Undoubtedly Alex Rodriguez is a great dad, but the reason behind it has a sad story. According to the Dominican descent, former professional baseball shortstop and third baseman, his father, Victor Rodriguez, abandoned him, siblings and his mom Lourdes when he was ten years old.

Growing up with his mother, brother and sister, without a father figure, made the also businessman and philanthropist, think on how important is to always be there for his kids. Therefore, he promised himself that even if the relationship with the mother of his children does not work, he will be there no matter what.

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“My father left when I was 10 and I was heartbroken, so I made myself a promise if I ever got a chance to be a father and I’m lucky enough … I won’t f*ck it up like my father did. #Tashi #Ella,” he wrote on Instagram sharing a clip after appearing on Call me Papi with David Ortiz and Jared Carrabis.

“From the moment that I became a father, 16 years ago, to Natasha and then Ella, that is like first, second and third in my life, and part of it is you got to work at it,” he told David Ortiz. “It’s going to be a priority. There’s nothing more important than those little girls. Whether is having dinner last night or is wether meeting with Cynthia, who is my ex-wife for the last hour, and we co-parent, and she is still one of my best friends, an incredible mother with a master’s in psychology. So it’s really a priority.”

The 46-year-old Washington Heights native said that he sits at the table with his girls every Saturday and enjoys breakfast without any distractions. “I created a breakfast club every Saturday from 8:30 to 10 o’clock,” Rodriguez said. “No phones, no iPad. Just let’s connect and recap.” The father of two added that “that’s really important to me and just watching them develop is so rewarding.”