It appears that the Derek Jeter-Alex Rodriguez beef started back in 2001 when A-Rod took a shot at his friend in an Empire interview: "I mean, you know, hitting second is totally different than hitting third or fourth in a lineup because you go into New York trying to stop Bernie [Williams] and [Paul] O’Neill and everybody. You never say, ‘Don’t let Derek beat you.’ That’s never your concern.” While they eventually became teammates, they had an up and down relationship.