TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -Rookie pitcher Kei Igawa allowed two unearned runs in four innings in his first start for the New York Yankees Class-A Tampa affiliate on Saturday.
It was the first action for Igawa since May 4, three days before he was sent to the minors to work on his control and pitching mechanics.
The Japanese rookie left-hander threw 68 pitches, allowing three hits and a walk with two strikeouts.
Pitching a night after teammate Rogers Clemens’ highly publicized minor league start, Igawa faced the Class-A affiliate for the Minnesota Twins, the Fort Myers Miracle. He said for the past two weeks he’s been focused on tightening his delivery.
“That’s the main goal right now,” Igawa said through a translator. “I’m emphasizing on getting rid of wasted movements and motions. I haven’t pitched in a while and (Saturday) I had some good moments and some bad moments. Overall, I thought it was good.”
In his final start against Seattle, Igawa gave up eight runs and nine hits in four innings. Igawa was 2-1 with a 7.63 ERA for the Yankees. Igawa, who signed a five-year, $20 million deal with New York in December, played eight seasons with the Hanshin Tigers where he had an 86-60 record and 1,174 strikeouts, including going 14-9 with a 2.97 ERA and 194 strikeouts in 2006.
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