"That's why I'm doing TV now, fellas" - Looking back at Yankees legend Alex Rodriguez's hitting contest with a 22-month-old baseball prodigy

On "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in January 2018, former New York Yankees great Alex Rodriguez participated in a batting competition with 22-month-old Asher Willig.

After his father shared a video of Asher Willig hitting balls in a batting cage on Instagram, Asher became an instant phenomenon.

"Wanted to try something different && this dude delivered!" - @Asher Willig

Jimmy Fallon instructed A-Rod to hit with his left hand as Asher is a lefty to keep the competition fair. Additionally, Rodriguez had to use the miniature baseball bat that Asher used to slug home runs.

"A-Rod Has Hitting Contest with 22-Month-Old Baseball Prodigy." - @The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Rodriguez hit it eight times in 30 seconds. Asher, on the other hand, was able to top the 14-time All-Star by collecting nine hits.

After missing a few hits, Rodriguez playfully said:

"That's why I'm doing TV now, fellas."

Back in 2018, A-Rod was working as a studio analyst for FOX Sports for the MLB Postseason.

Alex Rodriguez called 22-month-old, Asher Willig "Future Yankee"

Alex Rodriguez during a press conference.

Former New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez was impressed with little Asher Willig's skills. Once the little kid defeated Rodriguez, the former Yankees slugger picked him up on his lap and said:

"He's a future Yankee!"

Asher is all grown up now. He is now six years old and continues to play baseball. Currently, Asher has 5K+ followers on his Instagram, and the feed is full of videos of him playing baseball.

His bio reads:

"Baseball 'lovin kid. ⚾️ That kid that was on Fallon."

Asher is a certain future All-Star!