晴空卍丈

Looking for more consistent sinker, Yanks stay with Hughes

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

05/21/09 8:00 PM ET

NEW YORK -- Yankees right-hander Chien-Ming Wang will make a third Minor League rehabilitation start, taking the ball for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday at Pawtucket.

Wang has thrown 13 scoreless innings over his previous two starts in the Minors, though the Yankees have been looking to see more consistency from his sinker. He showed flashes of regaining that command in a bullpen session on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium.

"We want to see what we saw in the bullpen," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We want to see him take that into the game. That will tell us a lot."

Wang has been on the disabled list since April 19 with weakness in the abductor muscles of both hips. He spent time performing strengthening exercises at the Yankees' training complex in Tampa, Fla., before pitching in Minor League games.

Wang hurled seven scoreless innings on Sunday in a 3-0 victory over Columbus, where his velocity was clocked between 88 mph and 92 mph. Wang, who did not speak to the media Thursday, said after his bullpen session that he felt he was ready to rejoin the Yankees.

"We all know that he wants to be here, and we want him to," Girardi said. "But he understood where we're coming from. We want to see that stuff he had in the bullpen in the game."

Additionally on Thursday, outfielder Johnny Damon was not in the Yankees' starting lineup, as Girardi said the veteran had a "wrenched back" from hitting the outfield wall in pursuit of Adam Jones' solo home run off starter Phil Hughes in the fifth inning on Wednesday.

Girardi said that he was not sure if the Yankees would have Damon's services in any capacity on Thursday. Brett Gardner, who missed three games with a jammed right shoulder incurred on Sunday, returned to the lineup as New York's center fielder, with Melky Cabrera shifting to left field.

果不其然 目前洋基的連勝氣勢正旺 雖然阿民狀況不錯 如果我是教練也不會冒這個風險 因為連勝中要上場的壓力更大 不如在小聯盟把信心先找穩再出來 反正薪水一樣多 哈哈