Alex Rodriguez and his ex-wife, Cynthia Rodriguez Nicolas (née Scurtis), addressed the alleged infidelity that led to the downfall of their marriage.
In May 2007, the baseball superstar, 50, was pictured leaving a strip club in Toronto with a mystery blonde woman.
Alex and Cynthia, 52, got married in 2002. At the time the photos were released, Cynthia was at home with the couple’s first daughter, Natasha, who was born in November 2004.
“He seemed to be extremely apologetic and not proud of his actions,” Cynthia recalled in episode 2 of HBO’s Alex vs ARod, which premieres Thursday, November 13.
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However, in July 2008 — less than three months after the birth of Alex and Cynthia’s second daughter, Ella — Alex allegedly had an affair with Madonna, who was also married at the time to Guy Ritchie.
“We were together for about a year and then I got pregnant with Ella,” Cynthia said. “And then when Ella was first born, [there was] a very similar scenario.”
While neither Alex or Cynthia mentioned Madonna by name, the docuseries showed a New York Post headline reading, “A-Rod and Madonna Squeeze Play,” heavily implying the affair rumors were true.
“At that point, we got divorced,” Cynthia said.
Cynthia filed for divorce shortly after the alleged affair went public. In her filing, Cynthia said the couple’s marriage was “irretrievably broken because of the husband’s extramarital affairs and other marital misconduct.”
“Alex has emotionally abandoned his wife and children and has left her with no choice but to divorce him,” the petition said.
“I knew that he had his own demons and I was hoping he would get help,” Cynthia said in the docuseries. “I was hoping that it could end differently than it did.”
She added, “He was really upset, so that affected me. But at the same time, I think I felt a sense of freedom.”
While he didn’t directly admit to infidelity in the series, Alex admitted he came up short in many areas of his personal life.
“In hindsight, I could have been a better husband. I could have been more present. I could have been more loyal. I could have been more sympathetic, empathetic, all of it. You name it.”
However, Alex explained it didn’t exactly take him a long time to move on.
“The day we filed for divorce, I think we were playing the Red Sox. On that day, I hit a home run,” he said.
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Alex added, “Maybe baseball, the field is where I escape. I get to be the best version of myself. At least at that time.”
In the first episode of Alex vs ARod, released on November 6, Cynthia explained how Alex’s obsession with the game of baseball caused a huge fracture in their relationship.
“I felt sorry for him. I did,” Cynthia said. “He was a sweet guy. He had a really big heart. But he was so stunted when it came to the natural development of a person. He was so entrenched in baseball. He was told that’s what he was going to do for so long, and it’s all he did.”
The second episode of Alex vs ARod premieres Thursday, November 13, at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
