Yankees’ Irabu Will Skip a Start

Hideki Irabu, hit hard in his last three starts for the New York Yankees, is heading to the bullpen.

With Irabu’s next start scheduled to fall on Thursday--a day off for the Yankees--Manager Joe Torre said his new $12.8-million pitcher would be skipped in the rotation.

“He’s too cluttered up with being too perfect right now,” Torre said. “He understands the situation and wants to do anything he can to help the team.”

Torre did not say when the Japanese-born pitcher would make his next start.

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The woman who accused Mark Whiten of sexual assault met the outfielder after jumping into the back seat of a truck outside a Milwaukee nightclub and riding along to his hotel, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

The truck’s driver, a Milwaukee automobile salesman, gave an account of the events of July 18 that matches the account Whiten gave to police and contradicts at least one account the woman gave: that she had met Whiten in teammate Charlie Hayes’ hotel room. Whiten has said he had sex with the woman, but that it was consensual.

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Two-time Cy Award winner Bret Saberhagen, now with the Boston Red Sox organization, made his first rehabilitation start in 22 months, allowing one hit in three innings for the Class A Lowell (Mass.) Spinners. He threw 36 pitches, 27 for strikes. His fastball topped out at 93 mph. Saberhagen, recovering from shoulder surgery, is expected to make his next start for double-A Trenton, N.J., on Friday.