So Alex Rodriguez is back. All goodness should return to the Yankee universe, right? Well, this was not the case in a 12-2 massacre by the Baltimore Orioles.

A-Rod did hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning. But that doesn’t match 12 runs scored by the other team. Yes, it’s great to have a star hitter like Rodriguez, but when all else stinks, there’s not a whole lot the guy can do.

Baseball is perhaps one of the most team centered sports. You can’t rely on a Michael Jordon night after night to bring home the wins. Even ace pitchers play every five games or so. Baseball requires depth, and perhaps this is where the Yankees are falling short.

Filip Bondy of the Daily News proclaimed:

“Lousy pitching…questionable hustle…bad karma …a hopeless, early deficit. Robinson Cano failed to cover second base on what should have been a fielder’s choice and third out . . . Mike Mussina blew apart like so many Yankee starters this season, only worse . . . Another distressing error from Johnny Damon followed in the second, [bringing] another two unearned runs.”

What’s a team to do? I do think we need to give manager Joe Girardi some time to make this team his own, but I do think the responsibility falls on him. And the expectations are huge. New York Yankee ticket buying fans expect a winning team, and 20-25 doesn’t cut it.

Alex Rodriguez feels great. But the doctor is still telling him that he’s not ready to hit the field quite yet. This is not the news that Joe Girardi was hoping for, but one that they must accept.

The Yankees have gone 5-8 without the big slugger at bat. Which means that they’d like him back on the offense as soon as possible. But they certainly don’t want him back before he’s truly ready, risking his presence for the long term.

They learned this lesson the hard way. The injury occurred back on April 20th. He sat out of for 3 games, returning for 4, aggravating the injury and making it worse. They’re not bound to make the same mistake twice, erring on the side of extra caution.

The injury was initially diagnosed as a Grade 2 tear. It’s now being called a Grade 1 injury, which means it’s an improvement. It’s healing and moving in the right direction. Just not nearly as fast as everyone except the Yankee opponents would hope for.

The Daily News quotes Rodriguez:

“I don’t feel it. I think it’s more precaution now than anything else. It’s frustrating, but everything happens for a reason.”

It’s looking like he may be able to play in a pair of rehab games this weekend, with the hope to see him back in the lineup on Tuesday next week against the Orioles.

Yankee fans who hope to see the dynamic MVP in action again can purchase their future NY tickets online with a little more confidence.

Woody Allen said, “80% of success is showing up.” This may be Alex Rodriguez’s motto. When asked recently what his goal was for the season, he said it was the same as every season—to play in every single game.

An article by Kevin Kernan at the New York Post explains what this means. He quotes Rodriguez as saying, “I want to be out there for my teammates every day. That’s the thing I take the most pride in, being a team player and being in the lineup, whether you are banged up or not.”

Kernan interviews A-Rod’s high school coach, Rich Hoffman, who explains the reasons for this star’s success. He explains that most players with his talents and accolades get lazy. But Hoffman explains, ”I gave him a compliment, he tried harder, he tried to make the compliment look good, and it gave him some confidence, a lot of guys if you praise them like that, they’ll coast.” Rodriguez is a player not about to go on cruise control.

A-Rod fits well into the strategy employed by new manger Joe Girardi, who’s bringing a stronger emphasis to conditioning. Training has always been integral to Rodriguez’s success. After having one of his best years, Kernan reports that he’s working even harder in his training. It’s an inspiration, and just another reason to buy NY Yankee tickets this season.