Alex Rodriguez to Marlins 'is going to happen', says ex-GM

When Yankee Stadium played Billy Joel's 1976 hit "Miami 2017" over the PA system last Friday night before Alex Rodriguez's final game, the general consensus was that the song's title was coincidentally hinting at the 41-year-old veteran's next destination. But perhaps the prediction is a little ahead of schedule. During a Monday morning segment of MLB Network Radio, former major league general manager and current ESPN insider Jim Bowden spoke of Alex Rodriguez's potential homecoming in Miami, with the belief that a deal between him and the Marlins is imminent.

.@JimBowden_ESPN: ARod to the #Marlins is going to happen, has to clear waivers Monday but it's going to happen. Play 1B

— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) August 15, 2016

Rodriguez, who would first have to clear waivers on Monday, has played first base only two times in his entire 22-year career, but Miami's recent loss of slugger Giancarlo Stanton to the season-ending disabled list leaves a position open in the field, creating a new opportunity that Rodriguez may not be able to pass up. Despite Rodriguez's admittance to being 'at peace' with New York's decision to unconditionally release him and anoint him as a special adviser to the franchise, Rodriguez has also indicated that there is still some fuel left in his tank, and while sitting just four home runs shy of No. 700, there isn't a better time and place for Rodriguez to reach the milestone than in South Beach. In 65 games this season, Rodriguez has hit a flat .200/.247/.251, with nine home runs and 31 runs batted in.