News & Notes From Tampa

Here are some random news and notes from Yankee camp in Tampa.

- Bryan Hoch reports that Hughes has been throwin very well:

Having just completed receiving Phil Hughes' latest bullpen session, an impressed Molina told Posada, "You know what? Phil looks like he has more pop."

Posada concurred, and the backstops aren't the only ones who have noticed.

Said manager Joe Girardi: "You watch him and he leads the groups in running. He just looks like an athlete, a thoroughbred and a leader."

Hughes confirms he's hitting the glove with more force than in his debut season, when he won five games for New York, plus one more in the playoffs. But more importantly, he has confidence that nothing else will go wrong.

"It's not so much the velocity," Hughes said. "It's really the fact that I've felt more comfortable and I've been able to trust my body. I don't have any inklings or thoughts in the back of my head that something will flare up again. I think that's the key, to trust all my pitches and finish everything."

- Joe Girardi was impressed by Sean Henn (yes, that Sean Henn) and Steven Jackson:

Joe Girardi complimented Sean Henn's session. He also called Steven Jackson's sinker "exciting."

Peter Abraham also tells us that Girardi was also impressed with Mike Mussina, who was able to keep his pitches down today, Joba Chamberlain, who's change-up was very good today, and Jesus Montero who Girardi said is “a strong young man, a strong hitter.”

- Jeter not focusing on MVP, he wants a ring:

Derek Jeter was "flattered" by Alex Rodriguez's fitting the Yankees shortstop for an MVP Award, but the captain -- true to his team-first form -- would rather win another World Series instead.

One day after Rodriguez, unprovoked, threw out a prediction that Jeter would capture an honor that has thus far eluded him in his career, the shortstop said that raising a flag at the end of the season is by far the most important goal.

"I don't really think about [an MVP Award]," Jeter said on Friday. "The bottom line is -- I've said it time and time again -- you play to win. You always want to do well, because the better you do, the better the team can be."

- Kat O'Brien tells us that "The Boss" was seen around Steinbrenner field today:

George Steinbrenner was in Max's Cafe at Legends Field, along with son Hank. I was in the clubhouse at that point, but colleague Ken Davidoff was there, and said Andy Pettitte popped in to say hello. George Steinbrenner told him he had done well (dealing with the HGH aftermath). Hank Steinbrenner, when asked which of them makes decisions for the club, said they usually agree.
(hat tip to Scott Proctor's Arm for the pic)

Peter Abraham also tells us this story from inside the Yankee clubhouse:

An exhausted Mussina came back to the clubhouse and said, “Tomorrow we’ll go to the airport to pull planes with our teeth.”

Phil Hughes sat slumped in his chair. He’s working out with Andy Pettitte in the morning and doing the running in the afternoon. By the end of the day, he can barely move.

“You’re only 22, you should be fine,” Mussina said.

“I’m 21,” Hughes said.

“See?” Mussina said. “I’m old, I can complain.”

- So far, Yanks like what they're seeing from Igawa - remember he hasn't pitched in a game yet:

"We are giving him a little extra mound time because that's what he is accustomed to," first-year pitching coach Dave Eiland said of Igawa, a $46 million bust last year who has no place in the rotation this year unless a pitcher breaks down. "Physically, he feels good doing it and more importantly, mentally, he feels better."

At the end of last season, the Yankees altered Igawa's delivery, focusing on stripping it down.

"He maintained that in the offseason, so delivery-wise and command-wise, he is way ahead of where he was last year," Eiland said of Igawa, who looked lost on the mound in the early days of spring training a year ago. "We cleaned up his delivery a little bit. He had a lot of things going on. We simplified it."

In 14 games (12 starts) last season, Igawa was 2-3 with a 6.25 ERA and spent parts of the season in the minors.

If Eiland can turn Igawa into an effective pitcher, he's a miracle worker.