The Return of Alex Rodriguez and What It Means

There’s a stomach bug going around and it’s causing injuries all over the Yankees roster and minor league affiliates. The New York Yankees avoided the injury bug for the most part in 2015 but when you have an aging core mixed with young players that play all out on every play like Brett Gardner injuries tend to happen and they have here in 2016. With CC Sabathia set to come off the disabled list tomorrow, and we’ll talk more about that tomorrow as well, and Alex Rodriguez eligible to come off the disabled list today what does it mean for the Yankees? FYI, in case you missed it, the Yankees will not actually activate Alex today after his hamstring tightened up jogging in Arizona but when he does come back this is how it will affect the team.

Unfortunately no one can truly answer this question, not even Alex himself, leaving us all to speculate. Alex looked all of 40-years old at the beginning of the season and already had many questioning whether he would make the season and/or attempt another run in 2017. Just in time for his injury though Alex’s bat woke up as he began hitting and began hitting for power so after two weeks off who knows which Alex we’re about to get. Will it be the Alex that can intimidate the opposing pitcher and add some much needed pop to the middle of the lineup or is it the Alex that is being pointed at and laughed at by Father Time?

I do know one thing for sure the Yankees will get worse defensively and worse on the flexibility side of the coin with Alex’s return. Alex is a DH only and Joe Girardi now has to take Carlos Beltran out of the lineup entirely or one of Jacoby Ellsbury or Brett Gardner to give Aaron Hicks ample playing time. Robert Refsnyder or whoever else is likely to ride the Scranton Shuttle back to Triple-A when Alex is officially activated and it’s debatable whether the team is actually set to get better, continue to tread water or possibly even take a step back.

Personally if Alex can be the Alex he was a week or so before the injury he makes this team 100% better but if he becomes another black hole in a lineup that seems to be alternating black holes like advanced copies of movies on the internet then that’s not beneficial for anybody. Stay tuned to see what Alex we get back hopefully this week or next when Alex finally returns off the DL.