NEW YORK -- Yankees manager Joe Girardi insists it will be "open season" on Alex Rodriguez if Major League Baseball fails to suspend Bostons Ryan Dempster for hitting the star slugger with a pitch. James Neal Jersey . "That baseball is a weapon. Its not a tennis ball. ... Its a weapon, and it can do a lot of damage to someones life," Girardi said Tuesday before the Yankees played a doubleheader against Toronto. "And thats why I was so upset about it. You can express your opinion and be upset with someone, but you just cant start throwing baseballs at people. I mean, its scary." Dempster threw one pitch behind A-Rods knees and two more inside in the second inning at Fenway Park on Sunday. Then his 3-0 pitch struck Rodriguezs left elbow pad and ricocheted off his back. Girardi sprinted onto the field, screaming at plate umpire Brian ONora for not ejecting the pitcher. Girardi was tossed as the benches and bullpens emptied, and Rodriguez homered off Dempster to spark a sixth-inning rally that lifted New York to a 9-6 win. Girardi said his profane rant probably was the angriest hes been on a ballfield. Rodriguez was suspended for 211 games on Aug. 5 for violating baseballs drug and labour agreements but is playing while he appeals. Red Sox pitcher John Lackey criticized the rules last week for allowing A-Rod to play. MLB is expected to decide Tuesday or Wednesday on any discipline. Girardi said if Dempster isnt punished, it makes Rodriguez "open season for people, and that cant happen. Its not fair. If a player is suspended for throwing at someone, theyre going to get their appeal. Are we just going to throw that out, too?" Dempster maintained he was just pitching inside and wasnt trying to hit Rodriguez. New York didnt retaliate Sunday. Girardi wouldnt say whether there is a need to respond when the teams next meet, at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 5. Girardi said "protecting your own" in baseball has gone on for "for a long time. And unfortunately youre part of those situations sometimes, but thats part of the game." The manager also discussed the matter with his 6-year-old son, Dante. "Part of pitching is pitching inside, thats all part of it," he recalled saying. "But I dont ever want you to hit anyone on purpose." Malcolm Subban Jersey ... as usual. Even with the salary cap being set lower than many general managers expected and hoped for at $69 million and whats considered a shallow pool of top-end players available, this unrestricted-free-agent period figures to follow the familiar script of teams bidding up prices to keep up with each other. Tomas Nosek Jersey . - After sewage backups, toilet overflows and foul smells surfaced the past two years, nothing at the Oakland Coliseum surprises the home team anymore.The New York Islanders and goaltender Kevin Poulin reached a one-year, two-way contract on Thursday, avoiding arbitration. The 24-year-old appeared in 28 games with the Islanders last season, posting 11-16-1 record with a 3.29 GAA and .. Custom Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys. 91 save percentage. In 49 career NHL games, all with the Islanders, Poulin has a 18-25-2 record with a 3.08 GAA and .900 save percentage. He was drafted in the fifth round, 126th overall, of the 2008 NHL Draft. ' ' '