CLEVELAND — Five years later than he hoped, Masahiro Tanaka enjoyed his first All-Star Game experience.

The Yankees’ veteran right-hander made his Midsummer Classic debut Tuesday night at Progressive Field by throwing a scoreless top of the second inning for the American League. He struck out National League Most Valuable Player candidate Cody Bellinger, retired Nolan Arenado on a flyout to center field, allowed an infield single to the Pirates’ Josh Bell (a call overturned after replays showed that Bell beat the throw from Tanaka’s Yankees teammate DJ LeMahieu) and concluded his assignment by getting Wilson Contreras on a comebacker.

“It is a very special day for me,” Tanaka said through an interpreter.

He made it this time as an injury replacement for Toronto’s Marcus Stroman. In his rookie season 2014, Tanaka qualified for the team out of the gate, a leading contender for AL Rookie of the Year before a serious right elbow ailment sidelined him until September.

“I got injured and I wasn’t able to go,” Tanaka said. “That was consuming my mind at that time. But as years passed, you look back and you feel like you wanted to go to that stage.”

He has climbed that stage, finally.