NEW YORK (AP) -- Injured slugger Hideki Matsui is back with the Yankees and is likely to be activated Tuesday, when the club begins a six-game trip at Toronto.
Matsui had 15 at-bats during a simulated game at Yankee Stadium on Sunday, facing left- and right-handed pitching.
``Every time he would get to bat, it would just blow up, but it hasn't this time,'' Girardi said. ``So far the knee is good and we'll make a decision tomorrow,'' when the team has a day off.
Out since June 27, Matsui homered Friday night for his only hit in a doubleheader for Class A Tampa. He went 1-for-3, including a line drive single to right, and a walk in his third rehab game for Tampa on Saturday night.
``I really haven't been told anything,'' Matsui said afterward through a translator. ``I don't know how much I can help them, but I know I'll give my best to do whatever I can.''
Matsui is batting .323 with seven homers and 34 RBIs in 69 games this season.
Girardi also said he's keeping an eye on right-hander Phil Hughes, who is slated to start Sunday for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and right-hander Carl Pavano, who will pitch for Double-A Trenton.
One of them will likely pitch at Baltimore this week, when the Yankees need a fifth starter.
The Yankees began the day 9{ games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East, and six games back of the Boston Red Sox for the wild card.
Copyright MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
WCBS Newsradio 880 is the flagship radio station of the CBS Radio Network, CBS News and the broadcast home of the New York Yankees. Four decades of broadcasting New York tri-state area news, New York tri-state area traffic, and New York tri-state area weather and backed by the global resources of CBS News, WCBS always has the edge on breaking news and the day's essentials. WCBS consistently reaches over 2 million listeners each week and you can listen on air, online and on demand to WCBS' personalities including Charles Osgood, Kim Komando, Anthony Dias Blue, Bob Lape, Charles Grodin, Dave Ross, Wayne Cabot, Michael Wallace, Jim Taylor, John Sterling, Suzyn Waldman, Pat Carroll, Pat Farnack, Ed Crane, Jared Max, Tom Kaminski and Craig Allen. www.wcbs880.com
