Igawa Shaky in Debut

Japanese import Kei Igawa, slated to be the Yankees fourth or fifth starter, had mixed results in his first action of the spring against the Tigers. In a little over an inning, Igawa walked three batters and gave up a couple of runs. On the bright side, he countered his lack of control with three strikeouts. The former Japanese strikeout leader struggled to spot his fastball, but demonstrated that his 0ff-speed stuff will certainly be dangerous to major league hitters. It can't be stressed enough that spring training is not a true indicator of success. Many pitchers will struggle with control, as we've seen with Igawa and Hughes. Also, it's important to take in to account that Igawa has had very little time to work with catcher Jorge Posada. As they gain familiarity, Posada will be able to put his pitcher in to better situations. There were a few pitches today where they didn't seem to be on the right page. That should fade with time. The Yankees will also benefit by having Hideki Matsui to consult on the field if problems arise. Posada has already suggested that he will bring Matsui in for mound meetings if he feels the situation calls for it.

Both teams played many of their starters, but the real fireworks came from a couple of young guys. Down a run with two outs in the ninth inning, Josh Phelps roped a single in to left field to set up Bronson Sardinha's walk-off homerun. Phelps will battle Andy Phillips all spring to be the right handed batter in the first base platoon with Doug Mientkiewicz. Sardinha has been limited to September call-up work and will almost certainly be headed to Triple A Scranton. Since wins and losses are basically irrelevant in spring training, the nicest part of the walk-off homerun was the celebration afterwards. The Yankees are known as an uptight, business-first group. Centerfielder Johnny Damon has infused some energy, but for the most part, displays of emotion are rare. Sardinha was greeted at home plate by the usual array of exuberant teammates you would expect from a mid-season walk-off victory. This may seem to be an insignificant observation, but the youthful Tigers taught the Yankees an important lesson in last season's playoffs. They came out and stole the series by playing with intense passion. If the Yankees can not find ways to get up for big games, they'll continue their World Series drought. Hopefully today's display is a sign of things to come.