A-Rod wants to finish career in New York

Alex Rodriguez tried to leave no doubt: He wants to finish his career with the New York Yankees.

"You want to be as honest as possible," Rodriguez said Tuesday night. "You're asking me what my sincere feeling is. I want to 100 percent stay in New York. Period. That's it. I don't know how many ways I can say it."

A-Rod was a guest on WFAN radio's Mike and the Mad Dog program before the game, an interview he described as "an absolute dogfight for 15 minutes." Rodriguez told the pair there were probably five or six teams interested in acquiring him this offseason, but he had no interest.

"The next time we're going to talk about this is hopefully in very late October," Rodriguez said. "I want to be here. I want to stay here."

The two-time MVP is entering the seventh season of his $252 million, 10-year contract, a deal he signed with the Texas Rangers. He can opt out of the agreement after the season, forfeit the $72 million owed in the final three years and become a free agent.

"You never want to feel that you're holding a team hostage," Rodriguez said. "I want to be in New York. This is the place I want to finish my career. That's it.

"We had options and we all know that, but I want to be in New York. That's it."