Mussina and Rivera pitch against minor leaguers

Mariano Rivera pitched against the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats this afternoon. He struck out four in two innings of work.

“I felt good,” Rivera said after his first two-inning outing of the spring. “All of my pitches were in the strike zone. Everything is fine.”

Mike Mussina also pitched this afternoon, facing the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs. In six innings, he gave up seven hits and three earned runs, while striking out two and walking none. He threw 72 pitches for 53 strikes. Two of the runs and three of the hits were in his final inning, as he started to tire.

“I threw a couple of bad pitches that makes it looks worse than it was,” he said.

Mussina still has two starts left before the season starts, so he is right where he should be in terms of preparation.

Hideki Matsui went 1-3, playing three innings in left field. Abraham says that Matsui expects to be ready for Opening Day. With Melky Cabrera likely serving his suspension, Matsui will likely need to play left.

(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)