Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Alex Rodriguez's strained right quadriceps will keep him from playing this week, causing the AL MVP to miss this weekend's series against the cross-town rival Mets.

"It's still not where it needs to be. I don't see him playing this week," Yankees Manager Joe Girardi said before last night's series opener against the Rays. "You can't afford to have him come back for two days and lose him again for six weeks."

Rodriguez hasn't played since April 28 and is eligible to come off the 15-day disabled list on Thursday.

He had an MRI exam yesterday, then worked out the Yankees' minor league complex in Tampa for an hour. He took batting practice, fielded ground balls and ran for about eight minutes in the outfield.

"Taking it one day at a time," he said.

Asked if he was pleased with the progress of his rehab, he said: "So far, yes."

Rodriguez initially injured his quad running out a ground ball at Baltimore on April 20. He sat out three games before returning to the lineup on April 25. He appeared in four games before leaving during the eighth inning of a victory at Cleveland.

There was more encouraging news on the rehab front with catcher Jorge Posada, who threw for the first time since being placed on the DL with right rotator cuff tendinitis. He made 25 throws from 60 feet following a 15-throw warmup session.

· MARINERS: Better than any other Seattle player, José Vidro knows small crowds.

He used to play for Montreal, which hosted the major league equivalent of private shows.

"I remember we had crowd of 6,000, 8,000," said the veteran designated hitter who played for the now-extinct Expos from 1997 to 2004. "During games we'd be talking to each other saying, 'Man, we don't have anybody here!'

"Definitely, we paid attention to it."

Safeco Field hasn't turned into old Olympic Stadium, not yet. But yes, the Mariners are paying attention to turnstiles that are moving as slow as Seattle's season. Seven weeks into a hugely disappointing year, the team has drawn eight of the 10 lowest crowds in the history of its $514 million stadium with a rollback roof.

Just 15,818 showed up for the game May 6 against Texas on a 53-degree night, the smallest crowd ever in the nine-year-old stadium.

Mariners President Chuck Armstrong said last week he expects an ebb and flow to crowd counts during a season.

-- From News Services