A-Rod leaves with oblique, back tightness

A tight right oblique muscle and lower back led to Alex Rodriguez's removal after the sixth inning yesterday and put his immediate availability in jeopardy.

The Yankees do not plan to send him for any tests, believing he was bothered only by muscle tightness on a cold and damp day. But his status for Sunday night's game, at the very least, is up in the air.

Joe Girardi, who is typically cautious when handling even slight injuries to his veterans, said he plans to check with Rodriguez and the team's trainers and doctors before deciding whether to play him Sunday night. The Yankees are off Mondaybefore a five-game road trip.

Rodriguez said he initially felt the discomfort right before the start of the game "and it got a little worse as the game went on." He felt it mostly when he was swinging, leading him to lose his aggressiveness at the plate. He grounded out to third and shortstop and also walked. "I was just kind of swinging weakly today, trying to protect a little bit," he said. "But hopefully [Sunday] we'll get a little better weather and I'll be feeling better."

Ladies and gentlemen . . .

Sunday marks the 60th anniversary of Bob Sheppard's first game as the Yankee Stadium public address announcer. (Mickey Mantle also made his major-league debut that day, going 1-for-4.) Sheppard, a longtime Baldwin resident who died last July 11 at the age of 99, announced his last Yankees game during the 2007 season. Derek Jeter continues to honor him by using a tape of Sheppard announcing his name before his at-bats.

Finally, a rest

Russell Martin did not start Saturday for the first time all season. He had caught every inning of all 12 games before giving way to backup Gustavo Molina Saturday afternoon. "The days off we've had have fallen very strategically for him," Girardi said. Two rainouts also helped keep him in the lineup.

Martin was not scheduled to play against Minnesota April 6, but that game was postponed because of rain. The Yankees-Orioles rainout last Tuesday night also prolonged Martin's first day of rest by a day, Girardi said.

Extra bases

Because of the weather, the Yankees said each fan with a ticket to Saturday's game can exchange it for a free grandstand or terrace-level ticket for another 2011 home game, regardless of whether the ticket actually was used Saturday.