Jeter may need four to five months to recover

Derek Jeter will have surgery on his broken left ankle, and the New York Yankees say the star shortstop is expected to need four to five months to completely recover.

The Yankees said Wednesday that Jeter will be operated on Saturday by Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, N.C. The timetable the team announced means Jeter likely would be ready to return to baseball sometime between the start of spring training in mid-February and late spring training in mid-March.

Jeter, the Yankees’ 38-year-old captain, broke his ankle Saturday in the 12th inning of the A.L. championship series opener against Detroit while trying to field a ground ball.

The Yankees did not say whether there was any ligament damage.

Jeter had scans Sunday confirming the fracture. He has not accompanied the Yankees in Detroit as his teammates continue play in the ALCS. His recovery was initially expected to take three months, but that timetable is now longer.

This wasn’t the first time Jeter had recent trouble with his left leg. Manager Joe Girardi pulled him from a game Sept. 12 at Boston because of what Jeter said was a sprained ankle. Jeter was a designated hitter for the next four games.

Yanks deny A-Rod rumors

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman characterized as “false” a blog post by political pundit Keith Olbermann claiming the Yankees recently had discussions with the Miami Marlins about trading Alex Rodriguez back to his hometown.

Olbermann posted the item on his only occasionally updated Baseball Nerd blog, which is affiliated with MLB, Wednesday afternoon. Prior to that there had been just two entries since July 26.

Another Yankees official called the report “absolutely not true,” and a person familiar with the Marlins’ thinking also said he didn’t believe there was anything to it.

Clearing the bases

Eddie Yost, nicknamed “The Walking Man” because of his penchant for drawing bases on balls during an 18-year major league career, has died. He was 86. The Boston Red Sox said Yost died Tuesday morning in Weston, Mass., but did not announce a cause. … The Milwaukee Brewers say veteran reliever Livan Hernandez and catcher Yorvit Torrealba have become free agents after refusing outright assignments to the minor leagues. … Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann expects to be “completely healthy” for the 2013 season following the surgery on his right shoulder.