TAMPA, Fla. -- The Yankees believe that Alexander Rodriguez has a wealth of information to pass on to their young players, and that can begin on Tuesday, when he'll put the pinstripes back on as one of the team's special guest instructors.
Rodriguez played his final game for the Yankees on August 12, announcing that he had accepted a role serving as an advisor under managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner. He was released from a contract that will pay him $21 million not to play this season.
The 41-year-old Rodriguez hit 696 home runs in a 22-year big league career that featured more than a few missteps, including a season-long suspension in 2014 for violating baseball's Joint Drug Agreement. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said that he hopes Rodriguez will share his experiences with the game's next generation.
"Some of the expectations, how to deal with it, how to deal with different positions, how to hit, how to hit in the middle of the order," Girardi said. "You know, all the things that Alex did well, those are the things that we want him to offer insights to our young players -- and to the older players as well."
Rodriguez visited with players during last year's instructional league in Tampa, spending time with a group of prospects that included outfielder Clint Frazier and infielder Jorge Mateo. Steinbrenner said last week that it is possible that Rodriguez's role in the organization could expand further.
"He's absolutely tremendous with the young players and always has been," Steinbrenner said. "We're going to continue to talk about different ways to keep him involved."
Bombers bits
• Nick Swisher arrived in camp on Monday as a guest instructor, having announced his retirement earlier this month via Derek Jeter's Players Tribune website. Swisher played 55 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season before stepping away to spend more time with his family.
"We were laughing today. [Swisher] was saying how good he feels now that he's not playing," Girardi said. "And I said, 'Yeah, that's how you get tricked.'"
• Jacoby Ellsbury is scheduled to join the Yankees in time for Tuesday's workout. Ellsbury is the only position player not to have yet reported, as he and his wife Kelsey were expecting their second child.