A-Rod's Wife Files For Divorce
The wife of New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez, Cynthia Rodriguez, filed for divorce in Miami Monday.
Cynthia Rodriguez, who married the baseball player in 2002, said the marriage is over because of the All-Star third baseman's extramarital affairs, according to reports that appeared Sunday on the Web sites of Houston television station KTRK and The Miami Herald.
The reports come just days after Alex Rodriguez was linked to Madonna in various media outlets and Cynthia Rodriguez's subsequent visit to the Paris home of rocker Lenny Kravitz, who said she came to France to escape the media frenzy in New York and denied that anything improper had happened.
Houston attorney Earle Lilly, who said he was hired by Cynthia Rodriguez last week to launch the divorce case, told KTRK the star's "relationship with Madonna was the final straw for Mrs. Rodriguez."
Rodriguez's wife also is represented by attorneys Maurice Kutner and Anthony Sabatino of Miami and John Van Ness of Houston, the Herald reported.
"She feels that she has exhausted every opportunity to salvage the marriage, and that Alex has emotionally abandoned her and the children and has left her with no choice but to divorce him," Kutner told the newspaper.
The former Cynthia Scurtis and Rodriguez were married Nov. 2, 2002, in Dallas. They have two children, Natasha Alexander and Ella Alexander, who was born April 21.
Cynthia has asked for primary custody of their two children, as well as child support and alimony.
"Cynthia has made it very clear to me that she wants to take the high road and protect her children and herself. There's no vindictiveness here," Kutner said. "She wants to resolve the issues between Alex and herself in an amicable fashion."
The couple has had a prenuptial agreement in place since Oct. 3, 2002, according to the divorce papers.
Meanwhile, Madonna denies any romantic ties to the Yankees star.
Alex Rodriguez has refused to comment on his relationship with Madonna, who denied any romantic involvement with the slugger in a statement posted Sunday on People.com.
"My husband and I are not planning on getting a divorce," the Michigan native said. "I know Alex Rodriguez through Guy Oseary, who manages both of us. I brought my kids to a Yankee game. I am not romantically involved in any way with Alex Rodriguez.
"I have nothing to do with the state of his marriage or what spiritual path he may choose to study," the statement continued, apparently referring to reports that the singer had introduced the ballplayer to the Kabbalah Centre, a religious organization whose teachings are based on a form of Jewish mysticism.