Alex Rodriguez returned to the Yankees on Thursday night in Minnesota and the third baseman expects to play within the next few days. He underwent knee surgery on July 11 and has been on the disabled list for approximately six weeks. "Every swing hurt a lot before I went on the DL," Rodriguez said Thursday night. "Now I'm pain-free. Part of the reason that we had this surgery is because it's important for me to come back and hit home runs, drive in runs and get big hits. It's not to slap the ball all over the place. That's just not my game."