Yankees place LF Matsui on DL

Jun 28, 2008 - 12:07 AM BRONX, New York (Ticker) -- After getting drubbed by the New York Mets, 15-6, in the first game of their two-stadium doubleheader, the New York Yankees placed left fielder Hideki Matsui on the 15-day disabled list with a sore knee.

The Yankees needed to make a move after officially activating Sidney Ponson to start the second game of Friday's doubleheader at Shea Stadium. Last week, Ponson was released by the Texas Rangers for his actions off the field, and New York signed him to a minor league contract on Wednesday.

Matsui aggravated his knee when he played the outfield in two games during the Yankees' interleague series in Houston from June 13-15. With no designated hitter, Matsui was kept out of the lineup during New York's abbreviated two-game series in Pittsburgh this week. Thursday's scheduled contest was rained out after more than a two-hour delay in the third inning .

Matsui, who is hitting .323 with seven home runs and 34 RBI in 69 games this season, had fluid drained from his knee last week, but manager Joe Girardi noticed that Matsui was putting extra weight on his back leg during batting practice in Pittsburgh.

"If your legs aren't under you, it's hard to be productive," Girardi said. "Sometimes, you get in bad habits as a hitter because you're favoring something."

The Yankees did get some good news regarding their other ailing outfielder as left fielder Johnny Damon returned to the lineup Thursday after missing two games with a sore left arch.

Damon, who earlier in the week feared he might he headed to the DL, did not start the opener of Friday's doubleheader but entered the game and went 1-for-2.

In another move, the Yankees optioned righthander Ross Ohlendorf to Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and recalled lefthander Kei Igawa from the same club. Ohlendorf allowed six runs and five hits in 1 1/3 innings in the loss to the Mets.

Ohlendorf is 1-1 with a 6.99 ERA in 25 games with the Yankees. Igawa, who the Yankees paid Igawa's team in Japan a $26 million posting fee, allowed six runs and 11 hits in three innings of his only start against Detroit on May 9.