It’s not now or never, but Yanks need to get going

Two thoughts on the New York Yankees, neither of them mine. First, let’s turn the floor over to manager Joe Girardi.

“You can’t take all nine of them out,” he said.

Now, some thoughts from designated hitter Alex Rodriguez.

“Don’t overcomplicate it,” he said.

Pearls of wisdom, friends. The Yankees are 5-9 after Thursday’s 7-3 loss to the A’s, which has them in last place in the American League East.

At this point, so many things are broken that there has to be some small amount of comfort for Girardi. Three of his most important players — A-Rod, Mark Teixeira and Chase Headley — are hitting under .200. Jacoby Ellsbury is hitting .255, and one of the new Yankees, Aaron Hicks, is hitting .095.

If it were one hitter struggling or even two, Girardi could move the pieces around and look at some different combinations. But with so many important players doing so little, Girardi’s job becomes simpler.

It’s to ride out the slumps, nurture the confidence and keep telling reporters things like, “Hey, look, Tex is going to hit. Alex is going to hit. Those are the last guys I’m worried about.”

Besides if A-Rod and Teixeira don’t hit, the Yankees may be in for a long season. However, it’s April, and both guys have distinguished track records.

There’s real concern because both are older players. A-Rod is 40, Teixeira 36. Because of that, their slumps are viewed differently. In other words, is this the end?

Every veteran player deals with it. As Randy Johnson said once in Spring Training, “If you …

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