Yankees closer Mariano Rivera struck out all three batters he faced in his spring training debut, New York's 9-2 loss to a Minnesota Twins split-squad on Sunday in Tampa.

"It felt great," Rivera said. "I can't complain."

Jason Kubel and pinch-hitter Matt Brown struck out looking, while Luke Hughes went down swinging against Rivera, who threw nine of 12 pitches for strikes during the sixth inning.

"What did he throw? Ten pitches?" Yankees captain Derek Jeter said. "He throws strikes. It doesn't surprise me."

Rivera, 41, has taken a slower approach in recent years to prepare for the regular season. He was 3-3 with a 1.80 ERA and 33 saves in 38 chances last season. The 11-time all-star has 559 regular season saves, second to Trevor Hoffman's 601, and a record 42 in the postseason.

"Mo has a plan and regimen, and it works for him," Girardi said. "He does it as good as anybody I've seen."

l ORIOLES: Right-hander Justin Duchscherer was unable to throw a simulated game because of discomfort in his left hip, putting his place in the starting rotation in doubt.

Duchscherer signed with the Orioles as a free agent last month, but the hip injury has limited him to one appearance, two scoreless innings against Philadelphia on Tuesday.

l INDIANS: Grady Sizemore walked off a back field at Cleveland's training camp, sweating - and wearing a big smile.

"I feel good," the three-time all-star said after running the bases for the first time in 10 months. "I haven't lost a step."

It was the biggest step on the outfielder's road to recovery from microfracture surgery on his left knee.

When asked if Sizemore is definitely out of the team's season opener on April 1, Manager Manny Acta said: "It's not a foregone conclusion. We want to see him on the field so we can gauge how many at-bats he needs to get ready."