Travis Ishikawa makes debut at first base with New York Yankees

He got the news Sunday, while headed to church near his home in the Bay Area, with Yankee GM Brian Cashman telling the former Brewer and Giant that he was headed to the Bronx – with a polite nudge to get to Yankee Stadium as soon as possible.

“I’ve been an anxious wreck since then,” new first baseman Travis Ishikawa said Monday at his new Stadium locker before batting in the No. 6 spot against the Royals. “I’m ready to hurry up and get out there. Caught a red-eye flight (Sunday) night, and got in (Monday) morning. Took a little nap and shaved my goatee and here I am.”

But Ishikawa was not Mark Teixeira or Jason Giambi or even Lyle Overbay. Ishikawa struck out twice against Jeremy Guthrie and looked a little tepid on defense, not even ranging to try to snag an Eric Hosmer grounder in the third. Cashman claimed Ishikawa off waivers from Baltimore, who just finished a series at the Stadium over the weekend. Ishikawa said he had been looking forward to playing at the Stadium (he had never played in the Bronx before) when he saw Baltimore’s schedule, but then got designated for assignment June 29.

“I’d lie to you if I said it didn’t bother me a little bit,” said Ishikawa. “When I first found out I was designated, a little part of you feels that little bit of failure, ‘Aw, man, I’m not good enough to be here.’ The more I prayed about it, it helped me to relax.”

Ishikawa, 29, played in six games for Baltimore this season, batting .118 with an RBI. He won a World Series with the Giants in 2010.

“When I heard it was this great organization, I didn’t believe it at first,” he said. “I had a missed call from the Orioles, and then my agent texted me – ‘I just heard you got claimed by the Yankees.’ I didn’t believe him at first. I had to call him up, ‘Are you serious?’ ”

Ishikawa added that he knew it wasn’t a crank call when Cashman was on the other end of the phone.

“I had the area code and I don’t have too many friends in New York,” he said.

via Travis Ishikawa makes debut at first base with Yankees – NY Daily News.