Yankees Decision to Sit Alex Rodriguez Not Helping

Yankees manager Joe Girardi has a real dilemma on his hands. It’s tough to play Rodriguez because he isn’t hitting much. But how will he ever if he doesn’t play?

Quite simply, you can’t break out of a slump (even if it is a season long one), if you don’t get the opportunity to collect at-bats. And for the second game in a row, Rodriguez will be relegated to a bench role, because Carlos Beltran and his nagging hamstring have forced him into the designated hitter spot.

Now keeping Beltran’s bat in the lineup is vital to the Yankees keeping any hopes alive of making a sustained second half push up the standings, but wouldn’t it make sense to get Rodriguez into the swing of things if you ever plan on using him again?

Tonight’s contest against the Cleveland Indians marks the sixth time is seven affairs that the once mighty Rodriguez has been saddled as a potential late inning pinch hitter.

I for one don’t understand what the Yankees’ end-game is with AROD. I know he’s only batting .220 with eight home runs and 28 RBI, but he’s only five homers away from the monumental feat of 700.

Dare I say, do the Yankees not want Rodriguez to hit another home run while wearing pinstripes? Could it be for fear that he joins only three other men to ever accomplish the 700 homer mark,  potentially passing Babe Ruth at 714, Hank Aaron at 755, and Barry Bonds at 762, resulting in a $6 million bonus each and every time? 

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If this is the case, it would actually make more financial sense for the Yankees to release Rodriguez right now, pay him the rest of this year’s salary, and next season’s $21 million as to potentially save $18 million more.

The chances of AROD surpassing Bonds’ all-time record seem slim-to-none at this point, but then again, no one expected 33 homers and 86 RBI while playing 151 games in 2015 after missing the entire 2014 season due to suspension.

But this is the story of the 2016 Yankees; passively waiting to pull the trigger; not making moves that need to be made for the benefit of the club this year and beyond.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi was recently asked if he would entertain the idea of getting Rodriguez some time in the field as to increase his opportunities for playing. Girardi responded:

"I tried last year and it didn’t work out. It’s something that we could talk about, but I think you look at the position that he could possibly play and it would be first base. That would be it. We’ve been running (Rob Refsnyder) out there for right now. It’s something we could definitely look at, but we haven’t."

Well, that sounds ominous.

It’s hard to believe AROD is at the point in his career where the team he plays for actually values the play of Rob Refsynder (a man without a true position), over a three-time MVP. But alas, here we are.

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At the very least Rodriguez should get one more opportunity this season to prove his worth. Best case scenario he finds even a little bit of 2015 magic and propels the club into contention. Worst case, a decision is finally made once and for all on his fate.