Pressure Now on Alex Rodriguez to Shake Slump, Carry Yankees Offense
September 7, 2015 · Jacob Shafer · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
When the season began, Alex Rodriguez was an enigma. Then, suddenly, he was an offensive force. Now, as we enter the stretch run, the New York Yankees need him to be a savior.
Sure, if the season were to end today, the Yankees would host the American League Wild Card Game, their first dip into the postseason since 2012.
But New York is well within striking distance of the powerful Toronto Blue Jays in the AL East. It could skip all that do-or-die wild-card nonsense and vault straight to the division series.
For that to happen, though, A-Rod has to rediscover his stroke one more time.
Yes, this is the same guy who limped into 2015 on the heels of a season-long performance-enhancing-drug suspension. He’s the same guy who had a second hip surgery in 2013 and hadn’t eclipsed 20 home runs since 2010.
Back in the spring, it was worth wondering if Rodriguez would offer any meaningful on-field contributions, let alone be an offensive lynchpin.
Then he started hitting, and he didn’t stop.
At the end of July, A-Rod owned a .282/.386/.544 slash line to go along with 24 home runs. And the Yankees, not coincidentally, sat in first place with a six-game cushion.
Over the last month-plus, Rodriguez has taken a dive, and New York has sunk with him.
Since that July 31 high-water mark, A-Rod’s OPS has tumbled almost 80 points. He managed just five extra-base hits in the month of August. And with the Blue Jays charging hard, the Yanks slid into second place.
None of this should come as a shock. Rodriguez is 40, after all. He might simply be wearing down, as Fred Katz of the Washington Post opined:
The problem is that crushing fastballs was [A-Rod’s] strength for most of the season. It was what held his power numbers up and kept him getting on base. Now, it appears a weakness, and that’s a steep drop from the greatness he showed through July.
The logical explanation, as anyone who has ever tried to play an hour of pickup basketball after high school knows: your stamina dips as you get older, and you lose bat speed when you’re tired.
August is hot. It’s deep into the season. Even guys in their prime are tired. And although Rodriguez has been used as a designated hitter all season, 40 years old is still 40 years old.
If that’s the case—if Rodriguez is plumb tuckered out—there might not be a fix, other than an offseason’s worth of rest.
A-Rod isn’t just any player, though, age be damned. Say what you will about his PED use and polarizing public persona (and plenty has been said). He is, inarguably, one of the greatest hitters of this or any generation.
Veteran Mark Teixeira, whose offensive resurgence has mirrored A’Rod’s, is on the shelf with a bone bruise. That puts the onus squarely on Rodriguez’s shoulders to propel the offense.
And, indeed, A-Rod has offered a glimmer of hope to the Bronx faithful, launching a two-run homer Friday and a solo shot Sunday.
Were those dingers harbingers of things to come? Does A-Rod have one more improbable comeback left in him?
On Aug. 28, he sounded an optimistic note to Ryan Hatch of NJ Advance Media.
“You look at what’s happening in the stock market this week—up, down, people can’t even sleep,” Rodriguez said at the time. “In many ways, we’ve been like that this week. But long term, I’m very bullish on the Yankees. I’m bullish on what we can do, and I’m bullish on what I can do.”
Since then, the Yankees have gone 7-2. They’re 1.5 games behind the Blue Jays, whom they’ll welcome for a huge four-game series beginning Sept. 10.
Those games—plus three more between the two teams in Toronto starting Sept. 21—could seal New York’s fate one way or the other.
Will vintage A-Rod show up in time? Don’t count on it—Father Time bats 1.000, after all.
Then again, don’t count him out just yet.
All statistics and standings current as of Sept. 6 and courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise noted.
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