MLB

Now that A-Rod is shutting up, time for Yankees to put up

Thank Ryan Dempster for waking up the Yankees, and thank Alex Rodriguez for putting a sock in it.

“You don’t want to give people a reason to kick your [butt],’’ CC Sabathia told The Post last night about Dempster taking four pot shots at A-Rod.

Dempster gave the Yankees that butt-kicking reason, and they have responded, moving to 4-0 since the Sunday night incident in Boston.

Last night’s 4-2 win over the Blue Jays was full of milestones and magic at Yankee Stadium as Ichiro Suzuki picked up his 4,000th hit as a pro — 2,722 in the major leagues — on a first-inning single. That also gave him one more major league hit than Lou Gehrig. Imagine that.

The Yankees certainly have been kicking the Blue Jays’ butt all over the yard, moving to 11-1 against Toronto this season.

Alfonso Soriano’s two-run home run off R.A. Dickey in the eighth snapped a 2-2 tie. The Yankees also got a huge effort from lefty David Huff, who picked up his first win as a Yankee with five innings of one-hit relief.

The Yankees are trying to take a page from the Dodgers’ playbook. Los Angeles took off on its 43-10 tear shortly after its fight with the Diamondbacks when pitcher Ian Kennedy hit Yasiel Puig and Zack Greinke.

“It’s up to us,’’ Sabathia said.

PHOTOS: POST COVERS A-ROD THROUGH THE YEARS

Rodriguez wants to make that bumpy road he helped build a little smoother. He said it is time to shut down the noise, including the noise from his own lawyers.

It’s about time.

Now we’ll see if A-Rod and his inner circle can stick to that all-baseball promise.

The Yankees have to keep it going, and that is at the root of A-Rod’s smart decision. This new policy, A-Rod said, is out of respect for “my team, my manager and my coaches. We’re in the middle of a very important pennant race.’’

This is something A-Rod had to do. His teammates have backed him and now it is his turn to turn down the extracurricular heat. Knute Rockne once had these magical words, “Let’s win one for the Gipper.’’

Essentially, this is a case of, “Let’s win one for the cheater.’’

At least that’s what MLB is accusing A-Rod of being. He is appealing his 211-game ban and the New Bronx Zoo has been one crazy place since A-Rod returned.

The Yankees have 27 games left against AL East foes and nine outside the division against three last-place teams, three each against the White Sox, Giants and Astros.

“I think if we just keep doing what we’ve been doing the last two weeks or so,’’ said A-Rod, who took a seat on the bench last night after playing in the doubleheader Tuesday. “I think we are playing with a lot of energy, a lot of confidence, a lot of contributions from a lot of people. I think we have an opportunity that is special and that’s why we want to put the focus on the field.’’

“We want to get to the postseason and we realize for us the playoffs start tonight.’’

The Yankees played the kind of game they will have to play to make it to the postseason, getting contributions from many players as they lost another player, Jayson Nix, who started at third in place of A-Rod, with a broken left hand after he was hit by a pitch.

The Yankees are coming together in many ways and it was obvious as they poured out of the dugout to congratulate Ichiro after he ripped his single to left. Accomplishing the feat as a Yankee was amazing for Ichiro, who plans to go back to Cooperstown, a trip he has made about four times, to learn more about Gehrig.

“To pass such a great Yankee was special,’’ Ichiro said through his translator, Allen Turner. “I’ve only been in this Yankee uniform for less than 200 hits, but I felt there have been so many fans watching me and cheering me on. That was very special.’’

One special night.

kevin.kernan@nypost.com