CLEVELAND — Alex Rodriguez started taking dry swings and participating in soft-toss hitting drills Friday, and his fractured left hand will be examined Monday by Dr. Chris Ahmad.
It’s hoped the Yankees’ team physician will allow Rodriguez to increase his level of activity and put him closer to returning to the Yankees’ lineup, which needs his presence in the middle of the order and at third base.
The Yankees are 15-14 without Rodriguez after Saturday night’s 3-1 loss to the Indians and have scored eight runs in the past four games.
After Eric Chavez, Casey McGehee and Jayson Nix initially did very well replacing Rodriguez at third, the trio has slipped lately. The replacements are hitting a combined .086 (3-for-35) with one RBI in the past nine games. Chavez is 1-for-17, McGehee 2-for-15 and Nix 0-for-3 as third basemen or pinch-hitting for the starting third baseman. All three hits are singles — two by McGehee and one by Chavez last night. The Yankees are 3-6 in that stretch.
Rodriguez has been out since July 24, and nobody knows what he will look like when he returns. In the 11 games before the injury, Rodriguez hit .349 (15-for-43) with two homers and six RBIs.
Rodriguez is facing the same rehab dilemma Andy Pettitte is: the possibility of there being no minor-league games to participate in when they are ready to play.
They are eligible to play in minor-league postseason games, but there is no guarantee those seasons will still be alive when Rodriguez and Pettitte are ready. All three of the Yankees’ top minor-league clubs are in strong contention for playoff spots.
Pettitte went through a 40-pitch flat-ground session Saturday. Twenty pitches were with his legs spread to build arm strength. Another 20 were from the wind-up to test his broken left ankle with a bit more intensity than he did Wednesday.
Pettitte is hoping Ahmad clears him to begin working off a bullpen mound this week.
“Based on what they tell me will tell me when I can get on the mound,’’ said Pettitte, who is also aware his ankle may be sore after a bullpen session.
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Derek Jeter’s 2-for-5 game raised his MLB-leading hit total to 173.
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One day after going 7 ¹/₃ innings in the first start off the disabled list, CC Sabathia played catch and said his left elbow, the reason he landed on the shelf, felt good.
Sabathia will throw in the bullpen before today’s game. That will give the Yankees a better indication whether their ace’s elbow issue is completely behind them.
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Robinson Cano started the season hitting three homers in the first 38 games, so having only one in the previous 20 games isn’t alarming.
Cano went 2-for-3 last night to raise his average to .292 (21-for-72) during that time. Nevertheless, 14 of the hits are singles and he is 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position. He is homerless in 35 at-bats.
Most alarming is Cano hasn’t driven in a run since plating two on Aug. 12. Since not starting Aug. 15 or Aug. 16 because of a stiff neck, Cano is hitting .241 (7-for-29).
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Freddy Garcia starts Sunday looking to rebound from a poor performance Monday against the White Sox in Chicago. Garcia, who has won his last three decisions, gave up five runs, six hits and four walks in 4 ¹/₃ innings, easily his worst outing since rejoining the rotation July 2.
Not working in Garcia’s favor is he has won one of the last seven starts against the Indians since September 2005. He posted a 1-3 record and 6.41 ERA in those seven games.
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Pedro Feliciano’s return to the big leagues after missing all of the past two seasons with a shoulder problem remains a long shot.
The lefty reliever allowed two runs in one inning Friday night in his first appearance for Single-A Tampa after recording four scoreless frames in the rookie-level Gulf Coast League.