A-Rod To Have Knee Surgery

Added on Jul 11, 2011 by Scott in

MLB

Yankees fans are either rejoicing or sighing over the latest news regarding Alex Rodriguez. The polarizing third baseman has elected to undergo arthroscopic surgery later today on his ailing right knee. The procedure will repair a small tear in the meniscus. He will likely be sidelined from four to six weeks.

The All-Star break comes at a fortuitous time for the Pinstripes. Manager Joe Girardi can use the days off to shuffle his lineup to fill the void.

“There’s no doubt we’re going to miss him, but we need to find a way. As I’ve said several times already this year, some people are going to have to step up,” Girardi said. “Up to this point, this team has. We certainly look forward to getting a healthy Alex back into our lineup, because we know what he adds to this team.”

Rodriguez first tweaked the knee on June 19th after turning back to third base on a passed ball. An MRI conducted last Friday confirmed a meniscus tear.

“It is what it is,” Rodriguez said. “Most players play with bumps and bruises, but you never expect it to be a tear. Obviously, it was disappointing.”

A-Rod is hitting .295 with 13 homers and 52 RBI in 80 games played. He has struggled to find his power stroke in recent weeks, which coincides with the date he suffered the injury. His last home run was on June 11th.

The 35-year-old Rodriguez was enjoying a bounce back season of sorts prior to the knee problems. Heading into July, he was batting over .300 and was on pace to blast more than 30 roundtrippers. He last achieved those numbers in 2008, when he hit .302 with 35 homers.

Eduardo Nunez is the first choice to take over duties at third base. In 51 games, he has posted a .279 average, driven in 14 runs and swiped ten bases.

The Yankees enter the break trailing the Red Sox by one game in the NL East.

Source: ESPN.com