A Trenton for Rehab Games

Non classé - 20 juil 2011

East BayNorth BaySan FranciscoSouth BayNew York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez points towards a fan before the start of a Class AA baseball game with the Trenton Thunder against the Reading Phillies, Friday, Aug. (AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)Yankees fan Matt Kowalski made the short trip to Arm Hammer Park, hoping to catch one more look at Alex Rodriguez.Kowalski got to see what he wanted Rodriguez homered Friday night for the Trenton Thunder, and many in the sellout crowd cheered as the embattled New York star rounded the bases.Baseball’s Cheaters and Villains”I live 20 minutes away, and it could be the last chance to see him play,wholesale jerseys from china ” said Kowalski, of Mount Laurel. “It’s kind of hard to not come out. I’m afraid something’s pending. That’s the rumor, at least.”Major League Baseball is set to suspend 14 players on Monday in the Biogenesis drug case, with Rodriguez likely to get the stiffest penalty. The 38 year old third baseman hasn’t played in the majors this season while recovering from hip surgery and a strained quadriceps.Rodriguez left Friday night after five innings. He later said the Yankees told him the tentative plan is for him to rejoin the big league team in Chicago for Monday night’s game against the White Sox.Rodriguez said he’s confident that will happen “unless I get hit by lightning, and these days you never know.”"I am mentally prepared to play for five more years,” he said. “It’s not time for me to hang it up. I have a lot more left in me. I will keep fighting.”The Yankees have said Rodriguez will play for Trenton on Saturday. The Yankees are in San Diego this weekend.”I wish they would come in a plane tonight. I wish I was in San Diego,” he said. “I can’t wait to see my teammates. I think I can help them. I think I can help them be a better team.”Rodriguez rejoined the Yankees’ Double A farm team earlier in the day, his second minor league rehabilitation assignment during this comeback. After drawing a walk in the first inning, he hit a long two run homer in the third inning against Reading lefty Jesse Biddle, a No. 1 draft pick by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2010.Rodriguez leisurely circled the bases to the cheers of the 8,080 fans, many who applauded in admiration of the shot. The three time American League MVP pointed to someone behind home plate after touching it and headed to the dugout for congratulations by his temporary teammates.There were some boos during the night, too.”I think there were a lot of Phillies fans out there,” he said. “A lot of people cheered when I hit the home run.”In the fifth inning, Rodriguez was called out on strikes. He talked to a couple of fans in the stands, signed a few autographs and gave away his bat, and exited the game.Earlier in the game, Rodriguez knocked down a hard grounder and threw the batter out at first by a half step.This was Rodriguez’s second appearance with the Thunder this season, but the first one in New Jersey.While there were a couple of A Rod jerseys in the stands, there also were Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira tops sprinkled in along with some from Philadelphia players.