Hughes To Make Debut Thursday
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Phil Hughes will be making his major league debut earlier than expected.
A day after getting swept by the Boston Red Sox, the Yankees said Monday they plan on having their top pitching prospect start Thursday against Toronto.
New York had been saying all spring that Hughes would progress slowly through the system. But after his team dropped four games behind the AL East-leading Red Sox, Yankees manager Joe Torre didn’t rule out that the 20-year-old right-hander, taken in the first round of the 2004 amateur draft, might make more than one start.
“If we’re comfortable and we sense he’s comfortable, we’ll see what we do,” Torre said before the Yankees played Tampa Bay.
Hughes is 2–1 with a 3.94 ERA in three starts this season at Triple-A Scranton, and he pitched six shutout innings last Wednesday at Syracuse, allowing two hits, striking out 10 and walking none.
“It’s a necessity for us,” Torre said. “They don’t think it’s the wrong time for him. His ability, his presence, I think he’s mature enough.”
Torre said Hughes was the only minor league pitcher recommended by the player development staff to make Thursday’s start.
