When the reeling of Alex Rodriguez hit an apex, the New York Yankees misled fans into thinking that a platoon was the immediate answer.
While the New York Yankees continue to scuffle, the same questions continue to arise including confusion regarding the 25-man roster. The organization continues to purely mislead fans and a recent dilemma serves as direct proof.It does not take a great mind to come up with the fact that Alex Rodriguez’s productive days are behind him. The soon-to-be 41-year-old’s .220/.256/.382 slash can attest to that.
Recently it reached to an abrupt point where the Yanks simply could not run him out there everyday. Joe Girardi addressed the situation at hand, essentially implying that a platoon was being put forth.
However, as A-Rod continues to spend day after day — seven out of the last eight games — on the bench, it provides clarity to the situation the front office is dealing with. A platoon at this stage is irritably putting Rodriguez in the lineup around twice a week, and less with the recent exploitation of Carlos Beltran’s slight hamstring injury.
Brian Cashman, Hal Steinbrenner, and everyone up the food chain are scared. They may not act as such, but they are.
Currently residing on their roster is a washed up $21 million-man as a pinch-hitter. He cannot field, he certainly cannot run, and his inability to hit at a high level makes his presence irrelevant.
In the short-term, dodging the issue has been the answer. Running Beltran out there as the DH against as many right-handers as possible provides an immediate solution.
However, the long-term answer is being evaded.
In reality, it is not the righties that are keeping A-Rod off the field, it is merely the excuse the front office is handing down. That same front office currently too timid to release a man who is doing more harm than good by remaining in a roster spot.
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Sure, Beltran continues to be productive as he continues what is now an All-Star campaign. With that said, he is by no means the focal point of the issue.
He should be the designated hitter. If that is what keeps his potent bat in the lineup, the Yankees should go out of their way to make it happen.
Part of going out of their way has to be establishing what was an ill-advised claim about a platoon. If A-Rod is going to play, and play consistently, he should be on the roster. If not, there is no room for a guy who has no value other than a struggling bat. There can be no in between in this enigmatic absurdity.
Sitting him down night in and night out only makes the inevitable ending of a longstanding relationship all the worse. A continued saga will drag out, no chance to right the ship will be received, and a 25th man with no purpose will continue to lurk.
It is not a split, it is an dramatically leaning tide. It is not a platoon, it is rather a cover-up.
The New York Yankees and their personnel need to stop putting themselves to shame with an ongoing trend that is Alex Rodriguez. They need to go back to square one, or the mindset transpiring before he had a renaissance 2015 season: treat him like any other player.
Any full-time DH producing at this dreadful a rate would be in search of a major league job, not mysteriously riding a major league bench.
Management and the front office have lied to fans and any outsiders surrounding the franchise. Yes, they want A-Rod gone. Can they make it happen? They can, but they absolutely will not.
Why? Simply due to the fact that a bold move potentially putting the New York Yankees in question is what they have been trying to avoid for years.
The same reason they will not rebuild their team, sacrifice one season, or witness some empty seats in August and September lies in this direct situation.
This is not a difficult question at hand, it is a concealment.
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