What All Of Alex Rodriguez's Exes Have Said About Him

Since he came on the scene in 1994 as the Seattle Mariners' 18-year-old starting shortstop, Alex Rodriguez has been one of the most discussed personalities in professional sports. From his out-of-this-world stats to his doping scandal to his laundry list of famous partners, it seems that almost everything he does makes headlines. Despite that level of intense scrutiny, and his occasional misstep (hello, the doping scandal), he remains largely beloved (thanks, in part, to his charitable giving and jaw-dropping good looks, we're sure).

But how do those closest to A-Rod feel about him? Are his nearest and dearest as forgiving and empathetic as the public, or are they more critical in their understanding of the baseball giant? Here, we're going to attempt to answer that question by taking a closer look at what all of A-Rod's exes have said about him. From his ex-wife to his former fiance and every fling in between, the women in his life certainly haven't held their tongues about their true feelings for the shortstop.

In 1996, Alex Rodriguez met Cynthia Scurtis in a Miami gym (per the Daily News). After dating on and off for more than a decade, the couple tied the knot in 2002. They welcomed their first daughter, Natasha, in 2004 and completed their family with the birth of their second daughter, Ella, in 2008. In '08, the first family of baseball's reign came to an end when Scurtis filed for divorce.

Their split was far from amicable — Scurtis alleged A-Rod had cheated on her, and according to Us Weekly, accused him of emotional abandonment. For years, the pair went back and forth in court, arguing over spousal and child support, with A-Rod wanting to dramatically reduce his payments after his retirement. To that end, Scurtis told TMZ that it was upon A-Rod's request that she wasn't using her master's degree to find gainful employment, as he had asked her to make their daughters her sole focus.

Thankfully, the two have managed to work through most of their issues. A source told People, "They have a good relationship now, having put their kids ahead of everything else. ... They have love and caring from both sides. And each parent admires how the other handles the kids." A peek at A-Rod's Instagram reveals how sincere of a friendship the ex-spouses share, with the former major-leaguer penning heartfelt birthday messages calling Scurtis, "Someone who continues to make a difference in my daughters' lives every day and has my eternal respect and admiration."

And now for that (alleged) affair. When Cynthia Scurtis and Alex Rodriguez announced their divorce in 2008, the tabloids quickly began to speculate that the shortstop may have been playing the field. With whom, you may ask? Why, none other than pop superstar Madonna.

Around 2007, A-Rod began studying Kabbalah, a mystical branch of Judaism that Madonna has been an adherent of for years. That connection, as well as the fact that both celebrities shared the same manager and Madonna appeared at a Yankees game (alongside her children), was enough to set tongues wagging. People were certain the pair were up to something. Matters only got worse when Scurtis accused her ex-husband of infidelity (though she later backtracked and said it was an affair of the heart and not a physical relationship).

To this day, neither A-Rod nor Madonna have ever publicly confirmed the affair. In fact, the only statement the songstress has ever made about the baseball player is a strong denial that anything untoward occurred. She told People, "I know Alex Rodriguez through Guy Oseary, who manages both of us. I brought my kids to a Yankee game. I am not romantically involved in any way with Alex Rodriguez. I have nothing to do with the state of his marriage or what spiritual path he may choose to study." Further speaking out, Madonna added, "I have learned over the years not to take accusations and the many false reports about me very seriously."

Sometime in the late '00s (the exact timeline is a little unclear), Alex Rodriguez went out with "The Real Housewives of New York" star Bethenny Frankel. While neither party confirmed their relationship at the time, Frankel eventually admitted to their flirtation on an episode of "Watch What Happens Live." If the reality star is to be believed, the relationship (if one can even call it that after just two dates) was nothing to write home about. When Andy Cohen asked her if the baseball star was a good kisser, Frankel responded, "I don't honestly remember." Oof! Talk about a punch to the gut.

For his part, A-Rod doesn't seem to recall the relationship too fondly, either. On more than one occasion, tabloids have reported that the shortstop has blatantly ignored his ex in public. According to Page Six, he dodged a run-in with the Skinnygirl founder in 2017 while filming a commercial across the hall from her apartment. Later that same year, Radar reported that he acted as if he didn't know Frankel while at a press event for "Shark Tank" (they had both acted as guest sharks that season).

All that drama makes us wonder if something more than an unsatisfying kiss went down between the pair!

Less than a year after his split with Cynthia Scurtis, Alex Rodriguez went public with his new girlfriend, actor Kate Hudson. The couple made their first appearance together at Miami's Fontainebleau Hotel in November 2008, where they were, according to the Daily News, all over each other. Throughout the rest of A-Rod's season, Hudson was a fixture on the sidelines, alongside her famous folks Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn. Then, over a year later and as out-of-nowhere as it had begun, the relationship ended.

In an interview with Harper's Bazaar that was published right before the duo's untimely demise, Hudson was pressed about whether her new relationship had something to do with her positive mood. She refused to answer, saying, "There are people involved, and it's unfair to talk about somebody else, especially when you're not in that place yet to be discussing those things."

She's maintained that line of reasoning in the years since, refusing to divulge any of the details surrounding how serious the pair really was or why they called things off. However, fans can take cues from her laid-back reaction to brother Oliver Hudson having A-Rod on his podcast, "Joe Buck and Oliver Hudson Have Daddy Issues." The "Bride Wars" star laughingly told Andy Cohen on "Watch What Happens Live" that Oliver hadn't asked her permission before interviewing her ex. We have to imagine that their split was the decently amicable kind that happens when a couple isn't yet head over heels in love.

In 2010, Alex Rodriguez began quietly seeing "Charlie's Angels" actor Cameron Diaz. The couple kept their relationship super under the radar — going so far as to all but ignore each other at parties they attended — before eventually, if inadvertently, confirming things at the 2011 Super Bowl.

While watching the game, Diaz was photographed sweetly feeding her boyfriend a snack in an incident that the tabloids dubbed Popcorn-Gate. The actor later discussed the headline-making moment on "Late Night with David Letterman" (via CBS News) saying, "We were watching the game, and I was eating, and I was getting down to, like, the last couple pieces of popcorn, and all of a sudden, I see a hand coming in. And I'm like — anybody who knows me does not put their hand in my food, especially when it's close to my mouth. And I said, 'What are you...?' And then I went, 'You know what? I love you too much. I'm going to give it to you. You deserve it.'"

That story is the most Diaz ever revealed about her fling with the baseball player (and likely only because she had to). The super private celeb never even commented on their eventual split; it was a pal who told the Daily News that Diaz was "hurt and betrayed" by the separation as she gave the relationship her best effort. For his part, A-Rod has been a little more open, telling "The Insider" (via Page Six), "She's probably one of the greatest human beings I've ever met, and just an amazing light."

Some of the best relationships are those that are built on common interests and that share common priorities. Take Alex Rodriguez and professional wrestler Torrie Wilson, for example. The couple met in late 2011 (via Business Insider), and things between them heated up pretty quickly. The pair were often spotted working out together and were known to take frequent vacations in far-flung destinations like Idaho and (possibly) Cabo San Lucas.

The relationship lasted for about three years, longer than any of A-Rod's other post-Cynthia Scurtis relationships up to that point, before they broke up in early 2015. According to sources who spoke to Us Weekly, the split was largely driven by A-Rod's aversion to commitment. And while neither party ever publicly discussed the reason things ended, a retweet from Wilson that read "Beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity" seems to imply there was more to the story than just two people growing apart.

Still, whatever drove their split couldn't have been all that bad, because when she was stopped by a TMZ reporter just weeks after the breakup news broke, Wilson responded, "Oh, he's amazing. ... Always friends." While she didn't appear to feel particularly chatty, she confessed that she would be cheering her ex on as he returned to the field that fall.

After his split from Torrie Wilson, Alex Rodriguez began seeing tech doyenne Anne Wojcicki. The 23andMe founder (who had previously been married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin) and the baseball player seem to have met sometime in 2016, and spent about a year together before their breakup was announced by Page Six. According to the source who spilled the tea, it was the pair's differences that ultimately drove them apart.

Not long after the relationship ended, Wojcicki sat down with The New York Times. In the lengthy interview, she essentially confirmed that the lack of shared interests, as well as bicoastal obligations, were what caused the duo to call things off. Still, she spoke highly of her ex, saying, "Alex is a really sweet guy. He's a smart guy. He's a good person."

On the other hand, her mother, a journalism teacher named Esther Wojcicki, had far less flattering things to say about her daughter's paramour. She told the outlet, "I liked A-Rod... but I right away figured out this was a mismatch. He had no academic background. We couldn't have an intellectual conversation about anything. His main interest in life was something that none of us had ever focused on, which was baseball." Ouch! Clearly, there's no love lost on mama Wojcicki's part.

Finally, Alex Rodriguez's most famous ex, Jennifer Lopez. After a chance encounter in 2017, the couple began dating almost immediately. Their whirlwind courtship dominated headlines, especially after they started making joint appearances. In an early joint interview with Vanity Fair, J.Lo opened up about what she loved about her new man, gushing, "The hardest times prove who you are. That's what I love and admire the most about Alex. He doesn't let anything beat him. He just comes back stronger."

The comment, and other sickeningly sweet things the pair had to say about each other, meant no one was surprised when they got engaged in 2019. But folks were stunned when, in 2021, they ended their engagement. In a statement shared with People, A-Rod and J.Lo wrote, in part, "We have realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so. We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects."

For a time, that's all either had to say about the matter. But they eventually opened up a bit more. A-Rod told ET later in 2021, "Whatever has happened to me over the last year, I'm so grateful for it. I had five years of an incredible life and partnership... I'm in a great place." A J.Lo pal, meanwhile, told Us Weekly, "Jen really does wish Alex the best. She's completely moved on. She doesn't give any thought to Alex. Their relationship was filled with drama and that's the last thing she has time for in her life."