YANKEE NOTES
Jason Giambi was originally slated to play first base last night, but he was moved to designated hitter because of his sore right wrist.
He wasn’t certain he’d be ready to play at all, but he took indoor batting practice right before the game and pronounced himself fit. Yankees manager Joe Torre initially wrote him into the lineup at first base, but kept him off the field as a precaution.
Giambi was 0-for-4 with a walk in last night’s 6-5 loss to Baltimore.
“It was good enough to play,” Giambi said. “I did all right.”
After getting nailed by a pitch in the seventh inning Wednesday by Toronto’s Scott Schoeneweis, Giambi received treatment on the off-day Thursday.
“It’s sore,” Giambi said yesterday afternoon. “He got me good.”
Giambi received his Comeback Player of the Year award on the field before the game.
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Lee Mazzilli helps prepare scouting reports no matter who the Yankees play. He wryly noted that he knew last night’s opponent better than most.
Mazzilli was fired as Orioles manager last Aug. 4 of after less than two years on the job. He’s now Torre’s bench coach.
“You’re over there a couple years, you have feelings for the guys coming up to the plate,” said Torre. “Sometimes it helps you because scouting-wise, you get some information.”
Mazzilli guided the Orioles to a surprisingly quick start in 2005, as Baltimore was still within a game of first place last July 15. But the O’s lost 16 of 18 in July and early August, and the New York native was axed. He never asked his friend, Baltimore executive VP Mike Flanagan, why he was given a pink slip.
“There’s no reason to,” Mazzilli said. “Maybe when I’m 80 years old, I’ll ask him.”
Mazzilli’s 129-140 record wasn’t terrible. But he wasn’t allowed to hire his own coaches when he came on board, and he wasn’t the preferred hire of owner Peter Angelos at the time.
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Announcer Bob Sheppard returned to the Stadium last night after missing the first homestand due to a hip injury . . . On Thursday, Torre spoke briefly with owner George Steinbrenner, who was mourning the deaths in an auto accident of Oscar Acosta, the Gulf Coast Yankees manager, and Humberto Trejo, the franchise’s coordinator in the Dominican Republic . . . Torre said Gary Sheffield might DH today . . . Aaron Small will probably make one more extended spring training start and then head to Triple-A Columbus, GM Brian Cashman said . . . Octavio Dotel (Tommy John surgery) suffered from a sore right elbow after pitching an inning of extended spring training earlier this week, and he’ll be shut down for approximately five days.
