Kobe Bryant Offers Alex Rodriguez Support, Advice Amid Slugger's Ongoing Slump
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Alex Rodriguez will go down as one of the greatest baseball players of all time when it's all said and done.
The same can be said about Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant.
So it only makes sense that the future NBA Hall of Famer has given the future MLB Hall of Famer some advice during this trying time in the latter's career.
A-Rod was benched for the second time this postseason on Tuesday night, and is hitting just 3-for-23 with 12 strikeouts in the playoffs.
Bryant, who befriended Rodriguez on the set of a commercial a few years ago, talked to the slugger recently to offer some much-needed support.
"We spoke a couple of days ago," Bryant said, according to ESPNLosAngeles.com. "You can only control what you can control. You go out there and do the best job you can. If they take you out of the lineup, it's really on you to be a good teammate and support the other guys, which he's good about doing."
He also reminded the 37-year-old that he is one of the best to ever step on the field, and he can't let that escape his memory despite his ongoing slump.
"I just say to him, 'You're Alex Rodriguez,'" Bryant said. "'You're A-Rod. You're one of the best to ever do it.' I think sometimes he kind of forgets that and wants to try to do the right thing all the time, which is the right team attitude to have. But other times you really have to put your head down and say 'Hell with it,' and just do your thing.
"Hopefully the next game they'll kind of give him a chance, maybe put him back at third and let him respond to the pressure, which I think he'll do."
In the offseason, Rodriguez traveled to Germany for experimental therapy on his right knee after receiving a recommendation from Bryant. The NBA icon said that he and the 14-time All-Star have much in common as superstars in their respective sports.
"We know what it takes to get to that level," Bryant said. "The consistency, the sacrifice, the work ethic, the constant scrutiny -- that's something we all have in common, from golf to cycling to swimming to basketball to baseball."
Girardi has to start A-Rod tonight, doesn't he? Sound off with your thoughts and comments below...
