On Sunday morning, Alex Rodriguez announced he will play the final game of his turbulent yet insanely productive big league career next Friday for the Yankees. Rodriguez is, without question, one of the most talented ballplayers in history.
A-Rod is currently the longest-tenured player in MLB, by a fairly big margin too. He made his big league debut at age 18 on July 8, 1994. Rodriguez is the only active player who debuted before the 1994 work stoppage. Heck, he's the only active player who debuted before 1997.
Including A-Rod, there are currently only seven (seven!) active players who make their MLB debut during the 1990s. Here's the list.
- Alex Rodriguez: Debuted with the Mariners at age 18 on July 8, 1994.
- Bartolo Colon: Debuted with the Indians at age 23 on April 4, 1997.
- David Ortiz: Debuted with the Twins at age 21 on September 2, 1997.
- Adrian Beltre: Debuted with the Dodgers at age 19 on June 24, 1998.
- A.J. Pierzynski: Debuted with the Twins at age 21 on September 9, 1998.
- Carlos Beltran: Debuted with the Royals at age 21 on September 14, 1998.
- Joe Nathan: Debuted with the Giants at age 24 on April 21, 1999.
Rodriguez is going to play his final game next Friday, and, of course, Ortiz is planning to retire after the season. Nathan was just designated for assignment by the Cubs, and at this point it's fair to wonder if he'll ever make it back to MLB.
Beltre signed a two-year contract extension with the Rangers back in April, so he's locked in through 2018. Colon, Pierzynski, and Beltran are pretty much year-to-year at this point. Beltran said he hopes to play a few more seasons at the All-Star Game, for what it's worth.
So there you have it. Those seven are the only active players who debuted during the 1990s. The other 700-something active big leaguers all played their first games after Y2K. Makes you feel old, doesn't it?
