NEW YORK — Usually a manager may advise a player if he’s moving a player to a different spot in the lineup.
On Thursday, the Yankees made a change by moving designated hitter Alex Rodriguez from seventh to second. However, Rodriguez first found out from a team broadcaster and then seemed humbled that he had earned enough trust this early in his return.
Hours before hitting his first home run in over 19 months during a 6-3 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, Rodriguez reacted by saying aloud “Are you kidding me” when he saw the lineup card on the clubhouse door.
The reason was two-fold. The Yankees batted a mostly right-handed lineup against their first left-handed starting pitcher of the season. That meant that left-handed-hitting left fielder Brett Gardner was among those getting a night off.
“I didn’t tell him,” manager Joe Girardi said. “I like the way he’s swinging the bat, so we moved him up today.”
Rodriguez took a .167 average into Thursday and following the home run along with two strikeouts he is up to .222.
On Wednesday, he was 0-for-4 with two fly outs and two strikeouts while seeing 16 pitches. On Monday, he was 1-for-2 with a walk and saw 17 pitches.
Thursday marked the 517th time that Rodriguez batted second and it was his 122nd home run out of that spot. It also was where he batted during 14 of his final 15 games in 2013, when he was 8-for-48 (.167) with three home runs and 17 strikeouts.
“Joe and I have a long history,” Rodriguez said. “We’ve been through a lot together; we won a championship together so I think there’s a lot of trust on both sides. Whether you’re hitting second or seventh, third or fourth, the goal doesn’t change. You have to help the team win.”
In his first at-bat, Rodriguez nearly hit a double down the line when he fouled a first-pitch fastball off just by third. He then struck out swinging on a changeup that featured a sharp break.
In the third, Rodriguez fell behind 0-2 but that at-bat was negated by center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury getting caught stealing second. An inning later, Rodriguez saw six pitches and walked and then in the sixth produced enough bat speed for his long-awaited home run.