Strike One in A-Rod Divorce

   Alex Rodriguez makes his living swatting baseballs fired at him by right handers, left handers and knuckleballers. Monday, his estranged wife Cynthia threw a high hard one right at his wallet. Mrs. A-Rod wants a divorce, their $12 million home in Coral Gables, Fla., alimony, child support, and primary custody of their two children. 

In divorce papers filed in Miami, Fla., Cynthia Rodriguez claims the Yankee third baseman -- who recently signed a 10-year, $275 million contract -- has been unfaithful and abandoned her not long after the 35-year-old gave birth to their second child, Ella Alexander, more than two months ago. The couple also have an older daughter, Natasha Alexander, 3. 

Rumors have linked A-Rod to none other than "Material Girl" Madonna, who vigorously denies that she's planning a divorce from husband Guy Ritchie and has been playing the field with the 12-time All-Star. "Cynthia's blaming Madonna," said internationally-known relationship expert Dr. Gilda Carle, who recently published an e-book called "How to Win when Your Mate Cheats." "At what point do you say, there's something wrong with our relationship?"

Cynthia Rodriguez does not mention Madonna or anyone else in her divorce papers, merely claiming that Alex has been unfaithful many time during the course of their marriage. Last year, for example, A-Rod was seen in the company of a former stripper -- a story that gossip columnists wasted no time blasting onto the pages of papers around the country. 

"He seems to be bunting  in his relationships: not putting his best effort into recognizing a true soul mate, as opposed to her skin-deep assets or her notoriety.  If he wants to be in the game for the long term, he'll need to be a homerun hitter: that means a relationship that goes the distance," said Josie Brown, co-author of" Marriage Confidential" and "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Finding Mr. Right."

Carle, a relationship expert for match.com, called A-Rod a "cheataholic" and "relationship hopper" who needs more attention than one person can give. "If your mate has cheataholic tendencies, if he needs constant attention, needs to feel constantly admired and adored, there's nothing you will be able to do to make that relationship work."

However, she placed some blame for the failure of the marriage on C-Rod, who has a master's degree in psychology and only had to look to her husband's relationship history to see what her future held with him as a spouse. "If you find somebody who is unable to be alone, that tells you that you're just filling a void," she said.

Cynthia has her own image problems, having she fled to Paris, where she spent a few days living with hot rocker Lenny Kravitz. He denies that anything improper went on while she was staying with him. The gossip mongers, those same ones who won't believe Madonna, apparently believe Kravitz. "From the public's point of view, it seems both of them having wandering eyes," said Peter E. Bronstein, a family law attorney with The Bronstein Schuck & Poller Group at Dreier LLP in New York.

The Rodriguez divorce is only in the first inning. Cynthia scored first when she filed for divorce but A-Rod is still at bat in is half of the inning. The question is whether he will opt to play it safe and let the divorce run its course or swing for the fences and try to score runs in the gossip columns.

Either way, their relationship appears to be over six years after the couple was married in Dallas, Texas in November 2002. But there are some legal questions left to answer, said Bronstein, who points to a prenuptial agreement signed a month before the couple's wedding.
 
"C-Rod is trying to claim she's entitled to things that go beyond the prenuptial agreement," he said, adding that it might be possible to get in a Florida court, where a judge doesn't just examine the agreement but also whether it's "fair and reasonable." 


POTENTIAL NEXT MOVES FOR A-ROD:

Cover home:
"He needs to cover home base better... All good baseball players know home is the MOST important base to cover...But for a long time now, A-Rod has been way out in left field, hanging with other women, ignoring the wife and their new baby. No one stole A-Rod's home base. He gave it away. No hits. No runs. MAJOR errors," said Laurie Moison, co-author of four books, including "Affair of the Mind."