The New York Yankees had a lot of questions entering the 2016 season and Alex Rodriguez’s bat was among them. He ended 2015 atrociously, and the reason for his lack of production was thought to be the season catching up with him after he turned 40 and he was coming off a 2014 that saw him miss the entire season.

Baseball can be a grind on even the youngest and most in shape players. Rodriguez was sure to have some rust, and even though he spent most of his time at DH, his body couldn’t respond to the daily grind the way it once did. This is why the Yankees entered 2016 with a new plan for Rodriguez that saw him getting plenty of rest. So far, Rodriguez has been off to a slow start, and this year it is more alarming than in any year previously because of his age.

He will turn 41 this July and so far Rodriguez has looked overmatched. He hasn’t had a hit since Apr. 9 when he homered off of Mike Pelfrey. He is mired in a 3-for-30 slump to start the year with just one home run and 11 strikeouts.

Rodriguez’s bat has looked slow. Maybe he just needs a little time to get going. After all, he did start the 2015 season off hitting .232/.369/.507 with five home runs and 23 strikeouts in 69 at-bats. The Yankees, however, need Rodriguez. They need his bat and right now they would be better off with Stephen Drew. That’s the kind of start Rodriguez is off to, making Yankees fans wish Drew was filling a lineup spot instead of Rodriguez.

Normally, one would say Rodriguez just needs a little time to get going, to get his swing in tune. However, after his slide last year from Aug. 1 on, one has to consider baseball has left Rodriguez behind. The game can be cruel like that where Hall of Famers can turn into a pumpkin overnight and watch their once great skills fail them in the blink of an eye.

Since last August, Rodriguez is hitting under .200. Last July he hit .286/.390/.643 with nine home runs, 19 runs scored, 16 RBIs and three doubles. That August he hit just .153/.273/.259 with two home runs, three doubles, seven runs and 10 RBIs. He hit a little better in September, posting a .230/.320/.517 line with seven homers, 14 runs scored, four doubles and 15 RBIs. He set a career high in strikeouts last season with 145 and is on his way to shattering that. He is on pace for 199 strikeouts over a 145-game season. That is 222 over a full slate.

The reality is, given the Yankees’ lineup, they might be forced to put Rodriguez on the bench and use the DH to rest their productive players who are hitting while also taking advantage of their deep bench. The Yankees might have no choice. He needs to produce or he needs to sit, and right now it might be better for both parties if he were to sit and let the lineup spot go to someone who can put the ball in play.

The lineup can’t afford to have a black hole in it like they did with Drew last year. We aren’t talking about someone who was hitting at the bottom of the lineup. Rodriguez was supposed to be a middle of the order bat. He isn’t close to being that, Joe Girardi has to consider benching Rodriguez for a time to let him work things out where he isn’t hurting the team.