Former Rangers GM: Yankees “Basically Stuck” With A-Rod

Alex Rodriguez’s massive contract with New York means that, regardless of how far he falls in terms of production, the Yankees are more or less stuck with him for another five years--at least according to the man who sent Rodriguez to New York a little under a decade ago.

John Hart, the Rangers’ general manager in 2003 and now an MLB Network analyst, has seen A-Rod’s decline in 2012 like the rest of us. His showing in the postseason thus far has been abysmal: he goes into Tuesday’s Game Three of the American League Championship Series with a .130 average with nine strikeouts. It got so bad during the Division Series with the Orioles that he was benched for the decisive game five.

This would have been unthinkable back in 2003, when Hart shipped Rodriguez to New York, but here we are. And there’s not much the Yankees can do in terms of washing their hands of the declining superstar.

“If he falls off the end of the earth next year, they’re stuck with a lot of money,” Hart told the San Francisco Chronicle in a phone interview. “That’s the end game.”

The Yankees could trade him, Hart said, but they would likely have to eat a good deal of the $115 million left on his current deal to find a willing suitor.

“There’s always people that would be interested depending on the amount of money,” Hart said. “They’re basically stuck.”