Brian Cashman has an idea when Phil Hughes will be ready to provide the Yankees with a much-needed boost it the back of their rotation, but the GM isn’t ready to make it public.
“We have a timeline, but we aren’t going to announce it,” Cashman said yesterday. Out since May 1, when Hughes pulled a left hamstring, he later sprained an ankle doing agility drills in Tampa on May 25.
The prized pitching prospect makes his second minor-league rehab start tomorrow night for Trenton (Double-A). Though the Yankees certainly would welcome Hughes and delete disappointing Kei Igawa from the fifth spot in the rotation, don’t figure on that happening soon.
Without a setback or a rainout altering the schedule, Hughes is likely to make his fifth rehab start July 28. Based on the amount of innings he has thrown and his health, five games may be enough for him to be ready. When he is, Igawa will either slide into long relief or be sent back to the minors.
The Yankees’ $46-million bust is 2-2 with a 7.14 ERA. In 462/3 innings, he has given up 52 hits and 23 walks.
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Jeff Karstens, out since April 28 when Boston’s Julio Lugo hit a line drive that fractured a bone in the right-hander’s right fibula, makes a second rehab start today in Staten Island with Cashman watching. Cashman
wouldn’t discuss the club’s timetable for Karstens, who is 0- 1 with a 14.54 ERA in two starts.
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Former Met Victor Zambrano potentially could end up pitching in The Bronx.
The Yankees have expressed moderate interest in bringing in the right-hander to rehab, according to agent Peter Greenberg.
Zambrano, who turns 32 next month, is recovering from a variety of ailments, most notably Tommy John surgery. He went 0-2 with a 10.97 ERA in eight games, two starts, for the Blue Jays this year. He was expected to clear waivers yesterday.
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With Andy Phillips swinging a hot bat and Doug Mientkiewicz looking to return from wrist surgery
early next month, the Yankees’ interest in Shea Hillenbrand hasn’t increased since the right-handed hitting first baseman was released by the Angels on Monday.
By going 10-for-22 (.455), Phillips has raised his average to .316. However, the Yankees never stop looking to improve, and if the right deal surfaces for the right pricethe Yankees will do it. So far, the asking price on switch- hitters Dmitri Young and Mark Teixeira has been far too high. That might change by the July 31 trading deadline, and the Yankees could be players.
A name to keep in mind is Tampa Bay utilityman Ty Wigginton. The Yankees inquired about him this past offseason. With experience at first, second and third base, he would offer roster versatility.
Additional reporting by Mark Hale.