When the Yankees signed Scott Erickson to a minor-league contract and invited him to spring training, he had no idea whether he’d make the team. When they sent him to Triple-A Columbus, he had no idea if he’d get recalled to the majors. All he could do was adjust to being in the bullpen and wait until his time came.
It came yesterday, when the Bombers called him up to replace the injured Tanyon Sturtze. Joe Torre said the 38-year-old was a versatile veteran who could eat up innings, and he did exactly that in a 6-1 loss to Oakland, charged with a run in his 1 2/3-innings pinstriped debut.
“It’s a great feeling. I was very excited to be out there,” said Erickson, who may have let that excitement overwhelm him when he walked two in the eighth inning, the first of which scored on Antonio Perez’s RBI single off Ron Villone.
“It was a matter of trying to keep the guy close and losing focus on getting the hitter out, especially with two outs. That’s when you’ve got to bear down.”
After retiring the top of the lineup in order in the seventh, Erickson walked Bobby Crosby to lead off the eighth. After retiring Bobby Kielty and Jay Payton, he walked Jason Kendall and got pulled for Villone, who allowed Perez to snap an 0-for-30 slump.
“The last thing you want to do is give guys free passes,” Erickson said. “Two walks is pretty lose to unacceptable, and unfortunately one of them scored. “That’s my fault for putting him on.”
Torre agreed, saying, “He rushed himself in that second inning, but we just wanted to give him a chance to get in here and get his feet wet.”
And see what they’ve got. The former starter was 1-4 with a 7.22 ERA last year for the Dodgers before being demoted to the bullpen, where he posted a 3.24 ERA and piqued the Yanks’ interest.
“This was a recommendation from Jason Giambi,” Torre said. “We took a look-see, and thought it was worth looking a little bit further. He’s strong mentally and I think he’s a guy who can be durable for us.”
Erickson labored out of the bullpen at Triple-A Columbus, going 1-2 with a 4.24 ERA in a dozen relief appearances before yesterday’s callup.