New York Yankees News and Notes

Good morning, Pinstripe Alley readers. The Yankees suffered a tough loss last night, and maybe we can blame that on Joe Girardi and poor umpiring. The RISP fail (16 baserunners, just 4 runs) deserves a shout out, too. Either way, here's the scenario.

After Billy Butler appeared to hit a double off the wall that the umpires ruled a homer, the play was reviewed and it was clear that the ball had never went over the fence. The umpires came back, the call stood, and Joe Girardi decided not to protest the game because he "believed the umpire that he knew the ground rules."

So, we have umpires who got to review the play and still got the call wrong (Kim Jones also discussed the blown call during the game), and a manager who knew the call was wrong and did nothing about it. Unbelievable. 

Joe, umpires can be wrong. They're human. Why not protest the game anyway just to cover yourself? That's idiotic and quite frankly, extremely poor decision making. 

Follow the jump for updates on A-Rod and Freddy Garcia.

Near Return, A-Rod Plays Eight Rehab Innings - Yankees.com

In a rehab assignment game last night, Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-2 with an RBI and two walks while facing Rays top prospect Matt Moore. However, A-Rod thinks he has some things to work on before he returns to the Bronx. When asked about what he needed to work he, he had this to say:

I would say a little bit of everything. If I had to rank it, offensively, I think I am there. I think the next day or two is going to be the final stage.

A-Rod will rejoin the team in Minnesota, but he will not be activated for tomorrow night's game. 

Freddy Garcia to Test Splitter in Bullpen Session - Yankees.com

On Tuesday, Freddy Garcia threw fastballs and sliders during a bullpen session in Kansas City, but will face a bigger test when he throws his splitter for the first time since injuring himself during a kitchen mishap. Girardi said that if Garcia successfully throws his splitter today, the Yankees will look to slot him in for Saturday or Sunday against the Twins. 

If not, Garcia could be placed on the disabled list, retroactively. 

Links:

• Baseball Tonight discusses the Yankee lineup upon A-Rod's return. 
• Wallace Matthews thinks Ivan Nova will not receive the type of criticism A.J. Burnett does, despite his most recent outing. 
• After last night's game, Derek Jeter is now hitting .290/.349/.380.