A-Rod and Teixeira break slowly from the postseason gate

This warning comes with all the usual disclaimers about it being early and the inherent injustice of small sample size.

But if Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira don't start hitting, they're going to find themselves in a very familiar place ? the bad end of postseason media attention.

Or perhaps�they're already there?�Over two games of the ALDS against Detroit, the 4-5 combo of the New York Yankees lineup is a combined 1-for-15 with one walk, four strikeouts and one RBI. It's nothing that a nice showing against Justin Verlander in Game 3 won't fix, but don't think they won't face fire if they struggle, the Yankees lose on Monday and the hopes of the season hinge on A.J. Burnett taking the hill for Tuesday's Game 4. �Am I getting a little ahead of myself? Probably.

But it's not like we haven't been here before with both players.

A-Rod, of course, shed the label of postseason struggler with an unreal performance (.384, six homers, 18 RBI) during the run to the 2009 World Series title. But because he's A-Rod and because he occupies such a high-profile spot in the Yankees' lineup, he's bound to face a lot of scrutiny. Not only is he 0-for-8 this series, but he hasn't been himself since having knee surgery in July and suffering a thumb injury after his return. His numbers since returning in August? An average of .191 with three homers over 68 at-bats. He may be struggling with his health, so talk about dropping him to the No. 8 spot isn't the slight that it was during the 2006 postseason. There is reason to be concerned.

Teixeira's struggles, meanwhile, are a little harder to explain. And they're nothing new. The Yankees' first baseman received a lot of criticism after the 2010 ALCS loss to the Rangers, posting an 0-for-14 mark for the series. Though he still managed to post 39 homers during the regular season, almost all of his other numbers have continued the decline since his MVP-type season with the Yankees in 2009. I mentioned him to a Yankee fan ? OK, it was Rob Iracane ? and he responded by calling him "Mr. Pop-Up." A few mentions of A-Rod's struggles on Twitter were met with reminders not to let Teixeira off the hook.

Like I said before, all the usual cautionary statements apply to this situation. And with the way Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson have produced this season, the pair have a little more leeway when it comes to handing off the load to someone else.

Still, the starts that both players have posted have started swinging the searchlights their way. It's up to them to make sure they're found.

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