After drilling David Huff in the head with a line drive off his bat last Saturday, Alex Rodriguez not only called to check on the Indians pitcher but also has remained in touch with the young left-hander by text since then. And Rodriguez was thrilled to see that Huff was back pitching yesterday against Detroit.
“It’s awesome,” Rodriguez said. “Talking to him, you can just tell he was a quality kid. I’m just very happy about that. He told me he had a good side a few days ago and he was ready to go.
“[The relief] started from him just moving around and him having a good bullpen and now just to be able to go out there and throw is really amazing. Not missing a start.”
Huff wasn’t too sharp against the Tigers, allowing five runs over three innings in Cleveland’s 12-6 loss, but said his struggles were all about bad location on his pitches.
“I felt fine out there,” Huff said. “What happened had nothing to do with what happened in New York.”
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Robinson Cano‘s hitting streak is at 17 games. If he gets a hit tonight in Toronto, he can lay sole claim to MLB’s longest hitting streak this year. Florida’s Jorge Cantu also hit in 17 straight.
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Though CC Sabathia had only thrown 94 pitches, manager Joe Girardi pulled him after seven innings due to the heat. The game-time temperature was 85 degrees. . . . Mariano Rivera was erratic in earning his 12th save. He walked the leadoff man in the ninth and hit the batter after that, saying that he “wasn’t aggressive at all” against those hitters.
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The Orioles reportedly will fire manager Dave Trembley today. According to ESPN.com, third base coach Juan Samuel will be named the interim skipper.
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Rodriguez was effusive in talking about former Seattle teammate Ken Griffey Jr., who retired Wednesday. Rodriguez compared Griffey to Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali for being the best in his sport.
“He could be playing Nintendo at 6:45, 6:50, and then at 7:06 he could make a Spiderman catch, and then in the top of the first hit one in the upper deck in the Kingdome 475 feet,” Rodriguez said. “And do it all with a smile on his face.”
–With Post wires
