- Alex Rodriguez confessed on “The Tonight Show” that he advised a 10-year-old Patrick Mahomes to choose baseball over football.
- The former MLB star’s reasoning was blunt: “Baseball is where the money is,” dismissing football as “just for fun.”
- The advice came when Rodriguez was teammates with Mahomes’ father, Pat Mahomes Sr., on the Texas Rangers.
- Thankfully, Mahomes ignored the advice and has since become a three-time Super Bowl champion, a fact Rodriguez now jokes about.
A-Rod’s Fumble: The Advice Mahomes Wisely Ignored
In a revealing and hilarious confession, baseball legend Alex Rodriguez admitted he once gave some catastrophically bad career advice to a young, aspiring athlete: Patrick Mahomes. During a recent appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Rodriguez shared the story of how he nearly steered the future NFL superstar away from the gridiron.
A Fateful Encounter in Texas
The story dates back to 2001, when Rodriguez was playing for the Texas Rangers alongside pitcher Pat Mahomes Sr. A-Rod fondly recalled seeing his teammate’s 10-year-old son, Patrick Jr., constantly around the clubhouse, shagging fly balls and hanging around the batting cage.
“He had these beautiful blue eyes. I mean, just such a respectful kid,” Rodriguez told Fallon. The young Mahomes, a standout in both baseball and football, apparently pestered the MLB slugger for advice for 30 days straight.
“Baseball Is Where the Money Is”
On the final day, Rodriguez finally relented, deciding to impart some wisdom. “I said, ‘Alright, Patrick,’ the last day, I said, ‘I’m gonna give you some good advice here. Now, listen up.’ And his eyes got really wide,” he recounted.
Lowering his voice for dramatic effect, A-Rod delivered the now-infamous advice: “I said, ‘Alright, I know you like baseball, and I know you like football, but trust me when I say this — baseball is where the money is. Football’s just for fun, but you’re gonna make your money in baseball like your dad and I.'”
The studio audience erupted in laughter, and Rodriguez himself couldn’t help but poke fun at his terrible prediction. “I’m glad he didn’t take my advice!” he joked.
The Path to NFL Glory
Of course, Patrick Mahomes chose a different path. After being drafted 10th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft, he has since led the Kansas City Chiefs to three Super Bowl victories, earning multiple MVP awards and securing contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars—proving football can be more than “just for fun.”
A Father’s Perspective
Even Mahomes’ own father believed his son was destined for a baseball career. “He was an unbelievable shortstop, he always led his team in hitting, and he threw 97 mph on the mound, so I always thought he was gonna be a baseball player,” Pat Mahomes Sr. told the Los Angeles Times in 2023. However, he noted how his son masterfully blended his multi-sport talents, using different arm angles from baseball and no-look passes from basketball to redefine the quarterback position.