Alex Rodriguez vows to come back strong from a fractured bone in his left hand no matter how long he is out.
Yet, of all the injuries a baseball player can suffer, those involving the hands are the trickiest.
“It’s hard to perform if your hands aren’t healthy,’’ hitting coach Kevin Long said. “You use them for everything. There are different levels of pain threshold and what you can do, but when you have a broken bone, you can’t play. It’s a matter of time to heal.’’
On the eve of a series against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium that lacks the normal buzz because the visitors are a game below .500 and 10 1/2 lengths behind the AL East-leading Yankees, Rodriguez was examined by Dr. Chris Ahmad yesterday in Manhattan and had the splint, which had been put on his hand Tuesday in Seattle, replaced with a cast.
According to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, who Wednesday estimated Rodriguez would be out eight weeks, surgery will not be required.
Rodriguez was hit on the outside of his left hand by an 88-mph pitch from Felix Hernandez on Tuesday night in Seattle and suffered a non-displaced fracture of the fifth metacarpal bone.
This is the second straight season in which Rodriguez has battled a left hand injury. Last season, he suffered a sprained left thumb fielding a grounder at Minnesota on Aug. 21 in his first game back after knee surgery.
Rodriguez was hitting .290 at the time. He missed 15 games and finished with a .276 average. Following the thumb problem, which he said could have put him on the disabled list, he hit three homers and drove in 10 runs in 18 games.
“[It’s] totally different this time,’’ Rodriguez said on the way out of the Safeco Field clubhouse Wednesday.
With Wednesday’s trading deadline approaching, Cashman’s first inclination is to see if Eric Chavez and Jayson Nix can handle third base in Rodriguez’s absence.
“I haven’t made calls on anybody,’’ Cashman said yesterday. “I haven’t called one club.’’
Teams have called Cashman, offering to talk about players, but he has no interest in any of them. Ty Wigginton and Marco Scutaro are among those available.
Chavez started in Wednesday’s 5-2 victory and went 0-for-2. Nix delivered the big blow as a pinch-hitter, a three-run double in the eighth that erased a 2-1 deficit.
Neither Chavez nor Nix is Rodriguez, even if the third baseman, who turns 37 today, isn’t having a signature season. He was, however, in the midst of an 11-game stretch in which he was 15-for-43 (.349) and in which even his outs were loud.
There are risks for Cashman in letting the trade deadline pass without a move, although it’s likely players who can help will clear waivers.
Chavez has already appeared in 65 games (four starts at first, 24 at third and 14 as the designated hitter). Not since appearing in 90 games in 2007 has Chavez, who has a history of back and neck problems that have cost him a large chunk of playing time, played that many games. Manager Joe Girardi said it’s important to watch Chavez carefully and for Chavez to be honest with him about his body.
Nix is the perfect utility player who is always prepared and can play third, short, second and left field. However, his biggest contribution to a team is as a backup. What he can do as part of a platoon against lefties is the unknown.