Struggling Irabu Sent to the Minors

The Yankees couldn’t wait for Hideki Irabu to get to New York. Now they want him to get out of town--for a while anyway.

With expectations falling short every time the Japanese pitcher takes the mound, the Yankees optioned Irabu to the minor leagues Monday in hopes he can regain his confidence.

“This is just trying to get him fixed so he can help us,” Manager Joe Torre said. “ . . . The biggest part of this is that he can get away and then come back.”

Irabu--who signed a $12.8-million contract after lengthy negotiations--has been hit hard in his last three games and will join triple-A Columbus, Ohio, later this week after stopping for a few days to work out at the Yankee training complex in Tampa, Fla.

In his last start Saturday against Seattle, Irabu threw only 41 pitches, giving up six runs and four hits in two innings of a 9-7 loss to the Mariners.

After the game, Torre said he thought Irabu looked preoccupied and distracted, possibly by the intense media and fan scrutiny.

Torre’s original plan was to have Irabu skip his next start and pitch in relief. But Torre, owner George Steinbrenner, General Manager Bob Watson and pitching coordinator Billy Connors discussed it and decided the minors might help.

Irabu spoke through his interpreter for about five minutes before leaving the stadium Monday before the Yankees’ game against the Oakland Athletics.

“There are so many things I have to work on right now,” he said. “Of course I’m not satisfied with the result or the way things happened. . . . But in the last couple of weeks I have learned a lot.”