Major League Baseball

2010 MLB PLAYOFFS;ALCS NOTEBOOK;Hamilton salutes Ellsbury's support

Published Oct. 15, 2010 10:10 p.m. ET

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ARLINGTON, Texas - Rangers star center fielder and MVP candidate Josh Hamilton was diagnosed with bruised ribs after crashing into the wall against the Twins on Sept. 4.

More than two weeks later, a follow-up exam revealed he actually had broken two ribs.

Shortly after the amended diagnosis, his phone rang. It was Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury offering words of encouragement and advice. ''The biggest thing I took from that call was it takes a lot for a player from another team to call,'' Hamilton said. ''That should tell you a lot about what kind of person he is and how he wants to see other people do.'' Though their injuries weren't the same - Ellsbury broke five ribs - the Red Sox player still was able to offer insight into treatment.

''His big thing was (stimulation) and ice,'' Hamilton said. ''That was different from me. Ice made me spasm up and hurt, so I had to go stim and heat. Everybody's different, man.''

Hamilton admits he probably returned too soon, which is simply a function of when he was injured. After batting just .111 in the Division Series against the Rays, he hopes to improve tonight when the ALCS begins against the Yankees.

''I think our situations were a little different, because (Ellsbury) did it more toward the beginning of the season,'' Hamilton said. ''I didn't really have a choice but to rush it. The situations are obviously different. Could I have used a couple of more weeks? Probably so. But I didn't have that kind of time.''

Regardless, Hamilton appreciated the call.

''It was cool for him to reach out to me,'' Hamilton said. ''It was cool for him to make that effort, to try to give me some ideas and a comfort level as far as dealing with them.''

Gyro on menu

One of the great mysteries of right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka's arrival in Boston was the gyroball, a mystical pitch reputedly invented by a team of Japanese scientists and possibly made of antimatter.

Turns out Matsuzaka never threw the thing. But tonight's starter for the Rangers, left-hander C.J. Wilson, insists that not only is the gyroball real, but that he throws it.

Wilson explained how former teammate Akinori Otsuka introduced him to Kazushi Tezuka, who wrote a book on the pitch and taught him to throw it.

''To be fair, I don't think it's good for your elbow,'' Wilson said. ''I've had two elbow surgeries, and one was after I started throwing the gyro. I don't throw it that much except as a demonstration. It's a funny spinning fastball that looks like it's going to do something different than what it does spin-wise.

''I've used it in the past, but it's something I don't really have great control of, so it's not really worth using it in these type of games, unless I'm just absolutely in the zone and feel like something cool is going to happen if I throw it. Other than that, I'm not going to use it, except for messing around.''

Pettitte goes 3rd

The Yankees rejiggered their rotation to have veteran left-hander Andy Pettitte throw Game 3 in Yankee Stadium on Monday against Rangers ace lefty Cliff Lee.

Right-hander Phil Hughes now will start Game 2 tomorrow afternoon against righty Colby Lewis.

The move not only gives the Yankees a more battle-tested option against the incomparable Lee, it lines up the winningest pitcher in postseason history to go for New York should there be a Game 7.

''You look at Andy, he's got, what, 40 postseason starts?'' manager Joe Girardi said. ''A lot of people talk about Game 3 being pivotal as well, and we just felt this was the way to go.''

Pettitte is gunning to become the first 20-game winner in postseason history. John Smoltz is next with 15 wins.

There's a catch

Rangers manager Ron Washington said Matt Treanor will catch Wilson tonight. He was undecided about first base, where Mitch Moreland and Jorge Cantu platooned down the stretch. . . . Girardi said the Yankees never considered asking ace and Game 1 starter CC Sabathia to pitch twice more in the series on short rest.