New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez Looking to Build on “Cinderella-Type Season”

New York Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez has wasted no time preparing for the 2016 season, having already resumed baseball-related activities in the hopes of building on what he called termed "Cinderella-type season" in 2015.

The 40-year-old Rodriguez, who was suspended for the entire 2014 season, came back and wasn't even a lock to make the team out of Spring Training. However, he managed to secure himself a job with the bat and went on to hit .250 with 33 homeruns and 86 RBI. And while he fell short of Comeback Player of the Year, he proved he still had plenty of gas left in the tank.

Heading into 2016, A-Rod will not only look to raise his batting average, but drive in more runs. Ideally, hitting in either the No. 3 or No. 4 spot, he'd drive in 100+ runs and provide a few more opportunities for those hitting behind him.

Just as it was a year ago, the Yankees will move forward with a key piece they didn't initially expect to have.

Alex Rodriguez hopes to build off 'Cinderella-type season' in 2016

No one was more surprised with Alex Rodriguez's comeback season last year than the man himself.

At 40 years old, A-Rod belted 33 homers, drove in 86 runs and played more than 150 games for the first time since 2007.
"I think that's probably the biggest surprise the whole year for everyone. I certainly didn't think in spring training that I would come close to playing 150 times, and I'm grateful for that," Rodriguez said after the Yankees' loss in the 2015 Wild Card playoff.
"I never thought I would be able to come back and play baseball and have so much fun."
Part of that success can be attributed to his new role as the Yankees' everyday designated hitter, a move that Rodriguez has embraced as he looks forward to his 22nd MLB season.
Alex set the bar quite high for himself, but he voiced his desire to build off his impressive 2015 campaign while speaking at a holiday concert hosted by the Steinbrenner family in Tampa Bay last Tuesday.
''A Cinderella-type season,'' Rodriguez said, referring to last year. ''In so many ways a dream season. I'm just so fortunate to be back, and be welcomed by, obviously, the Steinbrenners, all my teammates, the fans of New York. I'm look forward to building on that."
Rodriguez was a .278 hitter over the first half of last season, finishing the year with a .250 clip. His power numbers remained consistent, as he blasted a team-leading 15 homers after the All-Star break. His slugging percentage of .486 was the highest it's been in five years, and Rodriguez earned a nomination for MLB's Comeback Player of the Year award for the American League.
The Yankees welcomed their latest acquisition, Starlin Castro, to the team on Tuesday, and perhaps Rodriguez will be able to share his knowledge of the game with the young second baseman, just as Alfonso Soriano did when he was a Cub.
"I challenge you one day when you're old like me, when you are successful and you're making an impact, to come back on days like this and pay it forward," Rodriguez said to 1,500 grade school students at Tuesday's holiday concert.
Though A-Rod was referring to educational skills like reading and writing with his quote, the same words could also translate to what he'll be doing in the clubhouse next season with the newest batch of young Yankees.

Yankees' Alex Rodriguez glad dark days are over and done with

From the first day of spring training, Alex Rodriguez said over and over that he simply wanted to make the team, then do his part to help the Yankees get back to the postseason.

Thursday, A-Rod and his teammates were bathing each other in champagne after clinching an American League wild card berth with a win over the Red Sox.

“With all the stuff I went through in 2014, I talk about how dark those days were,” A-Rod said, referring to his one-year drug suspension. “To come back this year and be part of such a special team, such a special group of guys, we truly are a family and we’ve built a great brotherhood in here.”

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A-Rod was part of the 2009 World Series team, so he knows the challenge that stands ahead of the Yankees. That challenge will include an extra game this season as the Yankees will play a one-game, wild-card playoff Tuesday night, but unlike 20 other teams in the majors, the Yankees have a chance to play beyond this weekend.

“You’re in the dance, anything can happen,” Rodriguez said. “I think any team that gets in is capable of winning a championship.”

WARREN COMMISSIONED

Adam Warren’s season has seen him go from the starting rotation to the bullpen and back to the rotation, but he was back in the bullpen Thursday night in preparation for next week’s playoffs.

That turned out to be a huge boost for the Yankees, who watched Warren pitch three scoreless innings after taking over for CC Sabathia to start the sixth, getting the ball to Dellin Betances in the ninth.

“Every good club that I’ve been on has seemed to have a guy like Adam Warren that is able to do so many different things for you as a pitcher,” Joe Girardi said, comparing Warren to Ramiro Mendoza from Joe Torre’s late-1990s teams. “His value has been as big as any pitcher that we have in that room.

Look at what he did tonight; he was a big reason we won that game because he was able to give us three innings on a night that I didn’t want to use (Andrew) Miller and I wasn’t going to use (Justin) Wilson.”

WIN IS 10 GRAND
Lost in the euphoria of the playoff clincher was the fact that Thursday’s win was the 10,000th in franchise history, making the Yankees the first AL team to accomplish that feat.

“There are a lot of great things that happen in Yankees history,” Girardi said. “You think about 10,000 wins, the championships, the perfect game during the World Series, the perfect games during the season and what’s been accomplished here, but 10,000 wins is the mark of a consistent franchise. It’s meant a lot to the city of New York for a long time and I’m just proud to be a part of it.”

BE A HIRO
Masahiro Tanaka came through Wednesday’s start without any problems, reporting no issues with his bad right hamstring.

Tanaka allowed four runs on five hits and one walk over five innings Wednesday night, struggling with his splitter against the Red Sox. He’s still lined up to start the AL wild card game on Tuesday night.

“I saw him today and he said he felt good,” Girardi said. “He said his leg felt good. I felt he was a little bit rusty yesterday, but he’ll be able to throw a normal bullpen here in a few days.”

Alex Rodriguez, suspended all of 2014, reflects on Yankees' playoff return

NEW YORK — Dark days, he's called them throughout the year, and he did again Thursday night.

But first, Yankees' designated hitter Alex Rodriguez, the slugger who was suspended for all of the 2014 season for his link to performance-enhancing drugs, soaked in and drank up champagne Thursday night inside the Yankees clubhouse in celebration of his team's first playoff clinching since 2012.

A-Rod couldn't stop lauding his teammates after the 4-1 win over the Boston Red Sox and expressing his gratitude for the crazy season—his 21st in baseball—he's had.

"You know, I always believed," he said of this team Thursday night. "It's something about wearing this uniform that gives me a certain amount of confidence. I know this year was different. This is probably the first year since I've been here in '04 that we were underdogs. The year we won 100 games, we were just playing to our expectations. But this year, the last month, the team has come together. We've played for each other and not for personal statistics and that's been part of our DNA all year."

Speaking of personal stats, Rodriguez has contributed his fair share. Rodriguez has 33 home runs this season, the most he's had in a year since 2008 when he clocked 35. His 86 RBI are second on the team.

"I think it benefits me to sit in the middle of many great left-handed hitters," Rodriguez said. "A lot of people asked me if we were going to celebrate today and my answer was: Darn right we're going to celebrate."

A-Rod continues to write an improbable script this season. He passed Willie Mays for fourth all-time in baseball history in home runs. He notched 3,000 hits (with a home run, of course). He passed 2,000 RBI. He turned 40 years old July 27 just days after hitting three home runs in a game. 

Has he appreciated it differently than other seasons?

"Oh, man, is that an understatement," Rodriguez said. "With all the stuff I went through in 2014. I talk about how dark those days were. To come back this year and be part of such a special team, such a special group of guys...we truly are a family and we've built a great brotherhood in here."

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PLUS: WATCH: John Ryan Murphy sums up playoff celebration perfectly

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The Yankees will play the one-game Wild Card next Tuesday, October 6. If they win just one game in Baltimore this weekend—they play three against the Orioles—they will have home-field advantage in the game. They can also do so if the Houston Astros, currently second in the Wild Card, lose one more game.

A-Rod might get a few at-bats this weekend but he will likely, along with the rest of the starters, be largely rested come Tuesday. He said he's confident his team has a chance to not just win that game but go far in the playoffs.

"You're in the dance, anything can happen," he said. "I think any team that gets in is capable of winning a championship."

Rodriguez spent several minutes complimenting his teammates, especially the younger players ("a lot of credit goes to our scouts and managers in the minor leagues; these kids are special"), but the questions inevitably came back to his perspective on the season that, only six months ago, seemed pretty not likely to end with a t-shirt soaked with celebratory alcohol.

"My whole thing this year has been team, team, team," he said. "I feel extremely grateful for the opportunity I've gotten. My number one goal was to make the team, and they gave me an opportunity and I'm thankful for it."

Thanks in large part to Rodriguez, the Yankees have an opportunity now too.  

Yankees honor Alex Rodriguez for reaching 3,000 career hits

For all the buildup, speculation and drama, A-Rod Day was rather subdued.

There were no white chairs, no plaques and no thunderous ovations. No retired legends graced the field, and only a small contingent of fans arrived early to show their support.

The Yankees nonetheless honored Alex Rodriguez and his 3,000-hit milestone Sunday with a 10-minute pregame ceremony before the series finale against the Blue Jays — one that lacked the typical excitement of a Stadium celebration.

The tribute started with a video documenting some of the most memorable hits of A-Rod’s career, including his 3,000th, which came on an opposite-field home run against the Tigers on June 19. Rodriguez is the 29th player in major league history to amass at least 3,000 hits in a career.

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After the video, A-Rod walked to home plate from the dugout with his daughters, Natasha and Ella. Rodriguez’s mother, Lourdes Navarro, brother Joe Dunand and sister Suzy Dunand also joined him on the field.

ANDREW SAVULICH/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner (r.) presents a gift of 3,000-hit diamond rings to Alex Rodriguez.

“I’m incredibly grateful to the Steinbrenners. First class all the way,” said Rodriguez, who went 2-for-4 with an RBI and scored a run with a headfirst slide into home. “It’s rare for me that I get to celebrate a day with my mother and my two daughters, manager, teammates, and obviously the fans of New York.”

With the family on the field, the team played a message from former Yankees and Mariners manager Lou Piniella on the Jumbotron.

“Alex, congratulations on your 3,000th hit,” Piniella said. “It’s a great milestone and a tremendous accomplishment, and Anita and I are so proud. As you know, we consider you part of our family. Continue to do well and help the Yankees win a pennant.”

Later, Chief Operating Officer Lonn Trost presented Rodriguez with a handcrafted vase commemorating the achievement. Managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner, meanwhile, gifted A-Rod with a 14-karat 3,000-hit diamond ring with similar ring-top pendants for Natasha and Ella.

Before the game, each player had a commemorative wine bottle waiting at his locker.

TIL TUESDAY

Right-hander Adam Warren is tentatively scheduled to start Tuesday’s game in Tampa as long as he isn’t forced to pitch in relief Monday.

Warren’s last start came on June 25. He threw 47 pitches in 2.2 innings out of the bullpen in Wednesday’s loss to the Orioles.

“I feel like I’ll be able to adjust pretty easily,” Warren said. “Just looking forward to it and excited to get back out there as a starter.”

TULO COULD RETURN

ANDREW SAVULICH/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Alex Rodriguez takes the field with daughters Ella and Natasha.

There is a “chance” Troy Tulowitzki returns to the Blue Jays this season, Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos said Sunday.

The team is “cautiously optimistic” that Tulowitzki, who suffered a small crack in his shoulder blade colliding with center fielder Kevin Pillar in a win over the Yankees on Saturday, could be back in game action in two to three weeks.

However, Anthopoulos expects Tulowitzki to have some marginal discomfort in the shoulder if his shortstop does return in that near future.

“He could be back for October,” Anthopoulos said. “Hopefully we’re playing at that time.” 

A-Rod, Heathcott lead ninth-inning rally; Yankees beat Rays, 4-1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Alex Rodriguez had a tying, two-out RBI double in the ninth and Slade Heathcott followed with a three-run homer, leading the New York Yankees to a 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in American League Baseball play Monday night.

The victory moved the Yankees within three games of AL East-leading Toronto.

Erasmo Ramirez held the Yankees hitless until Carlos Beltran led off the eighth with a hotshot that took a short-hop off first baseman Richie Shaffer and went into right field.

In the bottom half Tampa Bay snapped a scoreless tie, ending its 21-inning run drought on Logan Forsythe's RBI double.

The Yankees, though, rallied in the ninth. Down to their last out, Brett Gardner was walked by Brad Boxberger (4-10) on four pitches and stole second. Then Rodriguez tied Craig Biggio for 21{+s}t place all-time with his 3,060th hit.

Heathcott homered after Brian McCann was intentionally walked, setting off a raucous celebration in the New York dugout.

Caleb Cotham (1-0) got the final out in the eighth for his first big league win before Andrew Miller pitched the ninth to pick up his 33rd save.

Ramirez allowed just the one hit, walked two and had six strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings.

CC Sabathia had a strong start for the Yankees, giving up three hits over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. He worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the second.

The Yankees had two baserunners through the seventh. Rodriguez walked with two outs in the fourth and Brett Gardner drew another walk to start the seventh.

Gardner was doubled off second after Mikie Mahtook made a leaping catch into the right-field wall on Brian McCann's drive.

•TRAINER'S ROOM

Yankees: Manager Joe Girardi said CF Jacoby Ellsbury, in a 1 for 29 slide, is physically fine. "He feels pretty good," Girardi said.

Rays: Reliever Jake McGee (left knee) threw his third bullpen and will need at least one more before getting in a simulated game. "We'll see how the knee bounces back tomorrow," he said.

•UP NEXT

Yankees: Girardi said RHP Adam Warren (6-6, 3.29) will be able to throw around 65 pitches in a spot start Tuesday night.

Rays: RHP Jake Odorizzi (7-8, 3.21 ERA), Tuesday night's starter, has the second-lowest run support in the AL.

The Associated Press

Alex Rodriguez Fast Facts

Here is some background information on Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees infielder, who is in fourth place for the most career home runs in Major League Baseball history. He was suspended for the entire 2014 season after an investigation into the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Personal:
Birth date: July 27, 1975

Birth place: New York, New York

Birth name: Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez

Father: Victor Rodriguez, shoe salesman and baseball player

Mother: Lourdes (Navarro) Rodriguez, automotive plant worker

Marriage: Cynthia (Scurtis) Rodriguez (November 2, 2002 - 2008, divorced)

Children: Ella; Natasha

Other Facts:
His family moved from New York to the Dominican Republic when Rodriguez was four-years-old, then moved to Miami when he was in the fourth grade.

His father left when Rodriguez was nine, and his mother raised her three children as a single parent.

Co-wrote two children's books, "Hit a Grand Slam" and "Out of the Ballpark."

Has been romantically linked to celebrities such as Kate Hudson, Cameron Diaz, and Madonna.

Baseball Records and Achievements:
Rodriguez ranks fourth all-time highest in home runs, and has hit the most of any active player.

He is the 29th member of the 3,000-hit-club.

Three-time American League MVP: 2003, 2005, and 2007.

Has been elected to the All Star Game 14 times.

All-time grand slam home run leader.

Ten-time Silver Slugger Award winner.

Two-time Gold Glove Award winner.

Timeline:
Early 1990s - Attends Westminster Christian School in Miami.

June 1993 - MLB first overall draft pick, chosen by the Seattle Mariners to play shortstop.

July 8, 1994 - Major league debut at shortstop with the Seattle Mariners. At the time, he is the youngest player to be brought up to the majors since 1984.

1996 - Is invited to the All-Star Game for the first time.

August 12, 1998 - Makes his 100th major league home run.

September 19, 1998 - Becomes the third player ever to join the "40-40 Club," hitting 40 home runs and stealing 40 bases in one season. He ends the season that year with 42 home runs and 46 stolen bases.

1999 - Has surgery on his left knee.

December 2000 - Signs the largest contract ever in professional sports at that time, a ten-year, $252 million dollar contract with the Texas Rangers.

August 4, 2007 - Becomes the youngest player to hit 500 home runs.

November 2007 - Signs the largest contract ever in American sports at $275 million over 10 years with the New York Yankees to play third base.

December 2007 - During an interview with Katie Couric on "60 Minutes," Rodriguez denies taking performance-enhancing drugs and says he is not tempted to use them.

February 9, 2009 - Rodriguez admits to using performance-enhancing drugs from 2001 to 2003 while playing for the Texas Rangers.

March 9, 2009 - Has surgery on his right hip. He rejoins the New York Yankees about a month into the season, on May 8th.

November 4, 2009 - The New York Yankees defeat the Philadelphia Phillies to win the World Series, four games to two.

August 4, 2010 - Becomes the youngest player to hit 600 home runs. Only eight players have ever reached this milestone.

July 2011 - Undergoes surgery on his right knee.

January 16, 2013 - Has arthroscopic surgery on his left hip.

January 31, 2013 - The Miami New Times publishes a story alleging more than a dozen professional baseball players, including Rodriguez, and other athletes were named in records kept over several years by the now-closed Biogenesis anti-aging clinic in Miami.

August 5, 2013 - Major League Baseball announces that it is suspending Rodriguez for 211 regular season games through the 2014 season amid allegations involving the use of performance-enhancing drugs. Twelve other players are also suspended for 50 games each.

August 7, 2013 - The MLB Players Association files a grievance on his behalf, appealing the suspension. Rodriguez is allowed to play while the suspension is appealed. He has been in the Yankees' lineup since returning from injury on August 5.

September 30, 2013 - Rodriguez's arbitration hearing to appeal his suspension begins.

October 3, 2013 - Files a lawsuit in New York Supreme Court against MLB and Commissioner Bud Selig, alleging they "engaged in tortious and egregious conduct with one and only one goal ... to destroy the reputation and career of Alex Rodriguez."

October 4, 2013 - Files a medical malpractice lawsuit against Yankees team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad and New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

October 7, 2013 - MLB files a motion to move Rodriguez's lawsuit from state court to federal court, in hopes of dismissing the suit.

November 20, 2013 - Walks out of an arbitration hearing into his record-setting 211-game suspension after learning MLB Commissioner Bud Selig will not testify, saying later that he's done with what he calls a "farce" and an "abusive process."

January 11, 2014 - Rodriguez officially loses his appeal and his 211-game suspension is reduced to 162 games, arbitrator Fredric Horowitz rules. He will miss the 2014 MLB season.

February 7, 2014 - Drops his lawsuit against Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association. The lawsuit had been seeking a dismissal of a 162-game suspension.

November 5, 2014 - The Miami Herald reports Rodriguez privately admitted in late January 2014 to using steroids, during a meeting with prosecutors and federal agents who gave him immunity.

February 17, 2015 - Releases a hand-written apology, taking "full responsibility for the mistakes that led to [his] suspension for the 2014 season."

May 7, 2015 - Hits his 661st home run, passing Willie Mays to take fourth place on baseball's all-time home run list.

June 19, 2015 - Earns hit 3,000 at Yankee Stadium in a seven to two game against the Detroit Tigers.

August 26, 2015 - Rodriguez faces a $100 million dollar lawsuit filed by his former brother-in-law, Constantine Scurtis. Scurtis files a 12-count complaint against Rodriguez claiming he used their company to commit fraud.

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Rested Alex Rodriguez gets big hit; will he play first base in Boston?

ATLANTA - The loud and relentless booing didn't get going until the seventh inning.

In other words, Alex Rodriguez didn't make a plate appearance until the seventh inning.

Rodriguez, who hadn't taken a swing in a game since Wednesday (he was intentionally walked in his lone plate appearance Saturday night), entered Sunday's game against the Braves as a pinch hitter for pitcher Chasen Shreve with the bases loaded and one out. The Yankees had a three-run lead at the time.

The Braves made a pitching change.

That meant more boos, more suspense, more A-Rod.

Then he delivered.

Oh, what four days off in late August can do for a 40-year-old designated hitter who sat out all of last season.Rodriguez grounded a two-run single up the middle to help break open what became a 20-6 win for the Yankees. After Rodriguez's hit, the Yankees sent nine more batters to the plate and added seven more runs in the inning.

Said Rodriguez: "The four days off have been great."

It certainly appeared they were needed. Before the hit, Rodriguez was 11-for-80 (.138) in the month of August.

Having Rodriguez produce at the plate is critical for the Yankees (72-57), who trail the AL East-leading Blue Jays (74-56) by 11/2 games. He has 26 home runs and 71 RBIs with a slash line of .257/.363/.489.

"I'm sure it makes him feel a lot better," Joe Girardi said. "Knowing August has been tough, he gets a big hit for us and he also gets some rest. Hopefully, it really helps."

With the Yankees resuming American League play Monday night with a three-game series in Boston, Girardi said he expects Rodriguez to start.

YankeesYanks complete sweep of Braves behind 21-hit attack

Where?

With Mark Teixeira's return to the lineup up in the air because of a bone bruise and the Yankees about to face two lefthanded starters in Boston, Girardi said Rodriguez could be an option at first base.Though four straight days off for Rodriguez may be a thing of the past for now, days at first base may be a thing of the future.

"I might toy around with the idea a little bit if Tex is not ready," Girardi said before the game.

Rodriguez has started only three games in the field this season -- one at first base and two at third -- and none since April 27. His lone start at first base, the first of his career, came April 11 against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.

Rodriguez took grounders at first base Saturday, Girardi said. Still, there's plenty of apprehension that comes with the idea of Rodriguez seeing action in the field, considering he hasn't done so in four months.

"That's a concern of mine," Girardi said. "That's why I tried to prepare him for it yesterday. I'll think about it.''

Yankees can't gain ground, but show Toronto AL East is a two-horse race

ATLANTA -- It has pretty much been established by now that the Toronto Blue Jays will not lose another game this year, at least not to a team other than the New York Yankees, which pretty much requires that the Yankees not lose another game to any team other than the Blue Jays.

Which means, of course, that out of 162 games, the American League East race is likely to come down to the last seven meetings between those two teams, which will occur in the two-week period of Sept. 10-23.

The Yankees kept up their end of that rough bargain this weekend in Atlanta, sweeping a three-game series from a Atlanta Braves team that was hardly more competitive from one of the teams still alive in the Little League World Series.

Since the most prudent way to judge any victory is in relation to the quality of the opposition it was accomplished at the expense of, it would be foolish to turn cartwheels over the Yankees' offensive explosion this weekend, during which they scored 38 runs, the final 20 coming in Sunday's 20-6 victory.

After all, the Yankees had scored just 18 runs in their previous seven games, losing five of them, three to a last-place club (the Cleveland Indians). So what the offense did in Atlanta should be taken with a large block of salt.

But as manager Joe Girardi rightly pointed out, nothing motivates quite like success, and if the Yankees' hitters feel better about themselves after three games in Atlanta than they did after the preceding seven games in New York, so be it.

Because the manager knows as well as anyone that in order for the Yankees to continue to keep pace with the Blue Jays -- winners of 21 of 26 games since August 1 and current holders of a 1½-game lead in the division -- they must continue to believe they are capable of it, even if it seems as if they are treading water. After all, they came to Atlanta 1½ games back, did everything they needed to do and more, and are leaving here in exactly the same position.

It is now the manager's job to persuade his team that is actually good news, and certainly not cause for discouragement.

Asked if it was dispiriting to look up at the scoreboard every day and see the Blue Jays winning again -- they put 15 runs up on Detroit before the Yankees took the field on Saturday and were leading 4-0 on Sunday before a pitch was thrown at Turner Field -- Girardi said, "No, not necessarily. There’s still a lot of games to play. We play Toronto a lot of games. We know they're a good club and they're going to score a lot of runs. We’ve just got to take care of our own business."

That philosophy was echoed throughout the Yankees' clubhouse Sunday afternoon.

“It’s important. Every game that we’re playing now is important," said Chase Headley, who had three hits, a home run and an RBI. "Guys in here understand that there’s going to be the swings where you’re playing really well and things are going your way and times where things aren’t going your way. This is a confident group. I think we were confident before when we weren’t playing that good on the home stand. We were confident that we were going to regroup and play well."

No player could benefit from that form of positive thinking more than Stephen Drew, who had his best day of the season -- 4-for-4, a home run, a pair of walks, four RBIs and three runs scored -- and left a ballpark for the first time in 2015 with his batting average above .200.

"I’m not worried about [batting average]," he said. "I think just looking at my at-bats, and having good at-bats is a good day offensively for me. We’re here to win games. It’s getting to the end, and we know it. Every game we can win is huge."

They only get bigger from here. The Yankees got yet another win for Nathan Eovaldi, who once again reaped the rewards of ridiculous run support and eared his 14th victory despite lasting only five full innings, allowing five earned runs on eight hits. They got a big two-RBI single out of Alex Rodriguez, who came off the bench to hit for the pitcher when the Braves were threatening to make a game of it, sparking a nine-run seventh inning. They even got an RBI double out of reliever Branden Pinder, who had not swung at a live pitch since high school.

It may not have been the seventh game of the World Series -- hell, the Braves are hardly a major league team at this point in their existence -- but it was the kind of win in which the victors can persuade themselves they are better than they have looked recently or, in fact, really are.

But that is the kind of self-belief the Yankees will have to take with them to Boston for the next three games, and the kind of self-belief they will have to carry with them until Sept. 10, when the Blue Jays come to the Bronx for the first four of seven games that will decide a season.

"As we get closer to the end of the year, every win and every loss is going to be magnified from here on out," Girardi said. "Sure, we would have loved it if they lost a game or two, but all we can control is what we can do. We’re going to play them seven times before the end of the year and there’s a good chance that those seven games are going to have a pretty good impact on how things end up. It would have been great if they lost, but they didn't.”

And it would be foolish, and perhaps fatal, to assume that they will.

For these last 33 games, the Yankees must figure the Blue Jays will win them all.

All, except, for the seven games left between the two of them. Those are the games that will decide the fate of the 2015 Yankees, as long as they are able to keep pace.

Notes: Girardi said Mark Teixeira, hobbled by a bone bruise in his right shin, felt "a little better" Sunday, but doubted he would be able to play in Monday night's opener against the Red Sox in Boston. ... Girardi said A-Rod, who sat out all three games here but pinch-hit twice, would definitely play in Boston, although he did not specify DH or first base.

Has A-Rod found the fountain of youth or is he just using a better steroid masking agent?

Everybody’s thinking it. While baseball observers marvel at the production of Alex Rodriguez at age forty, after being suspended for one year, deep down inside they have to be wondering if A-Rod is succeeding honestly or if he is doing what he allegedly has been doing his entire career—juicing.

In the spring it appeared as if A-Rod’s career was winding down. He was injury prone and a middling hitter for three years and then came the suspension that caused him to miss the 2014 season. Nobody could have anticipated that a 40 year old man with two bad hips who had missed an entire season and who had been a below average major league player for the three years previous would become a crucial ingredient to the Yankees 2015 success.

Surprising, shocking, stunning; a revelation, rejuvenation, reclamation, baseball’s easy choice for the comeback player of the year—these were some of the descriptions as A-Rod began hitting in April and continued to amaze though the summer months. He now hits third in the line-up and has proven to be a valuable and important player to the Yankees rise to the top of the division.

Yes, this is still the A-Rod the Yankees wanted off their roster—and more importantly off their payroll. The Yankees re-signed A-Rod after the 2007 season to a ten year $275 million contract. The Yankees got three good years out of him before injuries and poor play caused the team to re-think their options. When the drug issues were made public the Yankees tried to have A-Rod kicked off the team, and tried to have his contract nullified.

This year, forced to take back the player they hoped would quit the game, the Yankees wanted to make it as difficult as possible for A-Rod. Their plan was to send him on far more spring training bus trips than usual for veteran players hoping they could frustrate A-Rod to the point of making him quit, but he persevered. And then, when the regular season started, he succeeded.

It seems suspicious to me—the way it was suspicious to watch Barry Bonds crush balls and Roger Clemens throwing high nineties well into their forties. How is it possible for a player whose career was pretty much done—kept alive only by the length of the contract and the money owed—to suddenly bounce back at age 40 and be one of the better players in the game?

How?

There are many knowledgeable people in baseball who believe A-Rod has been juicing since he turned pro—in 1994 when at age 18 he joined the Seattle team that drafted him first overall in the 1993 June draft. A-Rod’s only failed drug test came in 2003; Rodriguez tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan during his 2003 American League MVP season. But that was when MLB had no penalties set up for failed drug tests.

“We cannot penalize players for a 2003 positive test,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said. There were, in total, 104 positive drug tests in 2003 which pushed forward an agreement between baseball and the players union that took effect in 2004.

For years A-Rod denied using steroids but then in 2009, after a report publicized that failed 2003 test, A-Rod admitted that he had been using since joining the Texas Rangers in 2001.
“I did take a banned substance, and for that I’m very sorry,” said A-Rod. “I’m deeply regretful. I’m sorry for that time. I just signed this enormous contract; I got unbelievable negative press, for lack of a better term. We were all bad at the time. I felt like I needed something, a push, without over-investigating what I was taking, to get me to the next level.”

Rodriguez was now on the league’s radar for steroid abuse. A-Rod denied any usage after 2003.

However, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency’s “report of investigation,” Rodriguez used substances prohibited by Major League Baseball from late 2010 to October 2012.

He did not fail another test after 2003 but that is due to the masking agents rather than non-use. During the investigation that led to the year’s suspension he publicly denied any involvement with steroids but in conference with DEA agents he admitted usage. He also admitted that he did not fail any tests because he was given “tips on how to beat MLB’s drug testing.”

A-Rod is familiar with the many ways to beat the drug testing system.

Manfred believes his system is strong but did caution that there could be flaws. “I think our testing is state of the art. It’s as good as it can be,” Manfred said. “But I think you need to stay really vigilant on both fronts because this is a science—kind of a black science, but a science nonetheless—and it evolves. We have to make sure that we’re evolving with it.”

It is common knowledge in the scientific community that drug testing in far behind drug using; that it is extremely difficult to catch a cheater, and that the cheater would have be highly irresponsible and reckless to get caught. Since 2003 A-Rod has not been reckless; except that he was the big fish caught inside a web of conspiracy involving the Biogenesis clinic in Florida. Others involved sold him out.

A-Rod is being tested regularly coming off his suspension. “Let me be clear about this,” said Manfred, “he’ll be tested exactly like every other player who has violated the program. The program requires more frequent testing for players who are coming back after a suspension.”

According to the Joint Drug Agreement (JDA), which was adopted by Major League Baseball and the players’ association in December 2011, any player who has been disciplined under the JDA is subject to six unannounced urine tests and three unannounced blood tests for the 12-month period following the violation, as well as the same number of tests for every subsequent year the player appears on a team’s 40-man roster.

A-Rod’s name and legacy were ruined. While the Hall of Fame seems unreachable the only way he could scrub his name somewhat clean was to return to the game and produce as a quality major league player. If, after three sub-par years and a one year suspension, he came back and produced at the same mediocre level then his reputation would be tarnished forever. Evidence would show that he could not perform without the juice. This was a vitally important year for A-Rod and his legacy in the game.

So the question is—would A-Rod risk being a failure by playing clean or, having been distrustful of his abilities without performance enhancing drugs before, would he have succumbed to the lure? It would seem that A-Rod is addicted to PED’s and believes he needs the extra boost to survive and succeed. Is that what’s happening this year?

To think that A-Rod is playing completely clean strikes me as naïve. The chances of being caught are slim and the need for success too important for A-Rod to risk failure.

After all, A-Rod has never given us any reason to believe him before—why would we now.

Thoughts…

…The Toronto Blue Jays are on a roll. It is unbelievable that not only did the Jays sweep the Yankees in a three game series in New York but they won with pitching. The Jays allowed one run in three games, one lousy replay assisted run in 28 innings. The Jays looked unbeatable while the Yankees looked like a good team being beaten by a great team. The new additions have meshed seamlessly into the Jays club chemistry, the defence is solid and the pitchers seem to be following David Price’s lead and dominating hitters. Can they sustain this run? Going 11-1 has got them into the playoff picture and knocking on the door for the AL East lead, but if they go through a two week slump it may knock them out of the playoff picture. The only way that seems possible is if the club suffers a spate of injuries to key players.

…Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus termed the very public blow-up in the team’s dugout as commonplace. Last Friday night, during a 7-2 loss at home to the Boston Red Sox Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias got into a shouting match in the dugout with catcher James McCann, which escalated into a physical confrontation. The incident was on full view of the cameras. Ausmus downplayed the incident calling it a disagreement among brothers and he said issues like that occur often among team-mates who spend seven months together—Ausmus said that most times confrontations occur out of public view. This one did not, and for good reason. Iglesias appeared to be playing in a sulk and didn’t try hard on three different plays in the top half of the inning. Iglesias’ indifferent play aggravated McCann who voiced his displeasure when the team returned to the dugout. It seemed apparent, from the actions of other Tigers, that this was not the first time Iglesias had created an issue. Watching from a distance new Blue Jays and former Tiger David Price must have been thankful for the trade.

Yankees' Alex Rodriguez hasn't homered in 12 games

If Yankees' Alex Rodriguez doesn't homer Tuesday against the Indians in Cleveland, it will match his season-long streak of 13 games without a home run.

But it's OK, and probably won't last much longer.

The last time A-Rod hit a bomb was on his 40th birthday, July 27, but in the 12 games since he's plugging along with a .268 average and an .810 OPS along with getting on base 44.4 percent of the time.

(The last time A-Rod went 13 games without a home run his OPS was 108 points lower and he had struck out 11 times, so it could be worse.)

So he's not hitting the ball out of the ballpark, but neither are any other Yankees, and Rodriguez has been too good this season to fall apart now—his 24 home runs and 63 RBI are second on the team to Mark Teixeira.

"We took a punch this weekend, but good teams punch back," A-Rod said after the Yankees were swept Sunday by the Toronto Blue Jays.

"There's going to be peaks and valleys, challenges along the way, and for us it's all about how we respond is what matters."

Before the recent drought, A-Rod hit a flurry of home runs, knocking five in five games,including three in one game in Minnesota.

Rodriguez has 10 home runs in 63 games in Cleveland throughout his career. Maybe it happens this week. And maybe the Yankees win a game for the first time in four days.