Davidoff: A-Rod's chase for 600 no longer a blast

The Chase for 600 had felt like such a light-hearted affair as it began its second Bronx run. You could recite the drill by heart: The crowd stands and cheers, the cameras flash, the slugger fails.

And the Yankees win, allowing everyone to chuckle about Alex Rodriguez's milestone morass.

Now, however, it feels different.

A-Rod went 0-for-5, making the final out in the Yankees' 8-6 loss to Toronto at Yankee Stadium. Down at Tropicana Field, the Rays defeated the Twins and Carl "The 'Stache" Pavano, 4-2, his first loss since June 3, to join the Yankees in the AL East penthouse.

The Yankees don't hold sole possession of first place for the first time since June 19, and suddenly, A-Rod's power drought - up to 43 at-bats and 48 plate appearances - doesn't rank as a laughing matter.

"The bottom line is to produce and help the team win," Rodriguez said, "and I haven't done that the last three days."

He's hitless in his last 14 at-bats dating to his final trip to the plate in Cleveland on July 29. Since he hit his 599th homer on July 22, he has a .271 on-base percentage and .279 slugging percentage. He's 3-for-30 in his last eight games.

"It's not the longest drought in the course of the year not hitting a home run. So it's going to happen," Joe Girardi said. "You just want him to continue to try to have good at-bats, just try not to think about it too much. It's easy to say, 'Don't think about it.' But with the flashbulbs, and changing the balls, I don't know how you don't think about it."

Girardi speaks the truth. A-Rod didn't hit his first home run this season until his 48th at-bat. As A-Rod pointed out, he has only 16 homers in 449 at-bats in 2010. That's one homer per 28.1 at-bats, far below his career ratio of one per 14.5.

The Yankees didn't start A-Rod Sunday against the Rays because his bat looked slow, and because they have learned that the 35-year-old needs somewhat regular rest. Yet his one-third shift - he wound up pinch hitting in the seventh and playing the rest of the way - didn't make him seem much fresher.

In his five at-bats against Toronto, he didn't reach the outfield, striking out twice and grounding out three times.

With two outs in the ninth, the Yankees trailing by two and Blue Jays closer Kevin Gregg on the mound, Rodriguez grounded out to shortstop Yunel Escobar to end the game, giving the Yankees three losses in their last four games.

"That's part of the situation of the last at-bat," A-Rod said. "You're trying to draw a walk, get a base hit. Get on base, give Robby [Cano] a chance. That's the one rare situation where a walk would've been better than a home run. You put pressure on them."

Hmm. Not for nothing, but a home run would've put pressure on them. Yet we get his point.

The Yankees still lead the major leagues in runs with 563, and it's not as though the Toronto pitchers really shut them down. Even Lance Berkman picked up his first RBI as a Yankee, and his new teammates hit three home runs.

Nevertheless, you're obviously going to be a better baseball team when your cleanup hitter represents a threat. When he's drawing walks, driving balls into the gap and, yes, clearing the wall every now and then.

"I don't believe in guarantees," Girardi said before the game, chortling, "but I can almost guarantee he's going to hit his 600th home run at some point."

With first place getting crowded, that no longer seems quite as funny.