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Alex Rodriguez
 Born Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez in New York, New York on July 27,1975, A-Rod grew up in Miami and there began his early career at Westminster Christian School, batting .419 with 17 home runs and 90 steals in 100 games.
He later became the USA Baseball Junior Player of the Year and the first high school player to ever try out for Team USA in 1993.
His professional career began with the Seattle Mariners, before signing an unprecidented free agent deal with the Texas Rangers. In 2003 he became the youngest player in major league history to reach 300 home runs. Also that year, he was named American League Most Valuable Player and traded to the New York Yankees three weeks later - the first MVP to be traded in major league history.
Rodriguez lived up to the much-publicized hype and $22 million salary in his first year with the Yankees, hitting .286 with 36 home runs and 106 runs batted in - in his seventh consecutive season with at least 100 RBI. Eventually, he was moved up to the No. 2 spot in the batting order, directly behind good friend and Yankee captain, Derek Jeter.
On June 8, 2005 the 29-year-old A-Rod went down in the record books as the only player in baseball history to hit 400 home runs before reaching age 30. The historic homer was the second of the night for A-Rod in a 12-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers.
In November, Rodriguez' star continued to rise as he won the American League Most Valuable Player award, beating out Red Sox hitter David Ortiz to win the MVP award for the second time in three seasons. In 2006, and despite an otherwise lackluster season, A-Rod reached another milestone by becoming at age 30 the youngest player in baseball history to reach 450 homeruns.
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