Alex Rodriguez: I Want To Be A Role Model

Alex Rodriguez thinks he can still be a role model.

The New York Yankees slugger, who is embroiled in a performance-enhancing drug scandal and facing a possible lifetime ban from baseball, said despite the “noise” surrounding the scandal he’s still concerned with setting an example for his kids.

“Look, it’s concerning,” Rodriguez told Sports Illustrated. “I have two daughters at home, and I’m sensitive to that, and above all, I want to be a role model, continue to be a role model — especially to my girls.

“So all the noise sometimes gets on my nerves, but that’s it. I can’t let it get any further than that. I have a job to do.”

Rodriguez has become a central figure in an investigation into Biogenesis, a South Florida clinic accused of supplying performance-enhancing drugs to a number of players. Already the scandal has claimed the season of onetime MVP Ryan Braun, who was suspended for the remainder of this year.

As many as 20 players could be suspended, but Rodriguez may face particularly harsh penalties. He has been accused of attempting to intimidate witnesses and buying documents that incriminate him in the scandal.

Reports have said that Alex Rodriguez could be offered a deal to be suspended for the remainder of the 2013 and the entire 2014 season, but he has vowed to fight any suspension.

“I’m not giving up,” Rodriguez told Sports Illustrated. “I have tremendous faith, and hopefully there’s a couple more chapters to this book. And hopefully there’s a happy ending somewhere. I have faith.”

At age 38, even a two-year ban could mean the end of Rodriguez’s career. He has been hampered by injuries this year and unable to return to the field after a second hip surgery.

If he does appeal the suspension and ends up with a lifetime ban, Alex Rodriguez could stand to lose the $60 million he is due from the Yankees after the 2014 season.