ANAHEIM – Today is a work day for the Cortisone Cousins, a pair of pitchers the Yankees hope to have back by the end of this coming week.
Roger Clemens is slated to throw in New York to test his right foot that was injected with cortisone by Dr. William Hamilton on Friday. Clemens has been on the DL since July 13, one day after he left a game with a strained right groin. He is expected to throw tomorrow, an off day, at Yankee Stadium under the eye of Mel Stottlemyre. If all goes well, Clemens will start Wednesday or Thursday against the Royals at the Stadium.
Mariano Rivera, who received a cortisone shot in his right shoulder on July 25, will throw batting practice today in Tampa with an eye on a rehab assignment possibly as soon as Tuesday. Rivera, who has been on the DL since July 21 with a muscle strain in the back of his right shoulder, had a good work day Friday when he threw off a bullpen mound at the Yankees’ minor- league complex.
Joe Torre says he isn’t looking to have his All-Star closer return until the end of the week but wouldn’t be surprised if he saw him sooner.
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Following Friday night’s 4-0 win over the Angels, Torre was worried he would be without right fielder Raul Mondesi for last night’s game. Mondesi fouled a pitch hard off his left foot in the fourth inning Friday.
Torre needn’t have worried, because Mondesi was in the starting lineup for last night’s game.
Mondesi’s two-out bunt single ignited a two-run second inning Friday, but had his manager second-guessing the strategy.
“I didn’t like that play until we scored two runs. Two out and nobody on and a guy who can hit the ball out of the ballpark,” Torre said. “When he did it, I said, ‘Nah, nah,’ and then it was, ‘Nice going.’ “
Nick Johnson followed with a double. Mondesi scored on a wild pitch, and Rondell White’s infield single scored Johnson.
Mondesi said after the game his foot was fine and defended his decision to bunt.
“I think the last time I bunted was 1995, but I am not the big guy here so I can do things like that,” Mondesi said.
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LHP David Wells (12-5, 3.66 ERA) closes out the four-city, 12-game road trip today against RHP Ramon Ortiz (9-8, 3.94).
