Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez Returns During Final Game of Homestand

Alex Rodriguez will suit up in the Bronx to help the Yankees pursue a series victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Yankees have enjoyed success in the absence of their 40-year-old slugger. Before Wednesday’s loss, the team found itself at an even .500 on the season for the first time since April 14. It’s a lackadaisical standing for some, but a resurgent accomplishment for these Bombers, who were toiling in the basement of the AL East a mere week ago.

Tuesday’s win against the Blue Jays propelled them to third place in the parity-filled division.

With Rodriguez nearing a return from the disabled list, Yankee skipper Joe Girardi initially had scheduled him to bypass a minor-league stint during his road to recovery.

Well, turns out it wouldn’t be in Triple-A, but Joel Sherman did some digging and found that Cashman and Girardi convened to amend the original plan. Rather than reintroducing A-Rod to knuckleballer R.A. Dickey, they decided it would better suit him to see live pitching before returning to the Yankees’ red-hot lineup.

While the Bombers prevailed against Dickey and the Jays, A-Rod was the center of attention down in Class-AA Trenton (minor-league affiliate).

Rodriguez basked in enthusiastic cheers as he went 2-for-4 with an RBI in his first of two rehab games. Overall, he went 3-for-6 with two singles, one home run, and three runs batted in during his time in Trenton.

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The numbers haven’t been pretty for A-Rod to start the year. He’s batting a measly .194/.275/.444 with five homers sprinkled in over 72 AB. But before he was taken down by a lame hamstring, the DH was hitting his stride in his last seven games, knocking three homers, seven hits, and driving in seven runs.

In Thursday’s rubber match against the Jays, Rodriguez will be batting fifth.

Both the Yankees and Rodriguez hope to battle Father Time for another couple of years. Rodriguez will earn $42 million in his final two seasons, and he’ll have to perform up to par if he intends to keep his full-time job considering that New York’s farm system is on the rise.