Via Bob Raissman in the Daily News:

For the purpose of financial flexibility, and maybe peace of mind too, [Alex] Rodriguez has not taken the option of opting out of his Yankees contract (worth $25 mil per) off the table. As long as the option to opt out at the end of this season is available, there will be buzz over whether A-Rod already has another destination in mind.

Speculation will mount Monday night (10 p.m.) when Rodriguez appears on HBO’s “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel.” If you come away sensing the Yankees third baseman has the Windy City on his mind you will have plenty of company.

During a profile of new Cubs manager Lou Piniella, who managed Rodriguez for seven seasons in Seattle, A-Rod is interviewed by Frank Deford. While Deford never asks Rodriguez to compare Piniella to Joe Torre, it is abundantly clear the managerial qualities – and style – A-Rod enthusiastically attributes to Piniella are not subscribed to by the Yankees manager.
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For Rodriguez, Piniella is a man of radical contrasts. The sensitive side of Piniella, his ability to coddle players, also motivated him. A-Rod says during his rookie season in Seattle, Piniella blasted him for swinging wildly at a sequence of Dennis Eckersley sliders.

“I remember being 18, almost in tears,” Rodriguez says. “… I just felt like, ‘Get me back in my senior high school uniform.’ Then sure enough (Piniella) gives me a big kiss on top of my head. He goes, ‘Son, I love you. I love you. I just want you to do well.’

“From that day on,” Rodriguez says, “for the next 12 years, he’s been just like a father to me.”