Something that stands in common between the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros in the World Series games is their top-quality starting pitchers – Aaron Nola from the Phillies and Justin Verlander from the Astros. And former Yankee Alex Rodriguez expressed his deep-seated interest in watching them battle in the park against quality offense.

A-Rod along with Frank Thomas, David Ortiz, and Kevin Burkhardt discuss the face-off between Aaron Nola and Justin Verlander before the first World Series game.

A great pitching battle

While the 39-year-old Justin Verlander is definitely better on paper, and extremely high on experience, 29-year-old Aaron Nola was no walkover. And A-Rod talks about how pressure situations bring the best out of the pitcher.

A-Rod said, “If I was at home I’d have popcorn, and be sitting in the couch. John King would love this. Heavyweight battle, Nolan vs Verlander. And by the way, Nolan loves this. He loves being the underdog, letting everyone get all the attention for Verlander. He’s [Nola] going to come out and attack, and attack early.”

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While both the pitchers conceded five runs and, by extension, had an average outing, Nola definitely had the final laugh after the Phillies emerged victorious by scoring a run in the tenth innings of the game.

Alex Rodriguez after retiring from the ballpark

After spending 22 seasons with the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, and finally, the New York Yankees, Alex Rodriguez retired in 2016. Despite his retirement from baseball six years back, the shortstop-turned-baseman has continued to maintain a strong and active presence that keeps him relevant across the states.

After retiring from the ballpark, A-Rod moved to grow A-Rod Corp which he founded in 1996. Today, A-Rod, through A-Rod Corp, has grown into an empire in the world of real estate. In addition to that, A-Rod is the chairman of Presidente Beer and part owner of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves. Furthermore, A-Rod dived into broadcasting and is calling the postseason games for Fox alongside David Ortiz and Frank Thomas.

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What do you make of A-Rod’s second innings after retiring from the MLB? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.