Alex Rodriguez anxious after failing twice in ALDS – MLB News
With the American League Division Series between New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers level at one-each, stakes will be high when home-advantage shifts to the Tigers for game three and four.
One factor which led to Yankees’ failing in game two was the inability of star slugger and third baseman Alex Rodriguez to produce a single hit in his three at-bats. In total, A-Rod has played two games thus far in the playoffs this year and is 0-for-8,
indicating that he no longer has the power and the ability to affect the game significantly.
Rodriguez, however, was not offended by the mocking at Yankee Stadium after his failure to perform in the first two games. He said, “There’s no need to even get emotional. One pitch at a time. One big hit can change this series around. You’ve really got
to stay in the moment, like Coach Jackson says, a little bit of a Zen mode.”
A-Rod has neither blamed his knee nor his thumb for the dismal performance thus far and believes that he needs just one hit to get things going for the remaining games. However, if the Yankees lose another game or two, their post-season campaign might end
as early as game four of the ALDS. Rodriguez has been troubled by the fastballs and the changeups of late. With Justin Verlander scheduled to start game three, A-Rod’s figures might plunge further.
However, having said that, a few solid hits against CC Sabathia in practice might well bring the home-run champion into his groove and kick-start the offensive domination of the Yankees. Rodriguez connected one against Max Scherzer in game two, but the hit
landed safely in the glove of the right out-fielder.
Yankees’ hitting coach Kevin Long supported Rodriguez and believed that he has the ability to resurface from this poor form.
Long said, “To look up at the scoreboard and see that you’re hitting zero, that’s not quite fair because he did have good at-bats yesterday.”
Since guiding the Yankees to the Championship in 2009, A-Rod has featured in 11 post-season games and is batting at .175 with no home-runs to his credit. He will want to end this streak as soon as possible.
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