TAMPA — You know it’s getting closer to Opening Day when Mariano Rivera works his first spring training gig, because historically he doesn’t surface until the middle of March.
Last night against the Astros at George M. Steinbrenner Field, Rivera made his first appearance. He worked the fifth inning and actually believed requiring 27 pitches to leave the bases loaded was a plus.
“It was work, it was good,” said the 40-year-old Rivera, whose next outing will be Friday. “You are out there pitching, not throwing six, seven and eight pitches. You need to throw to build arm strength. That’s what I did. It was the first time and I missed a few pitches up, but most were down.”
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The club announced yesterday former Padres GM Kevin Towers was hired to be a special assignment scout in the professional and amateur ranks.
Towers, whose background is scouting and has a reputation for spotting pitchers, will work out of the southern California area. He lives in San Diego.
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A.J. Burnett wasn’t pleased with the details of his workday against the Astros — 2 1/3 innings, four walks, two strikeouts and a run — but he was happy with a very basic portion of his outing.
“It was good to get my work in and to face live hitters,” he said. “But everything was up. It was tough for me to stay calm. I was overdoing everything early — really, the whole time. I was constantly behind and could just never get myself to settle down at all.”
Burnett experimented with his change-up and his catcher, Jorge Posada, declared it the best he’s seen him throw.
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Chan Ho Park threw a simulated game yesterday and is scheduled to work an inning tomorrow. That will be his first game.