodriguez is set play his final game as a member of the New York Yankees on Friday before moving into his new position as a consultant and special advisor, the first leg of his de facto retirement.
But while there are sure to be tears shed in New York, there may be no greater villain in the Twins' 55-year history than "A-Rod."
His game-tying homer off closer Joe Nathan in the 2009 ALDS secured his spot in Minnesota's sporting rogues gallery, the crescendo of a career of dominance against the Twins in October.
Opponent | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
vs. Min | 10 | 41 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 10 | .390 | .435 | .683 | 1.118 |
vs. LAA | 11 | 36 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | .306 | .509 | .639 | 1.148 |
vs. NYY | 7 | 23 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .391 | .462 | .739 | 1.201 |
vs. Bos | 7 | 31 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .258 | .378 | .516 | .895 |
vs. Bal | 8 | 32 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .219 | .265 | .344 | .608 |
vs. Phi | 6 | 20 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | .250 | .423 | .550 | .973 |
vs. Tex | 6 | 21 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .190 | .320 | .286 | .606 |
vs. Cle | 5 | 16 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .250 | .333 | .438 | .771 |
vs. CWS | 3 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .308 | .308 | .308 | .615 |
vs. Det | 12 | 41 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .098 | .191 | .098 | .289 |
vs. Hou | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Rodriguez batted a full .021 points better than his career average of .295 when facing the Twins, racking up 181 hits and 140 RBI in 160 games against Minnesota, but he truly prospered in the playoffs.
Opponent | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Twins | 150 | 573 | 116 | 181 | 22 | 3 | 51 | 130 | .320 | .390 | .630 | 1.00 |
His prime coincided with the Twins' final years at the Metrodome, where Rodriguez was particularly effective.
He hit 21 of his 696 career home runs at the Metrodome despite playing just 58 games there, good enough for sixth among ballparks he played in as a visitor, and second outside of the AL East, where he spent more than half of his career.
Ballpark | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR â¾ | RBI | BA | OBP | SLG |
Angel Stadium | Angels | 102 | 400 | 89 | 128 | 21 | 1 | 38 | 86 | .320 | .388 | .663 |
Rogers Centre | Blue Jays | 121 | 470 | 89 | 125 | 27 | 0 | 36 | 99 | .266 | .363 | .553 |
Camden Yards | Orioles | 130 | 505 | 96 | 140 | 27 | 0 | 34 | 109 | .277 | .361 | .533 |
Tropicana Field | Rays | 114 | 433 | 79 | 112 | 22 | 2 | 30 | 73 | .259 | .356 | .527 |
Fenway Park | Red Sox | 132 | 509 | 103 | 146 | 22 | 3 | 29 | 88 | .287 | .366 | .513 |
Metrodome | Twins | 58 | 237 | 59 | 87 | 15 | 2 | 21 | 54 | .367 | .440 | .713 |
O.co Coliseum | Athletics | 103 | 399 | 56 | 106 | 13 | 2 | 21 | 74 | .266 | .346 | .466 |
Kauffman Stadium | Royals | 71 | 270 | 51 | 80 | 14 | 0 | 19 | 44 | .296 | .401 | .559 |
US Cellular Field | White Sox | 70 | 270 | 40 | 76 | 11 | 1 | 15 | 46 | .281 | .365 | .496 |
Jacobs Field | Indians | 67 | 266 | 36 | 76 | 19 | 0 | 10 | 40 | .286 | .362 | .470 |
Even leveling the 'Dome wasn't enough to stop Rodriguez, who hit three home runs in an 8-5 win over the Twins at Target Field last summer, the fifth and likely final 3-homer game of his career.
Follow Ryan Lund on Twitter