Phil Hughes Returning to Majors

Their pitching staff ravaged by injuries, the Yankees will turn to a familiar face later this week when Chien-Ming Wang's usual spot in the rotation comes up. New York is expected to recall Phil Hughes from Triple-A Scranton for a Tuesday night start against the Tigers.

Though it seems like Hughes has been around forever, he's still just 22 years old, and unlike last year, the Yankees have not placed massive expectations on his shoulders by putting him in the rotation from the outset of the season.

One of the positives of the Yankees' decision not to trade for Johan Santana in 2007 -- and a year later to sign CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett in free agency -- is that they have been able to build up the organization's pitching depth.

Hughes has battled a number of injuries since he first arrived in the majors in 2007, and he was mostly ineffective last year, making seven starts last April before being banished to the minors and only returning as a September callup.

But he is still a very promising young pitcher, the type most teams would be happy to have sixth or seventh on the starting pitching depth chart. Hughes is 3-0 with a 1.86 ERA in three starts for Scranton this year, and perhaps even more encouraging is his 19:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in the minors.

"Hughesie's been throwing the ball really well," manager Joe Girardi said. "I'm excited about the reports on his starts."

It's been a long and winding road for the right-hander, but there's still plenty of time for him to realize his potential. If he gets a grip on a rotation spot this time around, he might not let go.