Yankees Say They Have Time to Wait for Igawa to Catch Up

By TYLER KEPNER

Published: March 5, 2008

DUNEDIN, Fla. — No, Yogi Berra said, he was not tempted to jump into the pitcher’s arms after the final out on Tuesday. It is true that the Yankees pitched a perfect game, but this was not Don Larsen in the 1956 World Series.

This was a five-inning, rain-shortened exhibition against the Toronto Blue Jays at Knology Park. Most of the starters left the slick field for good during a rain delay in the second inning, leaving prospects to finish up.

College hitters had foiled Kei Igawa last week, so his sharp effort on Tuesday was a sign of progress no matter the competition. Igawa retired all six hitters he faced in the Yankees’ 2-0 victory, throwing his first three pitches for balls and then 14 of his last 16 for strikes.

“This was a great day,” Manager Joe Girardi said, taking cover near a batting cage after the game was called. “It looked like we weren’t going to get much in, and we got to see a lot from our lefties, Igawa and Traber. It was a great day.”

The left-hander Billy Traber faced three lefties in the fourth inning and struck them all out. Traber is also fighting for a job on the team, but the Yankees are eager for a return on their investment in Igawa.

They paid $26 million to negotiate with him after the 2006 season and another $20 million to sign him for five years. The result was a 2-3 record, a 6.25 earned run average and a pitcher who struggled to attack major league hitters after starring in Japan.

“In Japan, he had pretty good velocity and he was the type of pitcher that usually threw fastballs and changeups to strike out hitters,” Hideki Matsui said through an interpreter.

“In Japan, you don’t see that many pitchers throw changeups, as opposed to here, where a lot of pitchers throw changeups. And in Japan, his fastball was pretty fast. But when you compare it to pitchers here, it’s not as fast.”

Igawa also tried to throw too many pitches high in the strike zone, where umpires in Japan are more likely to call strikes. But General Manager Brian Cashman said Igawa’s problem was more about command.

“If I felt that our evaluations were improper, then I would think that he’s failed, and I’m not ready to concede that yet,” Cashman said. “It took José Contreras some time to adjust, and although he possesses a different ability, he led the White Sox to a world championship.

“All I can tell you is Igawa was the strikeout leader in Japan — and not just for one year — and those guys are contact hitters over there. Swing-and-miss is still a big part of his game. You can’t deny that; just look at his statistics.”

Igawa, who won three Central League strikeout titles in Japan, fanned 53 in 67 2/3 innings for the Yankees last season, roughly seven strikeouts per nine innings. That was among the best rates on the team, and his rate was even better in the minors.

But Igawa was wild for the Yankees, with 37 walks, and he quickly ran up high pitch counts.

“He’s going to have to throw strikes, that’s it,” Jorge Posada said. “He’s been working really hard on his delivery. When it comes down to it, he has to execute his pitches. His changeup and slider are good, and he’s sneaky with his fastball. But if you’re strike one, strike two, it’s different. You get behind, they keyhole you.”

Too often when Igawa was behind in the count, hitters zeroed in on one location and pounced. He gave up 15 homers, one short of the team high. If Igawa makes the team this season, it will be as a long reliever or left-handed specialist.

The Yankees had a chance to dump him last August when the San Diego Padres made a waiver claim, yet they chose to keep him. Trading Igawa would have saved the Yankees more than $16 million in future salaries, but they could not have recouped the posting fee.

“It was too early to cut the cord,” Cashman said. “I had conversations with ownership, and there was a financial commitment made, a big number on the posting system. Because of the financial investment and the small sample size of information and the adjustments that need to be made for a player coming over from Japan, we felt we should keep trying.”

The Yankees have emphasized better communication with Igawa this season. At the start of camp, Igawa told Girardi he wanted to throw more pitches in bullpen sessions, as he had in Japan.

“Last year, when I went to the bullpen to see how pitchers warmed up, it surprised me,” Igawa said through his new interpreter. “In Japan, pitchers threw a lot of pitches before games.”

The pitching coach Dave Eiland said Igawa got away with some mistakes in the minors last season, but he did show improvement with his slider. On Tuesday, Eiland was most impressed with the changeup. Instead of slowing down his arm when he throws it — a dead giveaway to hitters — Igawa had better arm action, Eiland said.

There were two flyouts, two groundouts and two strikeouts. It was not enough to make the Yankees true believers in Igawa, their $46 million enigma. But for a day, it was perfect.

INSIDE PITCH

Mariano Rivera threw batting practice on Tuesday and said he would probably pitch in his first game Friday. ... Hideki Matsui, who has a stiff neck, worked on conditioning and expects to take batting practice in the next two days. Matsui is recovering from knee surgery and is scheduled to play in games next week.

News source：http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/05/sports/baseball/05yankees.html?ref=baseball