Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland had to do a quick double-take after he received two different New York Yankee lineup cards before Game 4 of the ALCS Wednesday afternoon.
The first one listing Alex Rodriguez batting sixth and playing third base. But then, a courier from the Yankee clubhouse brought a second lineup to Leyland's office — the one that was officially released which omitted both A-Rod and Curtis Granderson and had Eric Chavez at third base, hitting sixth, Brett Gardner in center field and Nick Swisher back in right field after being benched the night before, writes Bill Madden of The New York Daily News.
"Is something else going on over there with A-Rod?" Leyland asked the Daily News before the game was postponed because of rain. "I got two lineups from them, one with him in it and the second one with him out."
Things are a teeny-bit hectic over in the Yankees clubhouse but manager Joe Girardi explained the mixup was a mistake on his part and not a last-minute decision to give his struggling third baseman another shot.
"We talked about some different lineups during the day," Girardi said. "And when I handed the lineup to (third base coach Robbie Thompson), I didn't realize which one it was. It was actually a mistake on my part. We had people in different spots. So I called over there (to Leyland) and told them we gave them the wrong one."
Girardi has gone through one of the toughest weeks of his career and probably deserves a pass for his gaffe. He lost the Yankees captain Derek Jeter in Game 1, has had to bench three prominent starters and watched his team fall into a 3-0 hole in the best-of -seven series.
On Tuesday, he buried his dad. He's earned that pass.
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