Joe Girardi Plans to Play Alex Rodriguez Through Appeal: "Pencilled In"
Alex Rodriguez, who is expecting to receive his suspension on Monday, will be in the Yankee lineup on Monday according to team manager Joe Girardi.
An MLB source said Sunday that A-Rod would face suspension on Monday but would still be able to play during his appeal. Yankee team manger Joe Girardi announced plans to bank on that arrangement. When asked if he would be in Monday's lineup against the White Sox Girardi replied, "Yeah."
"I'm not going to bring him up and sit him," he told CBS Sports.
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But the decision regarding A-Rod's final suspension has yet to be announced. Frustrated by the player's comments post-game on Friday, the MLB organization said that it would no longer continue to negotiate with A-Rod over a settlement. The player suggested that the Yankees and MLB were conspiring together to get around the player's contract.
With no hope of a settlement, and a likely 214 game suspension that would leave A-Rod out the rest of the season and all of next year, decisions regarding the player are turbulent at best. Mystery regarding the player's status has left everyone in suspense.
"I think all of us are curious as to what's going to happen," Girardi told CBS. "Is Alex going to be a player for us tomorrow, what's going to happen with the other guys."
"In my mind, I have him penciled in tomorrow," he added.
Girardi was also questioned about the impact that A-Rod was having on the rest of the team's dynamic. He suggested that the rest of team would remain unfazed.
"I don't suspect it will be awkward," Girardi told CBS. "The guys know him as a teammate. They've been around Alex, laughed with him. I suspect it will be business as usual. There will be more media, but that's for Alex, not for the rest of the team."
