Report: Yankees don't expect A-Rod to play 3rd base next season
The New York Yankees are reportedly not entertaining the idea of releasing disgraced superstar Alex Rodriguez. They are, however, considering a demotion to the bench.
Sources tell Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports that the Yankees are intent on making the most out of what remains on Rodriguez's contract, even if the club doesn't anticipate that to be much.
"Nobody here expects him to play third" a club official told Passan. Another source added: "We're not prepared just to let him go out and eat $61 million."
That doesn't leave the Yankees - or Rodriguez - many options. He could potentially spell the oft-injured Mark Teixeira at first, and there would conceivably be at-bats to be had at designated hitter.
But with Teixeira, Carlos Beltran and Brian McCann, among others, expected to see time at DH, the possibility exists the Yankees could relegate Rodriguez to the most expensive bench role of all-time.
Rodriguez is due to resume his major league career next spring after serving a 162-game suspension for his involvement in the Biogenesis steroid scandal. The three-time MVP has appeared in just 44 games over the last two years and hasn't played more than 130 contests since 2010.
Passan notes that if the 39-year-old slugger gets injured or proves he isn't healthy enough to play, the Yankees stand to recover 80 percent of his salary through insurance. He's due to make $21 million in 2015 and $20 million in each of the next two seasons.
Rodriguez is also eligible to cash in on $30 million in home run milestone bonuses, but he's unlikely to reach all the benchmarks unless he stays on the field.
To that point, Passan refutes an earlier report from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal (see below) saying MLB officials are discussing the possibility of further penalizing the embattled star if new evidence shows he assisted in the distribution of performance-enhancing drugs.
According to Yahoo Sports, the commissioner's office is not considering additional punishment at the moment.