Alex Rodriguez Tells Barry Bonds He Wants to Take His Career Home Run Record

Alex Rodriguez didn't play a single game in 2014 and played just 44 the season prior. Nevertheless, the 39-year-old New York Yankees star is still keen on breaking Barry Bonds' all-time home run record.

Bonds was voted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame this past weekend, after which he revealed a brief exchange he had with Rodriguez in January when Bonds was training him at Future Prospects Baseball facility in San Rafael, California.   

"He was funny," said Bonds of Rodriguez, per the San Francisco Chronicle's John Shea. "He said, 'I want to take your record.' I said, 'That's OK. If that's what you want to do, we've got a lot of work to do.' I was excited he wanted to do it."

As the New York Post pointed out, A-Rod's comments reflect his continued confidence in the sport:

Purported ties to performance-enhancing drugs have kept Bonds out of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, and they have also tainted his all-time MLB record of 762 home runs to a degree.

Rodriguez's involvement in the Biogenesis scandal led to him being suspended for the entire 2014 MLB campaign, and he's admitted to past steroid use. If he still maintains enough strength for the next several years, though, perhaps Bonds' record is within reach.

Kathy Willens/Associated Press

It's just a question of whether Rodriguez will be in the Bronx to resume his career. With three years remaining on a huge contract, his relations with the Yankees have been frayed due to his Biogenesis suspension.

However, New York manager Joe Girardi has expressed his support, per ESPN.com's Andrew Marchand:

"

There's a lot that has transpired over the last couple of years. We want to make sure everyone is on the same page. Alex is one of our players and our job is to get the best out of him. We will continue to support him. …

As far as having to clear the air with me, it's not necessary.

"

PED usage aside, there is no denying Rodriguez's natural talent with the bat in his hands. He's led the American League in offensive WAR nine times throughout his career, and he's the active career leader in that category, per Baseball-Reference.com. Rodriguez last led the AL in oWAR in 2008.

Although he managed back-to-back 30-dinger campaigns in 2009 and 2010, Rodriguez has been beset in recent years by injuries, controversy, suspension and the overall wear-and-tear of 20 MLB seasons.

Sitting on 654 career home runs, it would take three years of approximately 37 homers per year for Rodriguez to pass Bonds.   

But even a foggy future in New York and uncertainty as to where Rodriguez will be as a hitter when he returns won't quiet doubts about his chances of eclipsing Bonds' record.