Bronx, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez passed Willie Mays and moved into sole possession of fourth place on Major League Baseball's all-time home run list during Thursday's game against the Orioles.
After Delmon Young robbed him of a homer in the first inning, Rodriguez made sure he cleared the wall with ease when he stepped to the plate in the third.
Rodriguez crushed a 1-1 offspeed pitch from Chris Tillman over the wall in center field, and the Yankee Stadium crowd gave him a rare curtain call.
Rodriguez tied Mays last week, and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman made headlines in the following days by saying the team would not pay the embattled star bonus money for reaching the milestone.
Under the terms of his 10-year contract with the Yankees after he re- signed following the 2007 season, Rodriguez is due to collect a $6 million bonus for reaching Mays' mark. Previous reports have indicated that the team believes it no longer liable to pay the amount, arguing that Rodriguez breached the terms of the agreement due to his season-long suspension in 2014 for his role in the Biogenesis PED scandal.
Rodriguez is also slated to receive $6 million bonuses if he reaches career homers No. 714 (tying Babe Ruth), 755 (tying Hank Aaron) and 762, which would match Barry Bonds' all-time record. An additional bonus is due if the 39- year-old surpasses Bonds.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.