YANKEE NOTES

TAMPA – Marcus Thames of the Tigers has a thing for future Hall of Fame pitchers.

Four years ago in a Yankees uniform at Yankee Stadium, Thames homered off Randy Johnson in his first major league at-bat. Yesterday at Legends Field, Thames took Mariano Rivera over the left-field wall.

“It was a fastball up, I was trying to go away,” said Rivera, who gave up two homers in 78 1/3 innings a year ago. “But I feel good. Let it happen here, that’s why we are here. It doesn’t mean anything.”

After requiring only six pitches to navigate an inning in his last outing Tuesday, Rivera needed 20 chucks to record three outs yesterday.

“I can’t complain, it was a good outing,” Rivera said. “I threw a lot of pitches.”

Rivera wavered on how good his command was.

“Not the best,” he initially said. But then he changed his mind by saying, “It was good. For this time of the year it was great. I consider it good.”

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The Yankees split two games yesterday. They lost 6-1 to the Tigers at Legends Field and beat the Phillies, 8-3, in Clearwater with a squad that didn’t have major league player.

Triple-A first baseman Eric Duncan hit a grand slam for the Yankees (5-4) against the Phillies. And Matt DeSalvo, who filled in for Scott Proctor as the starter against Philly, provided three shutout innings and one hit. Proctor was with his wife and newborn baby.

Outfielder Austin Jackson, an eighth-round pick last year out of high school in Texas, had three hits.

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Jason Giambi missed his third straight game with a cramp in the left calf. “I’m going to hit in the cage,” Giambi said before yesterday’s game. “I asked Gino (Gene Monahan) to run but he said, ‘No.’ He wanted to make sure I can hit first.” After watching Giambi hack, Monahan said running today was OK. “If he gets through that,” Joe Torre said, maybe we will make a plan for Saturday or Sunday. DH would be my guess.”