TORONTO – Today’s bullpen session will go a long way in deciding if Roger Clemens starts Sunday in Boston or needs more time for a balky right elbow to heal.
“[Today] will tell a lot,” Clemens said yesterday. “I feel good.” Clemens, 45, worked in the bullpen Tuesday and said afterward he has ligament damage.
“It’s more important,” Joe Torre said of today’s test. “[Tuesday] was a good workout but not all out. This time it will be a shorter version with more effort.”
Since his last start Sept. 3, Clemens underwent a second MRI exam and received two cortisone injections. If Clemens can’t start Sunday in Fenway Park, the Yankees will turn to Phil Hughes.
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Reliever Luis Vizcaino threw in the bullpen before last night’s 4-1 win over the Blue Jays, and according to Torre will be available tonight or tomorrow night. Vizcaino hasn’t pitched since Sept. 4 because of a tired arm and a stiff lower back. . . . Outfielder Shelley Duncan was due to rejoin the team after being examined in New York yesterday by team physician Stuart Hershon and Dr. George Todd. However, Duncan wasn’t seen in the clubhouse following last night’s game. Duncan complained of pain in the lower abdomen Tuesday. He was diagnosed with a bone bruise and a small inguinal hernia and is listed as day-to-day.
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The first big-league run Joba Chamberlain gave up last night was unearned, but before Alex Rodriguez‘s throwing error in the eighth, Chamberlain extended his scoreless streak to 16 innings to start his career, the longest stretch by a Yankee to begin a career since “Slow” Joe Doyle went 18 innings in 1906. . . . The Yankees were robbed of a run in the ninth when Vernon Wells trapped Johnny Damon‘s two-out single to center with Melky Cabrera on second. TV replays showed Wells gloved the ball on a hop.