In the unlikely event that Alex Rodriguez did not know where he stood with the upper management of the New York Yankees, he surely knows it now.

On Monday, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner said that at times the Yankees have been "disappointed" with their $275 million third baseman, a day after GM Brian Cashman told ESPN's Buster Olney that Rodriguez "probably ... couldn't live up to" the 10-year contract extension the team gave him after he opted out of his original 10-year, $252 million contract following his 2007 MVP season.

Speaking at a press conference to announce Yankee Stadium's new long-term deal to host college football's Pinstripe Bowl, Steinbrenner was asked about Cashman's comments, which he said he did not hear.

"That may be true. It's a big contract," Steinbrenner said. "That's a philosophical argument, I guess. It's a big contract. We all hope he's going to act like a Yankee and do the best he can to live up to it. How about that?"

A-Rod, is out until at least the All-Star break after undergoing a second hip surgery in January and is currently under investigation by Major League Baseball for his alleged involvement with the Biogenesis "anti-aging clinic" in Miami.

Pressed further on whether Rodriguez had acted like a Yankee, Steinbrenner said, "We'll see. We'll find out when he comes back. I know he's been working hard to come back. He knows what it means to be a Yankee. He knows what we expect of him and he knows what his teammates expect of him."

Steinbrenner was then asked if the Yankees had been disappointed in Rodriguez, who over the past two seasons has averaged 17 home runs and 60 RBIs while posting a .275 batting average.

"There have no doubt been times that we've been disappointed in him and we've conveyed that to him," Steinbrenner said. "He understands that. Look, everybody is human. Everybody makes mistakes. If you've got a guy over the course of 10 years, there are going to be times any of us makes mistakes in that period of time."