ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Masahiro Tanaka said he felt fine after throwing his first bullpen session Sunday since going on the disabled list — which is good news for him and the Yankees.

However, the stiffer tests are still in front of the right-hander, who has been on the disabled list since June 9 with two strained hamstrings.

“It was my first bullpen since hurting myself, so I was a little bit cautious on the mound,’’ Tanaka said following Sunday’s 26-pitch effort and before the Yankees fell to the Rays 7-6 in 12 innings at Tropicana Field. “It turned out I didn’t feel anything.’’

The next step for Tanaka is another bullpen Tuesday in Tampa while the Yankees are playing the Phillies in Philadelphia.

“Assuming that goes well, we will progress from there,’’ Aaron Boone said.

With two bullpen workouts done, the next step would be a simulated game which could take place Friday. After that, the Yankees will decide if Tanaka is ready for big-league action or might require a minor league rehab outing.

“Nothing definitive at this point, talk with the trainers and the manager and see how we want to progress,’’ Tanaka said when asked about a possible return date.

When Tanaka suffered the hamstring injuries running from third to home on a sacrifice fly against the Mets at Citi Field on June 8, it was considered rare that a player would injure both hamstrings at the same time.

“I was surprised. In a sense, I was a little bit shocked,’’ Tanaka said.