The three-time American League MVP was 2-for-6 with a run scored in his final extended spring game at the Yankees' Himes Complex, the Minor League facility where Rodriguez has been testing his strained right quadriceps.
Coming off Sunday's full workout, in which Rodriguez said it was the "best" he's felt since the injury, the third baseman breezed through about five innings on Monday, and overall said he was happy with the work done in Florida.
"I'm excited to get back into Yankee Stadium and play baseball," said Rodriguez. "It's where I belong."
That's good news for the Yankees, who are currently last in the AL East and have dropped five of their past six games.
Rodriguez acknowledged that he had been watching the games, and while he has "no predictions" for what will happen when the club inserts his powerful right-handed bat into the lineup, he did note that it has been "tough to [just] watch."
Prior to the injury, Rodriguez was hitting .286 with a .495 slugging percentage and 11 RBIs in 24 games. During his rehab stint, the slugger not only took swings in the batting cages, but also received an ample amount of both live and simulated at-bats.
After going 5-for-15 with a home run in a Sunday's simulated game, and getting another one over the wall during Saturday's five plate appearances, Rodriguez hopes he is beyond the point where his injury makes him hesitant.
"Yeah I think so," he mused. "[It's] one day at a time, though. You keep building that certainty every day [and] as you get stronger, you move forward."
Moving forward is exactly what the Yankees, currently four games under .500, aim to do. With the addition of Rodriguez, the club will slide him back into the hot corner and create a defensive pillar, coupled with shortstop Derek Jeter, on the left side of the field.
The injury occurred running out a ground ball vs. Baltimore on April 28, and Rodriguez said on Sunday that he had no pain running. He also tested his quadriceps with several slides during Monday's contest. Despite opportunities to advance two bases on a single, Rodriguez said afterward that he was specifically instructed to take it "base-by base."
With concerns about the quadriceps injury limiting his movement, the third baseman said that one of his rehab goals was to be able to field comfortably to his left and right, as well as to come forward for slower ground balls.
Mission accomplished, as Rodriguez answered a resounding "yes" when asked if he had hit his mark, adding, "I think I got every one of [my fielding goals], so I'm happy about that."
So are the Yankees.
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