Alex Rodriguez will have arthroscopic surgery on his hip Monday, ending nearly a week of debate about whether or not A-Rod would go under the knife and leaving the Yankees' lineup without its most dangerous bat. He's expected to miss six-to-nine weeks.
The surgery is an incomplete fix designed to get him through the season; he will have to undergo surgery to complete the process after the season, but choosing to fix everything now would have resulted in four months on the shelf. Instead, Rodriguez was planning to roll the dice and play through the pain.
Rodriguez's doctor said that this course of action is a better choice than having Rodriguez try to play while injured.
"The goal here is to allow Alex to rehab rapidly in a safe manner," Dr. Mark Philippon said. "The approach we're using is much safer than letting Alex play the way he is now."
The question now is if the Yankees will hand their third base job over to unheralded utility man Cody Ransom while A-Rod recuperates, or if they will seek an outside solution to their problem. If it is nine weeks, Rodriguez would be out until mid-May, with a rehab assignment likely to follow. Call it two months out of the lineup, then. If Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada and other Yankee bats are slow to start, the Bombers could find themselves with a lot of ground to make up.
Alex Rodriguez Controversies
After a report is released that he tested positive for steroids during his AL MVP campaign in 2003, Alex Rodriguez admits to injecting performance-enhancing drugs obtained in the Dominican Republic with the assistance of his cousin during his time as a Texas Ranger. Click through to find out more about A-Rod's checkered past.
Chris Carlson, AP
Former manager Joe Torre's recently released book, 'The Yankee Years', included details of A-Rod's tumultuous stay with the Yankees. In the book, Torre claims A-Rod was known by teammates as "A-Fraud" and paints him as mentally fragile.
Ezra Shaw, Getty Images
Rodriguez's decision not to play for the United States at the upcoming World Baseball Classic put him in the middle of another firestorm. A-Rod chose to join David Ortiz's Dominican squad over the nation of his birth.
Kena Betancur, AP
There have also been rumors that Rodriguez dated pop star Madonna, with numerous reports of the two spending time together.
Jim Rogash, Getty Images
In May 2007, many called this slide into the Red Sox's Dustin Pedroia to break up a double play dirty, as part of the heated Red Sox-Yankees rivalry.
Nick Laham, Getty Images
He filed for free agency during Game 4 of the 2007 World Series, drawing the ire of fans and officials. Some accused A-Rod of trying to grab the spotlight as the Yankees' big rivals were closing in on their second title in four seasons. He later re-signed with New York.
Jim McIsaac, Getty Images
The New York tabloids had a field day after the Yankees star was allegedly caught with a "mystery blonde" at the end of May of 2007. The woman was later identified as an exotic dancer, and his wife filed for divorce from him just over a year later, citing his infidelity.
New York Post
Things have been frosty for A-Rod and Derek Jeter since Rodriguez dissed his buddy by saying Jeter was "never your concern" when facing the Yankees.
Tony Gutierrez, AP
Despite being named AL MVP (48 homers, 130 RBI) in 2005, Yankee fans called out A-Rod by saying many of his homers came in meaningless situations.
Morry Gash, AP
A-Rod's awkward slap that knocked the ball from Bronson Arroyo's glove in the 2004 ALCS enhanced his reputation as a player who folded in the clutch.
Amy Sancetta, AP
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-08-2009 @ 1:25PM
tony sclafani said...
I hope the Yankees can win without him. He is so useless when the the pressure is on: maybe we will be lucky & he's out the whole year. with his steroid admission, what do the Yankees need him for? His home runs are now in question. Trade him Trade him Trade him
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3-08-2009 @ 5:17PM
herostatus said...
And we're supposed to believe this wasn't a coincidence? Bonds suddenly disappeared with an injury as soon as his steroid issue came up also. These ball players have surgery as a way to keep them away from the cameras for 6-7 months.
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3-08-2009 @ 7:07PM
the cooker said...
Hey Josh, your headline says "A-Rod Forced to Have Surgery". Who held a gun to his head and made him agree to it?
Reply
3-13-2009 @ 7:02PM
shellybendan said...
Now this is a blessing in disguise for the Yankees....I believe that A-ROD has been a curse to the yankees and finally withouth him the team can play like some sensible clutch hitting ball club and finally win it all since the draught from 2001.
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