According to ESPN News Services, A-Rod's brother is going around telling everyone that Alex will have hip surgery and be out for 10 weeks:

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez will have surgery to remove a cyst from his right hip and will be out 10 weeks, Rodriguez's brother told ESPNdeportes.com on Thursday.

Joe Dunand, Alex Rodriguez's older brother, told Enrique Rojas of ESPNdeportes.com during a phone interview that immediate surgery was recommended, and that rehabilitation would take about 10 weeks.

A source close to the situation told ESPNdeportes.com that the surgery is scheduled for Monday in Colorado.

There has been no confirmation from the Yankees regarding the scheduled surgery.

Is this a good time to look into trading back for Aaron Boone?

Home runs off the bats of Brett Gardner and Alex Rodriguez set the pace for a 6-1 Yankee win over the Blue Jays.

NY Yankees	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Gardner, CF	3	1	1	1	0	0	2	.333
Jackson, A, CF	2	0	1	0	0	1	1	.500
Jeter, SS	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	.333
Pena, SS	2	0	0	0	0	1	2	.000
Cano, 2B	2	2	1	0	0	1	0	.500
Ransom, 2B	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	.000
Rodriguez, A, 3B	1	1	1	2	2	0	0	1.000
Russo, 3B	2	0	0	0	0	1	3	.000
Swisher, RF	1	1	0	1	2	1	1	.000
Curtis, RF	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Duncan, S, DH	3	0	0	0	0	2	4	.000
a-Montero, PH-DH	2	0	1	0	0	1	0	.500
Miranda, 1B	3	0	1	1	0	2	1	.333
Leone, 1B	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	.000
Linden, LF	3	0	1	1	0	1	3	.333
Rodriguez, J, LF	2	0	1	0	0	0	1	.500
Cash, C	3	0	2	0	0	0	0	.667
Pilittere, C	1	0	0	0	0	1	2	.000
Totals	37	6	11	6	5	13	22
a-Singled for Duncan, S in the 7th.
BATTING 2B: Cano (1, Bauer), Jackson, A (1, Hayhurst). HR: Gardner (1, 1st inning off Cecil, 0 on, 0 out), Rodriguez, A (1, 4th inning off Romero, R, 1 on, 0 out). TB: Gardner 4; Jackson, A 2; Jeter; Cano 2; Rodriguez, A 4; Montero; Miranda; Linden; Rodriguez, J; Cash 2. RBI: Gardner (1), Rodriguez, A 2 (2), Linden (1), Swisher (1), Miranda (1). 2-out RBI: Linden. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Gardner; Russo 2; Pilittere. GIDP: Linden. Team LOB: 11. BASERUNNING SB: Cash (1, 2nd base off Burres/Thigpen). FIELDING E: Gardner (1, throw), Pena (1, throw), Leone (1, fielding), Russo (1, throw).

According to John Schlegel, a beat writer for MLB.com, it looks like the drug A-Rod fessed up to taking isn't exactly legal in the Dominican Republic;

Primobolan, understood to be the substance Alex Rodriguez referred to as "boli" and reported by Sports Illustrated to be what triggered his positive drug test in 2003, is not and was not legal in the Dominican Republic, that country's top drug regulatory official told ESPNdeportes.com.

Dr. Pia Veras, who oversees the agency that monitors pharmaceuticals legally sold in the Dominican Republic, refuted the account Rodriguez told during his Tuesday press conference of his cousin getting "boli" legally over the counter in the Dominican Republic.

"What Alex Rodriguez stated at the press conference doesn't make sense," Veras told ESPNdeportes. "It is important for us to clarify that such substance has not been registered and is not currently registered for legal sale in Dominican pharmacies -- not now and the same applies for the years 2001 to 2003."

According to multiple news sources, Yankee skipper Joe Girardi discussed with spring training reporters his plans build his lineup around Alex Rodriguez:

"I went back and forth a little bit," Girardi said. "I just know from catching and managing, you hate teams that do that left-right to you. It's hard to bring in situational lefties. Obviously, [Teixeira] is a plus, because he's a switch-hitter.

"If you want to bring in a righty to face Derek Jeter, you've got to decide what you want to do against Tex. It just makes it harder to navigate through our lineup and set up an opposing team's bullpen."

by Chris Lima
108 Red Stitches

It’s the age-old “who-done-it” question that will continue to baffle until answered.

Who was the snitch, low life, leaky faucet who released Alex Rodriguez’s name to the media, regarding his failed steroid test in 2003?

Lets take a look at all the players in this saga, and examine who might be the culprit;

The Profiteer in the Bookstore;
Isn’t it a little too convenient that Joe Torre and Tom Verducci have a book out that centers around an A-Rod bashing story? Would someone with insider knowledge be willing to sell their soul in order to push a few more books?

Analysis: Torre is one of the most respected men in baseball, so it would be a far reach to assume that he’s the one that leaked A-Rods’ name. Verducci is a reporter held in high regard by fellow peers and wouldn’t waste his credibility just to sell a couple more copies of “The Yankee Years”.

The Spurned Lover in the Bedroom
C-Rod and A-Rod get down and dirty in their divorce, as details of A-Rod’s elicit affairs with blond Canadian bimbos and Madonna are spewed throughout the newspapers over the past year. Could this be a case of a “woman scorned”?

Analysis; C-Rod seems to like the press and limelight (remember that F-You Shirt she wore to the Stadium?). C-Rod’s stock depends on what type of a relationship her and A-Rod had; if Alex talked to her about everything between a pitcher’s tendency to throw him sliders and failed drug tests, then she becomes a prime suspect. If their relationship was “don’t ask, don’t tell” then she quickly falls out of favor.

Jealous Teammate with an Axe (to grind) in the Clubhouse;
Jose Canseco; baseball’s biggest tragedy since the invention of the Designated Hitter. The guy could hit a baseball 500 feet but never got paid accordingly (in his opinion). In his second book “Vindicated” Canseco wrote that A-Rod had taken steroids and his name was left off the Mitchell Report.

Analysis; Canseco, ever ready to make a quick buck due to financial woes, seems to be the most likely candidate out of the group. He’s got the motivation (jealousy, greed, desperation) but the question that remains is; “How did he get the names on the report?”

The Nerd in the Computer Room;
Wouldn’t it be great that we find out the guy who brought A-Rod down was a twenty five year old computer programmer in the Commissioner’s Office? This one makes the most sense.

Analysis: Dorky. Dweeby. Un-athletic. Couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. Wouldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat. Has to hit the inhaler after walking up two flights of stairs.
Has the brainpower to unlock the password that protects the document that has the name of all 114 failed drug-tested players in the 2003 tests.

Remembers every athlete who stuck him inside of a shower stall/locker/garbage can after administering an atomic wedgie.

Hits send on his email program after attaching A-Rod’s name with supporting documents.

Thousands of years of cruelty to the weak-bodied-able-minded erased with the click of a mouse.

Phil Hughes only pitched four innings, but those 89 pitches gave Yankee fans a reason to hope during the offseason. Hughes struck out four and allowed only one run (did not factor into the decision) as the Yankees beat the ChiSox, 5-1.

Johnny Damon and Alex Rodriguez each homered in the win, and Xavier Nady continued to provide timely hitting, driving in the game tying run in the seventh inning.

New York Yankees
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
J Damon LF	3	1	1	2	1	1	2	.308
B Gardner CF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.185
D Jeter SS	4	0	0	0	0	1	3	.304
B Abreu RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	0	.296
A Rodriguez 3B	3	2	1	1	1	2	0	.305
J Giambi 1B	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	.250
C Ransom 1B	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.348
X Nady DH	3	1	1	1	0	0	0	.278
R Cano 2B	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	.262
I Rodriguez C	3	0	1	0	0	0	2	.279
M Cabrera CF-LF	3	1	1	0	0	0	3	.243
Totals	30	5	8	4	2	6	11
BATTING 2B: R Cano (31, C Richard) HR: J Damon (15, 8th inning off S Linebrink 1 on, 0 Out); A Rodriguez (35, 8th inning off S Linebrink 0 on, 2 Out) RBI: X Nady (34), J Damon 2 (66), A Rodriguez (101) 2-out RBI: X Nady, A Rodriguez GIDP: D Jeter, M Cabrera Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: D Jeter 1, I Rodriguez 1 Team LOB: 3
FIELDING DP: 1 (D Jeter-C Ransom).

New York Yankees
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
P Hughes	4.0	4	1	1	2	4	0	89-57	7.96
P Coke	2.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	28-19	0.00
B Bruney (W, 3-0)	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6-5	2.03
J Chamberlain (H, 16)	1.0	1	0	0	0	1	0	10-8	2.53
E Ramirez	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	14-9	3.98
Totals	9.0	6	1	1	2	7	0	147-98
PITCHING Batters faced: P Hughes 18; P Coke 7; B Bruney 3; J Chamberlain 3; E Ramirez 3 Ground Balls-Fly Balls: P Hughes 3-5; P Coke 2-4; B Bruney 2-1; J Chamberlain 2-0; E Ramirez 1-0

Scoring Summary
			CHW	NYY
	3rd	J Dye grounded out to third, O Cabrera scored.	1	0
	7th	X Nady singled to center, A Rodriguez scored.	1	1
	7th	X Nady scored, R Cano to third on wild pitch by M MacDougal.	1	2
	8th	J Damon homered to right center, M Cabrera scored.	1	4
	8th	A Rodriguez homered to right.	1	5

Last week, Baseball Officials ushered in the notion of instant replay. Last night, baseball officially entered the "Instant Replay Era", and none other than Alex Rodriguez became the poster boy.

A-Rod launched a shot that hit the catwalk at Tropicana Field, and after Rays catcher Dioneer Navarro and manager Joe Maddon protested, umpires took a two minute, fifteen second timeout to determine whether or not the ball actually was a home run.

The blast was A-Rod's 31st of the season and moves him into a tie with Mike Schmidt on the all time list.

New York Yankees
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
J Damon CF	5	1	1	0	0	0	1	.316
D Jeter SS	5	0	1	0	0	1	0	.295
B Abreu RF	4	2	2	0	1	1	2	.301
A Rodriguez 3B	4	2	3	4	1	1	1	.315
J Giambi 1B	4	1	1	1	1	1	3	.250
C Ransom PR-1B	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.600
X Nady LF	4	1	0	0	1	1	4	.290
H Matsui DH	4	0	1	1	0	1	1	.303
R Cano 2B	4	1	2	1	0	1	0	.269
I Rodriguez C	4	0	1	1	0	1	2	.281
Totals	38	8	12	8	4	8	14
BATTING 2B: R Cano (28, E Jackson); I Rodriguez (18, E Jackson); B Abreu (36, E Jackson); A Rodriguez (32, E Jackson); J Giambi (15, E Jackson) HR: A Rodriguez (31, 9th inning off T Percival 1 on, 2 Out) RBI: R Cano (61), I Rodriguez (35), A Rodriguez 4 (90), J Giambi (87), H Matsui (44) 2-out RBI: R Cano, I Rodriguez, H Matsui, A Rodriguez 2 Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: I Rodriguez 1, A Rodriguez 1, J Damon 1, X Nady 1 Team LOB: 7
BASERUNNING SB: B Abreu 2 (18, 2nd base off T Percival/D Navarro, 2nd base off E Jackson/D Navarro); J Damon (26, 2nd base off E Jackson/D Navarro) CS: A Rodriguez (3, 2nd base by G Balfour/D Navarro)
FIELDING DP: 1 (R Cano).

New York Yankees
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
C Pavano	4.0	6	3	3	2	1	1	79-47	4.20
E Ramirez (W, 5-1)	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	11-8	3.61
P Coke (H, 1)	2.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	26-17	0.00
B Bruney (H, 8)	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	11-7	2.33
J Veras	1.0	1	1	1	1	1	0	20-11	3.62
Totals	9.0	8	4	4	3	3	1	147-90
PITCHING HBP: J Bartlett (By C Pavano) Batters faced: C Pavano 21; E Ramirez 3; P Coke 6; B Bruney 3; J Veras 5 Ground Balls-Fly Balls: C Pavano 4-7; E Ramirez 0-2; P Coke 2-4; B Bruney 2-0; J Veras 1-1

Scoring Summary
			NYY	TAM
	1st	C Floyd doubled to right center, B Upton scored.	0	1
	2nd	R Cano doubled to left center, X Nady scored.	1	1
	2nd	I Rodriguez doubled to shallow right, R Cano scored.	2	1
	3rd	A Rodriguez doubled to left, B Abreu scored.	3	1
	3rd	J Giambi doubled to deep left center, A Rodriguez scored.	4	1
	3rd	H Matsui singled to center, J Giambi scored.	5	1
	4th	A Rodriguez singled to right, J Damon scored, D Jeter to second.	6	1
	4th	G Gross homered to right, D Navarro scored.	6	3
	9th	A Rodriguez homered to left, B Abreu scored.	8	3
	9th	A Iwamura doubled to left, G Gross scored.	8	4

Alex Rodriguez has 4 RBIs and Sidney Ponson got shelled, but the Yankees were able to keep their heads above water winning 13-9.

A-Rod, Abreu, and Damon each had three hits while Jeter, Nady, and Matsui each drove in two runners.

New York Yankees
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
J Damon CF	4	3	3	1	2	0	0	.316
D Jeter SS	3	3	2	2	3	0	0	.296
B Abreu RF	5	2	3	1	1	1	2	.302
A Rodriguez 3B	6	2	3	4	0	0	3	.309
J Giambi 1B	4	0	0	1	1	1	6	.249
C Ransom 1B	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.600
X Nady LF	5	0	1	2	0	2	2	.300
H Matsui DH	5	0	2	2	0	1	3	.304
R Cano 2B	5	1	1	0	0	0	3	.268
I Rodriguez C	5	2	2	0	0	1	0	.281
Totals	42	13	17	13	7	6	19
BATTING HR: J Damon (12, 2nd inning off J Verlander 0 on, 1 Out) RBI: A Rodriguez 4 (85), J Giambi (85), H Matsui 2 (42), J Damon (58), X Nady 2 (25), B Abreu (84), D Jeter 2 (62) SF: X Nady, J Giambi 2-out RBI: H Matsui 2, X Nady, D Jeter 2 GIDP: H Matsui Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: B Abreu 1, A Rodriguez 2, R Cano 1, H Matsui 1 Team LOB: 11
BASERUNNING SB: B Abreu (16, 2nd base off J Verlander/B Inge)
FIELDING E: R Cano (13, ground ball)

New York Yankees
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
S Ponson	3.0	9	7	6	1	1	2	76-43	5.13
E Ramirez	1.1	2	2	2	3	1	1	40-22	3.68
B Bruney (W, 2-0)	1.2	1	0	0	1	3	0	30-14	2.42
P Coke	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	20-12	0.00
D Marte	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	18-10	7.11
C Britton	1.0	0	0	0	1	0	0	18-9	3.78
Totals	9.0	13	9	8	6	9	3	202-110
PITCHING WP: P Coke Batters faced: S Ponson 20; E Ramirez 9; B Bruney 7; P Coke 4; D Marte 3; C Britton 4 Ground Balls-Fly Balls: S Ponson 5-3; E Ramirez 0-3; B Bruney 0-2; P Coke 0-1; D Marte 0-1; C Britton 1-2

Scoring Summary
			NYY	DET
	1st	A Rodriguez singled to center, J Damon and D Jeter scored, B Abreu to third.	2	0
	1st	J Giambi hit sacrifice fly to left, B Abreu scored, A Rodriguez to second.	3	0
	1st	H Matsui singled to center, A Rodriguez scored.	4	0
	1st	M Ordonez doubled to left, C Granderson scored.	4	1
	2nd	J Damon homered to right.	5	1
	2nd	A Rodriguez safe at first on error by third baseman J Larish, D Jeter scored.	6	1
	2nd	X Nady singled to left, B Abreu scored, A Rodriguez to second.	7	1
	2nd	H Matsui singled to right, A Rodriguez scored, X Nady to third.	8	1
	2nd	G Sheffield homered to left center.	8	2
	3rd	B Abreu singled to left, I Rodriguez scored, J Damon to third, D Jeter to second.	9	2
	3rd	A Rodriguez singled to left, J Damon scored, D Jeter to third, B Abreu to second.	10	2
	3rd	X Nady hit sacrifice fly to left, D Jeter scored.	11	2
	4th	B Inge homered to left, J Larish scored.	11	4
	4th	P Polanco safe at first on error by second baseman R Cano, R Santiago scored, C Granderson to third.	11	5
	4th	M Ordonez hit sacrifice fly to right, C Granderson scored.	11	6
	4th	M Cabrera homered to right, P Polanco scored.	11	8
	5th	M Ordonez singled to left, C Granderson scored, P Polanco to second.	11	9
	6th	D Jeter singled to right, R Cano and I Rodriguez scored, J Damon to third.	13	9

Tim Wakefield came off the disabled list and beat the Yankees, 7-3.

Normally this is a news segment, not a commentary, but we're going to go out of character for a minute.

Your telling me, that a guy who throws the ball 40mph got hurt? How does that work? I can get off my ass, walk up two flights of stairs at my office, get a cup of coffee, walk back down, and the ball still hasn't made it to the plate yet. And my trip for coffee was far more perilous than throwing a baseball at 40mph.

Anyway, A-Rod muffed another chance to play hero in NY; bases loaded, grounds into a double play, yada-yada....game over.

New York Yankees
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
J Damon CF	4	2	2	2	1	1	2	.313
D Jeter SS	5	0	2	0	0	0	0	.294
B Abreu RF	4	0	2	0	1	0	1	.298
A Rodriguez 3B	5	0	0	0	0	2	7	.308
J Giambi 1B	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	.247
X Nady LF	3	0	1	0	1	0	0	.321
H Matsui DH	4	1	1	0	0	1	3	.310
R Cano 2B	4	0	1	0	0	1	3	.269
J Molina C	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	.230
a-I Rodriguez PH-C	2	0	0	0	0	1	2	.283
Totals	37	3	10	3	3	6	20
a-struck out swinging for J Molina in the 7th
BATTING HR: J Damon 2 (11, 1st inning off T Wakefield 0 on, 0 Out; 5th inning off T Wakefield 0 on, 1 Out) RBI: J Damon 2 (57), J Molina (15) 2-out RBI: J Molina GIDP: A Rodriguez 2 Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: I Rodriguez 1, J Damon 1, J Giambi 1 Team LOB: 10
FIELDING E: A Rodriguez (10, throw) DP: 1 (R Cano-J Giambi).

New York Yankees
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
A Pettitte (L, 13-10)	4.2	10	6	6	3	3	0	101-60	4.37
B Bruney	1.1	0	1	1	3	0	0	33-16	2.38
D Robertson	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	13-10	5.76
E Ramirez	1.0	1	0	0	1	0	0	15-8	3.59
C Britton	1.0	2	0	0	0	1	0	18-12	4.30
Totals	9.0	14	7	7	7	6	0	180-106
PITCHING IBB: K Youkilis (By E Ramirez) Batters faced: A Pettitte 26; B Bruney 7; D Robertson 3; E Ramirez 6; C Britton 5 Ground Balls-Fly Balls: A Pettitte 8-3; B Bruney 1-3; D Robertson 0-0; E Ramirez 1-2; C Britton 0-2

Joba Chamberlain was lights out again and Bobby Abreu homered twice as the Yanks derailed the streaking O's, 13-3. Joba went six and struck out just as many.
Alex Rodriguez also homered in the win.

New York Yankees
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
J Damon LF	2	1	0	1	2	1	0	.316
a-J Christian PH-LF	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	.280
D Jeter SS	3	1	0	0	1	3	3	.284
b-W Betemit PH-SS	1	0	0	0	0	1	2	.242
B Abreu DH	4	4	3	3	1	0	0	.288
A Rodriguez 3B	4	2	2	2	0	0	1	.328
c-C Moeller PH-3B	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.227
J Giambi 1B	3	1	1	1	0	1	1	.256
R Sexson 1B	1	1	1	0	1	0	0	.222
R Cano 2B	5	1	1	0	0	1	2	.266
X Nady RF	4	2	2	2	0	1	0	.200
M Cabrera CF	3	0	0	0	1	0	1	.245
J Molina C	3	0	0	0	0	2	3	.226
Totals	35	13	11	10	6	11	13
a-singled to center for J Damon in the 7th b-struck out swinging for D Jeter in the 7th c-struck out swinging for A Rodriguez in the 8th
BATTING 2B: B Abreu (29, B Burres); X Nady 2 (2, B Burres, A Castillo) HR: B Abreu 2 (13, 3rd inning off D Sarfate 1 on, 1 Out; 7th inning off F Cabrera 0 on, 0 Out); A Rodriguez (23, 7th inning off F Cabrera 0 on, 0 Out) RBI: A Rodriguez 2 (65), B Abreu 3 (71), J Giambi (62), X Nady 2 (3), J Damon (44), J Christian (5) 2-out RBI: J Damon, J Christian Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: D Jeter 2, W Betemit 1 Team LOB: 5
FIELDING E: R Cano (8, ground ball)

New York Yankees
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
J Chamberlain (W, 4-3)	6.0	5	2	1	0	6	0	98-60	2.24
E Ramirez	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1-0	2.35
D Robertson	2.0	1	1	1	1	3	1	40-26	4.91
D Giese	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	10-7	2.76
Totals	9.0	6	3	2	1	9	1	149-93
PITCHING WP: D Robertson Balk: J Chamberlain Batters faced: J Chamberlain 24; D Robertson 8; E Ramirez 0; D Giese 3 Ground Balls-Fly Balls: J Chamberlain 5-7; D Robertson 1-2; E Ramirez 0-0; D Giese 2-1

Scoring Summary
			BAL	NYY
	1st	A Huff singled to left, B Roberts scored.	1	0
	1st	A Rodriguez singled to right center, D Jeter scored, B Abreu to third, B Abreu scored, A Rodriguez to third on throwing error by right fielder N Markakis.	1	2
	1st	A Rodriguez scored on G Quiroz' passed ball.	1	3
	3rd	N Markakis singled to center, B Fahey scored, B Roberts to second.	2	3
	3rd	B Abreu homered to right, J Damon scored.	2	5
	6th	J Giambi singled to left center, B Abreu scored.	2	6
	6th	X Nady hit a ground rule double to deep left, J Giambi scored, R Cano to third.	2	7
	6th	J Damon walked, R Cano scored, X Nady to third, M Cabrera to second.	2	8
	6th	X Nady scored, M Cabrera to third, J Damon to second on wild pitch by F Cabrera.	2	9
	7th	B Abreu homered to right.	2	10
	7th	A Rodriguez homered to center.	2	11
	7th	X Nady doubled to deep center, R Sexson scored.	2	12
	7th	J Christian singled to center, X Nady scored, J Molina to second.	2	13
	8th	J Castro homered to left center.	3	13