Yankees' Alex Rodrigez to Bat Third in Game 3 On the eve of Game 3 of the American League division series, Yankees Manager Joe Girardi hinted that he was considering dropping Alex Rodriguez from the No. 3 slot in the batting order. But Girardi chose not to make the move Wednesday, leaving Rodriguez in his familiar spot for the pivotal game against the Baltimore Orioles in the best-of-five series. Rodriguez, who will be the team's designated hitter in Game 3, was 1 for 9 in the first two games in Baltimore, which the teams split. But he wasn't the only one who wasn't hitting. In Game 2 the Yankees had only two extra-base hits, one of which was a hustling bloop double by Eduardo Nunez. Nick Swisher, Russell Martin and Curtis Granderson also went into Wednesday's game batting under .200. But the high-profile Rodriguez often bears the burden when the Yankees struggle offensively, especially in the playoffs, and many fans have called for his demotion. Before Game 4 of the 2006 A.L.D.S., Manager Joe Torre demoted him to eighth, a drastic move that embarrassed and angered Rodriguez at the time. He was 0 for 3 as the Tigers won, 8-3, in their series-clinching victory. Since then he has hit third or fourth in every playoff game. In 2009, Rodriguez carried the Yankees to their 28th title. He hit six home runs and knocked in 18 runs in 15 postseason games that year. Because Rodriguez has shown a lack of power over the final 17 games of the season - he had one extra-base hit in his last 68 at-bats, Girardi has repeatedly been asked if he might make a move. Still, the Yankees were 13-4 in those games and Rodriguez was consistently getting on base in front of Robinson Cano, so there was no overriding need to move him out of the three-hole. Girardi's response to questions regarding Rodriguez and the lineup during a conference call with reporters Tuesday made it sound as if he was seriously considering it. "We know that we're in a three‑game series, and whether you need to pinch‑hit for someone, you need to make a pitching change, you need to change the lineup a little bit, our guys understand," Girardi said during a conference call. We have a veteran group that understands that we're going to do what we think is the best thing to win.