An AL talent evaluator who tracked Derek Jeter for three games in Toronto saw some positive signs from the shortstop swinging the bat.
“He looked a little rusty but in the few days during batting practice and the games it looked like the bat started to get more life in it,’’ the scout said.
Jeter (strained right calf) returned from the disabled list Monday night and played in all three games on Toronto’s artificial turf. He went 3-for-12 (.250) and fanned four times.
Asked what he saw from Jeter in the field, the scout said, “He wasn’t moving real well but the actions are there.’’
As for Alex Rodriguez, the scout said Rodriguez remains a factor at the plate even though he isn’t what he used to be following hip surgery.
“Right now he is an average ballplayer, but he still has a presence about him,’’ the scout said of Rodriguez, who is nine homers shy of tying Willie Mays for fourth place on the all-time homer list at 660. “Whatever you want to say about him, he is still a factor on that team. Pitchers try to pitch him so good they make mistakes.’’
* Had Robinson Cano and Eduardo Nunez not been hurt Tuesday night, it was possible manager Joe Girardi would have rested either Rodriguez or Jeter Wednesday night. Each played all three games in the field.
Cano (left hand contusion) hopes to return Friday night against the Orioles but won’t know until he takes batting practice. Nunez (right knee) underwent an MRI exam Thursday that was negative. He was in the starting lineup Wednesday but scratched when he felt discomfort running.
Before yesterday’s test, Nunez estimated he might miss two weeks. Nunez has a history of being out for a long time when injured.
Last year at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre he missed more than two months with an inflamed right thumb. This year he spent two months on the big league DL with a strained left oblique.
* Even though they are thin in the infield and might not have Cano and Nunez tonight, the Yankees don’t plan on promoting an infielder from the minor leagues before the rosters expand Sunday.
The decision likely involves utility infielder Alberto Gonzalez not being on the 40-man roster.
If Cano and Nunez can’t play, that would force Girardi to start corner infielder Mark Reynolds at second for the second straight game.
Reynolds handled the position well Wednesday, but playing without a genuine backup infielder is a risk.
* Reynolds will face the Orioles, the team he played for last year, Friday when Baltimore opens a three-game series in The Bronx.
“It will be good to see those guys, but we can’t lose too many more games if we are going to have a chance,’’ Reynolds said of the Yankees’ wilting playoff chances.