Major League Baseball

Tanaka perfect in debut; Braves manager tossed in 1st inning

Published Mar. 12, 2015 8:08 p.m. ET

foxsports

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) New York Yankees ace Masahiro Tanaka sparkled in his spring training debut, a game in which Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez was ejected after one pitch by his starter.

Tanaka was perfect in two quick innings Thursday night, striking out two.

After Tanaka threw nine of 11 pitches for strikes in the first, Shelby Miller's first pitch to Yankees leadoff man Jacoby Ellsbury was a ball. Gonzalez argued the call and was tossed by plate umpire Dan Iassogna.

Tanaka was an All-Star last year during his first season in the majors, but the Japanese right-hander missed 2 1/2 months while rehabilitating a partially torn ligament in his elbow. He returned for two starts in late September.