NEW YORK -- The mini-series known as AROD3K continues tonight at Yankee Stadium against Justin Verlander and the Detroit Tigers, as Alex Rodriguez tries to collect his 3,000th hit -- he is at 2,999 after getting two hits Thursday.
That assignment might not be as daunting as it sounds; Rodriguez is a career .357 hitter against the former Cy Young Award winner (10-for-28) and has four home runs off him. Verlander has only struck out A-Rod three times in his career.
It's also a big night for Adam Warren, who -- stop me if you've heard this one before -- might be pitching for his spot in the rotation once again. With Ivan Nova making what is expected to be his final rehab start tonight for Triple A Scranton, and probably returning to the New York Yankees' rotation next week, someone has to go, and as always, Warren seems to be the prime candidate. Warren is 2-0 with a 4.09 ERA in his career against the Tigers (five appearances, one start).
Here's tonight's lineup:
Rodriguez DH
Stephen Drew 2B
Warren (4-4, 3.78)
Before the game, the Yankees optioned RHP Chris Martin to Triple A Scranton, and placed RHP Sergio Santos on the DL with elbow inflammation. To take their places on the roster, the Yankees recalled RHPs Bryan Mitchell and Branden Pinder. As of now, there is no change to the Yankees' weekend rotation; Nathan Eovaldi, who threw just 36 pitches in his brief outing against the Marlins on Tuesday, is slated to start Saturday night's Old Timer's Day game, and Masahiro Tanaka goes on Sunday.
