Rodriguez's parting words to Jackson at the end of the '08 season, before all of the steroids talk began, was that he would be gunning for him in April. With 553 to his name, Rodriguez needs just 10 to tie Jackson.

"He'll blow by me like I'm standing still," Jackson said, with a grin. "It's a shame -- one of the all-time greats."

His gallows humor masks some disappointment. Jackson considers Rodriguez a friend, but he also refers to him as a Yankees "asset" -- a sharp word general manager Brian Cashman used after Rodriguez's news conference, coldly portraying him as a corporate investment.

Reggie said he spent time with Yankees general partner Hank Steinbrenner on Tuesday.

"'You deliver this message,' [Steinbrenner] said sternly to me. 'You tell him to hit the damn ball and hit it when it counts,'" Jackson said. "Yes, that's really the most important thing Alex can do at this stage. All the other conversations, they don't matter. The more you talk, the more you have an opportunity to make a mistake or say something stupid or something you can go trace.

"My dad used to say you can control the story as long as you still get a chance to hit. Take the bat away and you start running your mouth, you're going to get in trouble. Edit your own story with the bat, and as long as Alex does that, he's got a chance to change things."