Did you know that New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was a children's author? Then again, practically every major sports star tries his or her hand at the kids' book (sometimes with unintentionally hilarious results) and so it isn't that surprising that A-Rod would do so. But as it happens, says the New York Times, this is his second go-round at the form (along with Frank Morrison), the first published back in 1998. According to HarperCollins, this new tome, OUT OF THE BALLPARK, is "autobiographical fiction" about his childhood.

Although the book's description seems to allude to Rodriguez's tumultuous 2006 season, his marketing representative, Steve Fortunato, said yesterday that the book had been in the works for more than a year and a half. Fortunato said that Rodriguez had drawn on his experiences from when he was about 10 years old. The publisher's description of the book says, "Alex is determined not to let his mistakes set him back - even if it means getting up at the crack of dawn to work on his hitting and fielding before school each day!" The 32-page book, geared towards youngsters ages 4 to 8, is published in English and Spanish.