Alex Rodriguez had to exit Sunday afternoon’s game because of apparent oblique stiffness, an MRI to come.
The New York Yankees’ Sunday afternoon home game against their American League East rival Tampa Bay Rays didn’t go over so well for New York. Tampa Bay crushed Yankees starter Michael Pineda for 10 hits and seven earned runs in five innings pitched.
It also seems that slugger Alex Rodriguez may have injured himself, having to exit the game early with obvious oblique stiffness. He will have an MRI on the soft tissue to assess if he had any damage done to his core.
Yankees announce Alex Rodriguez exited game with left oblique stiffness. Will go for MRI#yankees
— Meredith Marakovits (@M_Marakovits) April 24, 2016
Dustin Ackley had to replace Rodriguez in the bottom of the sixth inning, but was able to get a pinch hit single filling in former the aging Yankees slugger. Rodriguez will turn 41 years old this July.
Rodriguez apparently tweaked his oblique taking some practice swings in the team’s batting cage in between his second and third at bat. If Rodriguez has to miss significant time from aggravating his oblique, that may not bode well for either him or the Yankees.
Entering play Sunday, Rodriguez has struggled mightily at the plate as the Yankees’ designated hitter. He was hitting .132, with an on-base percentage of .233, and a slugging percentage of .245 in 53 plate appearances in 14 games. Two of Rodriguez’s seven hits this season have come from the long ball. He has five runs batted in to go with his pair of home runs.
The Yankees entered play Sunday two games below .500 at 7-9 and in fourth place in the American League East, four games back of the first place Baltimore Orioles. While he is in the twilight of his big league career, hopefully for the Yankees nothing serious came about with Rodriguez’s oblique during Sunday’s game versus the Rays.
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