Some interesting tidbits on an off day as the Yankees travel to Baltimore to prepare for a three game weekend series against the Fightin' Showalters.
Brian Cashman said Kevin Millwood will make his next start for AAA Scranton-Wilkes/Barre. The start could come on Friday, but the plans are not yet finalized. During a brief stint in Trenton, Millwood tossed seven innings of one-hit ball during the first game of a double-header.
With Ivan Nova forced to throw in Tuesday night's depressing loss, the rotation has been shuffled. The rotation in Baltimore will feature CC Sabathia on Friday night, Freddy Garcia on Saturday, and Nova on Sunday, pushed a day back from his orginal schedule. A.J. Burnett will pitch on Monday.
Phil Hughes threw a 30-pitch bullpen session in Toronto on Wednesday afternoon in front of Larry Rothschild and Joe Girardi. Hughes reported no discomfort, and apparently, some encouragement. Girardi had this to say about Hughes' session:
He looked like his arm was a little quicker. He'll have [Thursday] off, and then he'll get back to the long toss. He said he feels better.
Hughes also said that he won't be able to tell how effective he'll be until he faces Minor League hitters during his rehab assignment. Additionally, he discussed some curiostiy of how his arm would respond during the third and fourth innings, generally where his velocity had been falling off.
It's just a matter of seeing how my arm bounces back, and I won't know that until I get in a game situation. Right now, everything I'm doing, I feel good with -- my arm program, long toss, bullpens, workouts. That's really all I can gauge right now.
Francisco Cervelli is right on schedule for a return in early May. He will begin his rehab assignment with Class A Tampa today.
Brian Cashman apparently tried to trade for Russell Martin multiple times over the last three years, and likened him to Thurman Munson. Pretty strong words.
The Yankees are being sued by Tanit Buday, a woman from Yonkers, New York, who claims that her uncle was commissioned to create a logo for the Yankees. According to her claims, the classic top hat logo was her uncle's. Alice McGillon, a spokeswoman for the Yankees, issued a statement, saying "there's no proof" of the claim.
Make sure to come back to Pinstripe Alley at 1pm for Dan's open letter to Lance Berkman.