According to Jon Heyman at CBS, people within the Yankees organization have been fawning over the progress that Alex Rodriguez has made in his rehab lately. The word is that the third baseman's improvements have been "dramatic" and "fantastic" and he could be ready to start rehab games as early as immediately following the All-Star break.

For a guy that a fair number of people wrote off completely into early retirement, it now seems as though Rodriguez may beat Derek Jeter back to the field. Obviously that is all assuming that there are no setbacks between now and then, and it has been the season of setbacks for injured Yankees all year. With the extreme lack of production the Yankees have gotten out of their replacement third basemen, Rodriguez's return really can't come fast enough. The team, regardless of personal feelings about his contract and personal issues, needs his production to boost a struggling offense.

With Francisco Cervelli and Curtis Granderson also slated, at least right now, for a mid-July return, the team really just needs to tread water a bit longer. If they can stay in contention long enough to get the likes of Rodriguez, Jeter, and Granderson back in the lineup, they just might do alright for themselves in the long run, assuming that they don't fall victim again to the misfortunes that have plagued this team for all of 2013. It's too early to bet on them as sure things, but it does look like help is on the horizon.

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