A-Rod: I'll Be Back in 2013

From Peter Botte:

One day after GM Brian Cashman denied reports about trade talks regarding Rodriguez, the benched former All-Star said he has no plans to waive his no-trade rights during what figures to be an eventful winter in the Bronx.

“That’s correct. I will be back. I have a lot to prove and I will be back, on a mission,” Rodriguez said after going hitless in two at-bats off the bench in the Yanks’ 8-1 Game 4 loss. “I love New York City, and I love everything about being a Yankee. The highs are very high, and the lows are extremely low.

“But I’ve never thought about going to another team. My focus is on staying here. Let’s make that very, very clear. No. 2, I don’t expect to be mediocre. I expect to do what I’ve done for a long time.”

...

“Look, I know it was difficult for Joe. I know Joe didn’t want to sit me,” Rodriguez said. “If I do what I do, Joe doesn’t have a choice, neither does (GM Brain) Cashman, neither does anybody.

“I have to look in the mirror. I sat in this room in 2006, some of you guys were here, there were a lot of doubters. I said I was going to get back to the drawing board and I did. And I came back with a vengeance in ’07. I’m looking forward to hopefully doing the same.”

Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi also commented on A-Rod's future with the team:

“I expect Alex to be here. I expect Alex to come back and be our third baseman,” Cashman said. “Obviously what just happened here, I just don’t think it’s reflective of Alex’s abilities — and I think that’s true of a lot of the guys, not just Alex.”

Girardi doesn’t believe his relationship with Rodriguez needs mending.

“As far as I know, we’re OK,” Girardi said. “I don’t have any signals that he’s mad at me. I know he wanted to be in there. … But if there are things I have to do, I’m going to do them.”

At this point, getting rid of that contract would do a lot for the team's future financial flexibility. That said, nobody is going to take him unless the Yankees eat most of the contract--I've heard reports of something in the ballpark of $90 million--so in that case it probably makes more sense to keep him.

What do you think, should the Yankees do everything to trade A-Rod or keep him around?

Alex Rodriguez Might Accept A Trade

(UPDATE) Alex Rodriguez is once again not in the lineup for today's rescheduled game 4.

I was busy at work all day yesterday so I was unable to post, but if you missed it, there was a ton of talk about Miami being a possible destination for Alex Rodriguez if the Yankees do try an unload his contract this offseason. Well, today we have this report from Bob Nightengale that says if the situation was right, Alex, who has a full no-trade clause, may accept the deal:

Take a good, long hard look at him.

This will be the last time you'll ever see Alex Rodriguez in a New York Yankees uniform.

We might have already seen him play his last game for the Bronx Bombers.

The Yankees, desperate for offense, and set to play in an elimination game Wednesday night, benched their greatest and most expensive star for the second consecutive game.

Though Game 4 of the American League Championship Series against the Detroit Tigers was postponed by rain, the Yankees already tipped their hand and had him on the bench, leaving A-Rod humiliated.

The Yankees are making it loud and clear they want Rodriguez out as quickly as possible.

Rodriguez, his pride and ego damaged beyond repair, is now telling close friends that he won't stand in the way.

Rodriguez, who has a full no-trade clause, won't ask to be traded, a person familiar with Rodriguez's thinking told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation.

...

He will welcome a trade, the person says, but it must to be to another big-market club. Hint: He won't be going to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The most likely choices would be the Miami Marlins, Los Angeles Angels, Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

First, let me say that A-Rod has been awful this October. However, so has 90% of the starting lineup so really, why are we still blaming everyone's favorite scapegoat?

To me, this whole situation was made much worse by Joe Girardi, and his benching of A-Rod for the last two games -- though he can still make up for the game 4 benching today if he has any clue. There are reports of a fractured clubhouse, and that he's completely lost the team, which only makes this 0-3 feel that much more insurmountable.

The decision to bench A-Rod is only made worse by his replacement, Eric Chavez. Chavez has been virtually invisible in his plate appearances this postseason and also made that costly error in game 3 that might have cost the Yankees the game and a chance to get back in this series.

Does this mean I think A-Rod would have gone 4-for-4 with a homer off Verlander? No, but I do think A-Rod could get his swing going if given the chance, especially away from all the boos in the Bronx. There's no reason to further embarrass the guy and disrupt the clubhouse for a replacement that has also done nothing this series.

No matter what the outcome, the thing that sticks out to me the most is how poorly the Yankees and Girardi have handled this mess. If you think about how good we all felt about this team after that four run 9th on Saturday it's amazing how quickly things have changed.

Sure, there is still more baseball to be played and mistakes could be corrected. Maybe A-Rod is in the lineup today, gets a couple hits, and the Yankees actually win a game in this series. Or maybe, and much more likely if you ask me, things just get worse, the Yankees get swept, and this really is the end of A-Rod in New York.

A-Rod Could Make His Return In Tampa

From George King:

If Alex Rodriguez makes it through today’s game for the Single-A Tampa Yankees without a setback, look for the third baseman to come off the disabled list tomorrow and play against the Rays.

“It’s definitely a possibility he could join us in St. Petersburg,’’ Joe Girardi said after the Yankees’ 4-3 victory over the Orioles yesterday at the Stadium.

Rodriguez, who played third base last night, went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. He is 0-for-7 with four strikeouts in his two games with Tampa. He handled his only chance at third when he fielded a soft grounder.

Rodriguez played in the field for the first time last night since July 24.

Alex Rodriguez Will Begin Minor League Rehab Tomorrow

Updates on A-Rod, Tex & Pettitte

I know most of this news is a day old, but I've had a very busy week, so sorry for the delay.

- Mark Teixeira will likely be out 1-2 weeks with his calf injury reports Mark Feinsand.

On to better news, Andy Pettitte threw off flat ground for the first time since his ankle injury:

Andy Pettitte could be throwing off a mound before the end of the week. The lefthander took a significant step in his return from a fractured left ankle when he threw off flat ground Tuesday before the Yankees beat the Blue Jays at the Stadium. Joe Girardi said Pettitte threw three sets of 20 pitches and tested himself during the last one.

“For two of the sessions, he did not push off much,” Girardi said. “In the last session, he basically did 10 or 12 pitches where it was his normal windup. He actually looked really good.”

... After Tuesday’s session, Girardi said of Pettitte’s next move “our hope is it’s a mound, a bullpen. We’ll have to see how he feels in the next couple days.”

He said that would likely occur Friday or Saturday.

Alex Rodriguez also took a major step in his rehab:

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez took live batting practice on Tuesday afternoon, the first time he's done so since fracturing his left hand on July 24 against the Seattle Mariners.

General manager Brian Cashman said on ESPN NewYork 98.7's "The Michael Kay Show" that if everything goes well, Rodriguez could begin a minor league rehab stint over the weekend. Cashman added that he believes A-Rod can be back earlier than mid-September, but also didn't want to put a firm date on it.

"So far, so good," Rodriguez said. "My legs are coming under me, and I see light at the end of the tunnel. My expectation is to come back at full strength and help this team win."

So despite the two losses to the Jays, not all is bad in Yankeeland.

A-Rod Once Again Voted Most Hated Player By His Peers

From Wallace Matthews:

Hot on the heels of being voted baseball's MOP -- Most Overrated Player -- in a Sports Illustrated poll back in May, and another by Men's Journal that named him baseball's MHP -- Most Hated Player -- in June comes word that A-Rod has topped another anonymous SI poll: according to the magazine, he is also "baseball's biggest phony", whatever that means. A-Rod "won'' the poll with a whopping 26 percent of the vote.

.... The runner-up in the voting is none other than the Yankees' own Nick Swisher, who garnered 14 percent. Swisher also ran second to A-Rod in the MHP voting. Is Swish poised to make a run at the man at the top?

What is there to say about this besides that I really hope A-Rod comes back and tears the cover off the ball.

Updates on A-Rod, Pettitte & Tex

From Bryan Hoch:

The Yankees received encouraging news on Sunday regarding Alex Rodriguez and Andy Pettitte, who are both progressing toward September returns from the disabled list.

A-Rod and Pettitte had X-rays performed on their fractured left hand and fractured left fibula, respectively, and team doctors told the players that their injuries are healing as expected.

"Everything is as scheduled," said Rodriguez, who was hit by a Felix Hernandez pitch on July 24 in Seattle. "We talked about four to six weeks at the beginning, and I think Tuesday is the four-week mark. We're right on schedule."

Rodriguez said that he will spend the next few days strengthening and expects to be re-evaluated during Thursday's off-day between series at Chicago and Cleveland. He has been keeping his arm in shape, throwing both baseballs and footballs often.

...

Pettitte returned from that Seattle trip having been told that he pushed himself too hard, hoping to accelerate his recovery from a June 27 broken ankle, but that swelling has subsided and doctors are closer to permitting him to resume pitching on a mound.

"Everything looks good -- it's healing up," Pettitte said. "Obviously, like I told you all before, I'm excited when they tell me, 'OK you can go on the mound and see how it feels.'

"But I've got to get on flat ground. I'll do that on this road trip, and hopefully after this road trip, it'll all be good. I'm hoping maybe right when we get back from this road trip, I might be able to get back on a mound."

Hoch also reported that Mark Teixeira expects to return to the lineup tonight in Chicago, saying on Sunday "That's the goal. I could probably push it today, but we don't want any setbacks. We don't want anything to get inflamed again. So we're going to take it easy today."

All good news. With the way the Yanks have been playing the idea of getting these three back for the stretch run should put a smile on every Yankees fan's face.

Report: A-Rod Could Return in Mid-September

From George King:

Alex Rodriguez went through conditioning drills, swung a bat with one hand and threw across the infield yesterday.

Rodriguez is on the disabled list with a fractured left hand and weeks away from being ready to come off the shelf.

“He is doing conditioning and throwing and doing everything he can to stay in shape,’’ manager Joe Girardi said yesterday. “When it comes time to swing a bat, it shouldn’t be long.’’

Rodriguez could return in mid-September.

Though the Yankees miss Rodriguez’ right-handed presence in the middle of the lineup, Eric Chavez and Jayson Nix were hitting a combined .385 (10-for-26) with three homers and seven RBIs as starters in the nine games Rodriguez has missed.

The Stats Say The Yankees Won't Miss A-Rod

Here's the story from ESPN Stats & Info: it was worth passing along:

According to AccuScore, which utilizes 10,000 computer simulations, A-Rod’s absence won’t impact the Yankees much. Assuming Rodriguez misses eight weeks, it won’t cost the Yankees even a full game. Regardless of whether he’s there or not, the odds of them winning the AL East are still better than 97 percent.

In terms of history, it’s unlikely the Yankees will surrender their eight-game lead in the AL East. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the largest lead the Yankees have had at any time in a season in which they did not finish in first place was six games in 1933 (June 6-7).

...

The Yankees haven’t been affected much over the past three seasons when Rodriguez is not in the lineup. Since 2010, they’re a combined 63-29 (.685 win percentage) without him and 188-142 (.570 win percentage) with him.

A-Rod’s power has declined significantly over the years. Since winning his last MVP in 2007, his at-bats per home run rate has more than doubled. He hit a homer once every 10.8 at-bats in 2007 but has homered once every 23.5 at-bats this season.

His slugging percentage has taken a hit recently as well. His .449 slugging percentage this season is his lowest since 1995 (.408).

Entering Wednesday, 16 third basemen were qualified for the batting title. The cumulative batting average and slugging percentage of those 16 players is slightly better than Rodriguez’s numbers this season.

The article also pointed out that Eric Chavez has actually had better numbers than A-Rod this season in several key areas, including slugging percentage, home run percentage, isolated power and strikeout percentage. As I stated yesterday, my main concern with Chavez is his health, but if he can remain in the lineup I think he’ll handle replacing A-Rod pretty well.

Some of these stats are easy to push aside. The teams wins and losses with and without A-Rod are, for the most part, irrelevant. Unless we're going to sit here and break down the winning percentage of the teams the Yankees played with and without him, and then factor that into the results, you're not really getting the entire story.

The most important thing that the stats are neglecting is that Rodriguez was finally starting to get locked in at the plate. In his last 11 games, he was hitting .349/.391/.581 with 2 HR 6 RBI and 4 doubles. So, if we're talking about replacing that version of A-Rod then Chavez can't come close. But as we've seen, Rodriguez clearly not the player he used to be so it's very possible that the hot stretch wasn't going to last.

At the end of the day, I do believe the Yankees will be fine without Alex. Will it cost them a game or two here or there? Maybe. But they've survived losing the greatest closer of all time, their starting left fielder, a top of the rotation starter, and various other relievers and position players for weeks at a time, so they'll survive this.

.... Unless Chavez gets hurt. Then they may have a few issues.

Cashman: Chavez is our replacement for A-Rod

From Wallace Matthews:

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said he has found a replacement for Alex Rodriguez without even making a phone call to another team.

"Eric Chavez is the solution," Cashman told ESPNNewYork.com on Wednesday, one day after Rodriguez suffered a broken hand after being hit by a pitch from Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez.

"Chavez is the solution and Jayson Nix is the solution, and whoever we have in the farm system are going to have to be the solution," Cashman said. "I'm very comfortable with Eric Chavez as Alex's replacement."

...

"Because we're going to get him back, I don't see this as a particular area of need," Cashman said. "It doesn't mean I won't listen."

Among the third baseman expected to be available at the trade deadline are Chase Headley of the San Diego Padres, Placido Polanco and Ty Wigginton of the Philadelphia Phillies and Chone Figgins of the Mariners.

"I'm not about to gut my farm system for any of those guys," Cashman said.

...

Chavez's injury history makes him a risk as an everyday player, but Cashman is confident in the veteran's durability.

"That's his job, to fill in as needed," he said. "That's what he's here for. I expect him to be able to play third base for us every day, and to play it well."

I'm not sure this is the right move, or non-move, for the Yankees. Mainly because I'm concerned about how fragile Chavez has become and the dire situation they'll be in if he does go down. However, from everything I've read today the asking price for all viable replacements is pretty high and Cashman is probably right that it's not worth gutting the system for any of those guys.

Yankees Will Call Up Ramiro Pena

Also, here's a list of available third basemen on the trade market via MLBTradeRumors.

A-Rod Headed to the DL with a Broken Hand

This team's luck is just awful. Here's the most recent bad news, via Marc Carig:

Alex Rodriguez will go onto the disabled list after suffering a non-displaced fracture in his left hand. Rodriguez was hit on the hand by an 88-mph changeup from Felix Hernandez in the eighth inning of Tuesday night's 4-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners.

The fracture is on the pinky side of the hand.

Over the last 10 days Rodriguez had started to find his stroke at the plate, hitting .341 with two homers six RBI. So, this couldn't have come at a worse time for Alex and the Yankees.

Eric Chavez spoke after the game about a similar injury he had that cost him 33 games in 2004 so I'm guessing A-Rod will be out anywhere from 4-6 weeks.

Yanks Tell Reggie To Stay Away

From Buster Olney:

After Reggie Jackson's disparaging comments about Alex Rodriguez and others last week, he was essentially benched by the Yankees and told to stay away from team events indefinitely, according to AL sources.

Jackson was not in Boston over the weekend, where the Yankees played the Red Sox.

Jackson, a special adviser for the Yankees, usually is around the team.

But at this time, there is enough anger at the Hall of Famer from within the organization that the team has decided that he should keep his distance until otherwise determined.

"A cooling off period, but not a death penalty," a source with knowledge of the team's thinking called it when speaking to ESPNNewYork.com's Andrew Marchand.

At some point, Jackson is expected to be back with the team, the source said.

Olney also mentions that Jackson apologized to Joe Girardi and other team officials, as well as A-Rod himself.

To me, Reggie did nothing wrong and shouldn't have been forced to apologize or stay away from the team. After all, the quote in the article was pretty harmless:

"Al's a very good friend. But I think there are real questions about his numbers. As much as I like him, what he admitted about his usage does cloud some of his records."

The Yankees are blowing this whole thing way out of proportion.

Would The Boss have reacted this way? I don't think so, and I'd bet he'd be pretty disappointed.

The only thing that matters here is that Alex Rodriguez brought this on himself when he decided to cheat the game, and he's not the victim here. If anyone is, it's Reggie.

... Well, and maybe some of those HOF'ers he ripped in the article, too.

Alex Rodriguez: Clubhouse Leader?

From Tim Brown:

On the morning of the first game they’d play since Game 5, the night the New York Yankees all went home for the winter, Alex Rodriguez stood before them and, according to witnesses, gave the sort of speech that wouldn’t have been possible five years ago.

Somebody else would have told the Yankees it was time to commit in body and soul to the next eight months.

Somebody with credibility would have reminded them who they are. Somebody with clubhouse authority would have challenged them. Somebody who’d endured the terrible stuff, and drank the sweet stuff, and tested out as an honest-to-goodness Yankee. That guy.

For long enough, that wasn’t A-Rod, not in their eyes and not in his own heart.

But on Friday morning, hours before they’d open their spring schedule against the University of South Florida and start all over again, sources said Rodriguez commanded the room for more than 10 minutes like he never had before.

“It was great,” said one witness. “I’d never seen that out of him before. I didn’t know he had it in him.”

...

Rodriguez wouldn’t talk about his speech, or confirm he even gave one.

According to those in the clubhouse, however, Rodriguez talked about being “all in.” He advised them that, on that subject, there was only black or white, “no gray.” He said each of them – from the biggest superstar to the last guy on the 40-man – knew what “all in” meant. They’d had to have been “all in” just to sit in that room, to make it this far. And that every man knew exactly what his “all in” amounted to, in work ethic and dedication and sacrifice. He asked them to find that within them, to bring it every day, all season long, for the good of the Yankees. For the good of themselves.

“Amazing,” a witness said. “The guys were drawn to him.”

Somebody had to say it.

And, on a Friday leading to his 19th big-league season, Alex Rodriguez became that somebody.

I have to say that I'm impressed that A-Rod has built up enough locker room cred and confidence to pull something like this. Brown is right, this wouldn't have been possible a few years ago. By all accounts he did exactly what a leader is supposed to in one of these types of speeches: let everyone on the team know what the mission is, how to accomplish that, and get everyone on the same page. The all in mentality is a good way of doing that.

"All in" was the battle cry for the NY Football Giants this year and we all saw how they not only bought into the idea, but then took that all for one, one for all attitude and ran through the NFL's best on their way to a 4th Super Bowl.

Something that was lost when Jorge Posada retired was that vocal leader in the clubhouse (according to everything I've read Jeter is a much more quiet leader) and maybe A-Rod is looking to fill that void. And that, to me, is a very good thing. Especially if the team is open to him doing such a thing, which seems to be the case.

Good job, Alex. Now just stay healthy.

Jeter & A-Rod Respond to the Newest Idiot in Beantown

If you didn't know, new Red Sox manager, Bobby Valentine, has already gotten into the habit of bashing the Yankees every two weeks for apparently no reason whatsoever. His most recent barrage came yesterday when he questioned whether the Yankees actually practiced the flip-play and also said Jeter was "out of position" on the play. He also said that Jason Varitek was a "man's man" who was "able to beat up Alex", obviously referring to the 2004 brawl when Varitek tackled A-Rod while wearing full catcher's gear.

Here are the responses via Mark Feinsand:

Derek Jeter had a question for Bobby Valentine Wednesday after hearing what the Red Sox manager had to say about his legendary flip play.

“Why are we talking about this?” Jeter asked.

...

“I don’t know Bobby well enough to tell you what he’s trying to do,” Jeter said. “I could care less, I guess that’s the best way to put it. I just don’t know why it’s being brought up. I don’t know what to tell you.”

Jeter said the Yankees have practiced the play since he first came up. His job is to be on the first base line to cut off a throw and get the runner at third – “I don’t flip it home when we practice it,” he said – so whether Valentine believes that or not didn’t matter.

“Am I supposed to convince him?” Jeter said. Asked if he was annoyed or amused by the comments, the Captain replied, ““I’m indifferent, really. Think about it. We don’t practice it? We do; you guys see it. What else can I say? I was out of position? I was where I was supposed to be.”

...

“But who cares?” Jeter added. “Why are we talking about this? He must be bored over there, huh?”

...

“I’m not going to win many battles here when it comes to words – especially against Bobby,” A-Rod said. “I have my new press secretary that should be landing in the next couple days – Reggie Jackson – so I’ll let him handle that.”

Jeter wondered why the 2004 scrap was brought up in the first place.

“Talking about Varitek, you point out the good things,” Jeter said. “Varitek had an unbelievable career, I’m happy for him, I enjoyed competing against him all these year; that’s what we should be talking about as opposed to what Bobby said.”

Sure, this fool might be adding a little fire to the rivalry, but it's freaking February and obviously this guy is far too preoccupied with the Yanks. I guess that's just what happens when you put on those Red Socks.

The DH....Why Not A-Rod?

I can't believe it, but we are now just one month away from pitchers and catchers reporting, signaling the start of spring training. Here in New York it's still clearly winter, with snow expecting to hit sometime tonight. But for now, here's some food for thought on a possible candidate for the Yankees' DH spot - Alex Rodriguez.

You already know my feelings on A-Rod and his contract, and I feel now is the time to move him to DH. Before the trade last week that sent Jesus Montero to Seattle, it seemed pretty certain A-Rod would still play third base regularly, getting a start or two at DH per week. But now with a vacant DH slot and Eduardo Nunez ready to become an everyday player, it wouldn't be too crazy to think this could happen and greatly benefit the Bombers.

Don't get me wrong, A-Rod is still an above average fielder at third, and actually made some great plays in the postseason, but let's get real. He is 37, and hasn't played 140 games since 2007. Everyone says he's once again "100%" and is ready for a "huge comeback", but we heard the exact same talk before the Yankees opened camp last season. What happened? He played in 99 games and couldn't hit a home run to save his life in the second half.

Making A-Rod the DH would keep him fresh all year long, and wouldn't give him a real risk of getting hurt. A return to hitting 30 home runs would be likely, and that's up and above any production guys like Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, or Vladimir Gurrerro would provide.

Also something that would be hidden in this potential move is making Eduardo Nunez the starting third baseman. He's a terrific hitter and has been working hard to improve his defense. He would be a solid bat in the bottom third of the Yankees lineup, and would finally give the 25-year old the opportunity he definitely deserves. Also, the Yankees statistically were way better with Nunez in the lineup, whether playing for Jeter or A-Rod.

With A-Rod's ugly contract running through the 2017 season, it is inevitable he will soon become the regular DH for the foreseeable future. But for the benefit of the team and his personal production, Alex needs to make this move now. He's always been a self-centered, "I care about stats more than the team" guy anyway.

Harper on A-Rod's Terrible Terrible Contract

From John Harper:

In case you’d forgotten, A-Rod still has six years remaining on his contract, which means he’ll turn 42 in July of the final year of his deal, 2017, at which point he’ll still earn $20 million, down from the $31 million he made last year.

By then, well, the only question was supposed to be how many more home runs had Rodriguez hit than Barry Bonds in surpassing him to become baseball’s all-time home run leader. Now the question, after four straight injury-marred seasons, isn’t just whether A-Rod will get near Bonds’ record but whether he can play anywhere near his superstar level of old.

It’s not about his bat speed but simply his ability to stay healthy. He was an iron man for much of his career, averaging 158 games played from 2001 through 2007. Of course, we know that he had some help in at least some of those years, since A-Rod has admitted using steroids from 2001-03.

But in any case, injuries have prevented him from playing more than 138 games in any of the last four seasons. Because he needed arthroscopic knee surgery last summer and then dealt with a thumb injury upon his return, A-Rod last season played in only 99 games, a career-low, while hitting only 16 home runs.

The drop-off in power last year was clearly linked to his knee injury. Rodriguez, remember, had a spectacular spring training last March, hitting with an explosiveness in his swing that had been absent since hip surgery in the spring of 2009. Hitting coach Kevin Long was so wowed that he was predicting a return to 2007-like numbers; A-Rod hit 54 home runs that year in winning his third MVP award.

So you could make a case that Rodriguez should return to form. He insisted the knee surgery, which repaired torn cartilage, wasn’t anything serious enough to limit him in the years to come, and indeed, it’s the most common of surgeries for pro athletes.

Only now you have to wonder. If it was still enough of an issue for him to seek radical treatment earlier this month, following Kobe Bryant’s advice in getting Orthokine treatment on his right knee — and left shoulder — then it can hardly be dismissed as something that won’t bother him in the future.

We can clearly see the side-effects of A-Rod's contract with the way the Yankees have handled this offseason, and I suspect that won't change for the life of the deal.

It's a deal that, in my opinion, will go down as the worst contract ever handed out in baseball, if not all of sports. I had hoped the Yankees wouldn't let it change the way they do business, but obviously it has.

Kobe Bryant's Assist To A-Rod

From Mike Puma:

According to multiple sources, the Yankees third baseman recently followed a recommendation from Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers star, and traveled to Germany for an experimental therapy called Orthokine on his bothersome right knee.

The innovative procedure was performed on Rodriguez — with the Yankees’ blessing — within the last month, according to one source. The Yankees first cleared the procedure with the commissioner’s office to avoid the appearance that Rodriguez might be receiving impermissible treatment.

Rodriguez, the source said, would not have had the procedure without the Yankees’ permission. Last season, the team was blindsided by a report that pitcher Bartolo Colon had undergone controversial stem-cell treatment.

Orthokine involves taking blood from the patient’s arm and spinning it in a centrifuge, a machine used in laboratories to spin objects around a fixed axis. The serum is then injected into the affected area — in this case, Rodriguez’s knee.

Bryant underwent the same treatment last summer to try to strengthen his right knee. He also reportedly had the procedure done in October to treat a chronic left ankle ailment.

It remains unclear if the procedure actually works long-term.

Let's hope it does work. With the lack of any significant moves this offseason the Yanks are going to need a pretty big year from A-Rod.