NEW YORK — Alex Rodriguez said contract talks with the New York Yankees are "in the bottom of the fifth inning."

A-Rod didn't go into detail but in a video interview with MLB.com posted over the weekend did refer to negotiations that are leading toward a $275 million, 10-year contract with the Yankees.

"When the time is right and I have a proper forum ... I think it's important for New York fans, for the New York Yankee fans, to realize exactly what happened, from A to Z," said Rodriguez, expected to win his third AL MVP award Monday.

Rodriguez did talk about how he approached Yankees senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner to restart negotiations after agent Scott Boras told the team A-Rod was opting out of the final three seasons of his $252 million, 10-year contract.