Cano OK after getting hit in hand

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Robinson Cano showered, was X-rayed and left the park by the time the Yankees' 6-3 loss to the Orioles was over Sunday night. His team was greatly relieved that the X-rays were negative, given the way Cano grabbed his hand after a pitch hit him as he tried (unsuccessfully) to get out of the way in the sixth inning.

"You worry about guys getting hit, especially in the hand," Joe Girardi said. "It's not broken, it's sore."

The Yankees are off Monday. "We'll see how he is Tuesday," Girardi said of the possibility that the second baseman will be in the lineup.

Cano took a swing at a pitch by Orioles lefthander Troy Patton and missed it, but the ball did not miss him. It caught him on the left hand. He immediately grabbed it and grimaced.

Girardi and trainer Steve Donohue quickly came on the field and took Cano off, with the trainer holding up the player's hand.

It was a bit of a surprise to see a Most Valuable Player candidate in a spring training road game. Regulars rarely make trips. But Sarasota is only about an hour from the Yankees' base in Tampa, and Girardi had said that hitters are getting to the point that they need more repetitions to help groove their swings and get them prepared for the day-in, day-out routine of the regular season.

Little notice has been paid to Cano during this camp; he is so good, he is a given. He left for several days early in spring training to attend the funeral of his great-grandmother. About the only other time his name has come up was when Girardi said his place at No. 3 in the batting order is about the only sure thing in the lineup.

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Cano himself joked about his slow start after he finally hit a long home run Saturday at George M. Steinbrenner Field. The ball cleared everything in rightfield, and he later said, "It was good to hit one out of the infield. It was good to get the first one. Everything has been a ground ball. You don't want to wait until the last week of spring training to get going."

Girardi said Saturday that Cano, who finished the day batting .208, looked to be finally getting "locked in."

Hall hit in head but is OK

Bill Hall was hit in the head by a pitch from starter Alfredo Simon in the second inning but quickly waved off Girardi and Donohue. "It got me right in the ear," Hall said, adding that he avoided getting hurt. "I made a good turn. Plus, it was a curveball."

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Failure to communicate

Ivan Nova blamed his brutal first two innings, including a two-homer first, on lack of communication with catcher Gustavo Molina, with whom he has not worked very much. Nova basically said he could not get in rhythm with the catcher about what pitch to throw and that after a while, he grew weary of shaking off the signs.

He and Girardi both said, though, that the final responsibility rests with the pitcher. "Well, he's the guy with the ball, always," the manager said. "When you make a pitch, you better have conviction. I don't care if you have to shake 17 times, you have to have conviction.''

Excitement for Williams

Mason Williams, 20, was brought along on the trip and was put in the game as a reward for having been the 2011 Player of the Year in the New York-Penn League. He entered as a pinch runner, instantly tried to steal second and was thrown out. "It showed me he doesn't have fear," Girardi said.

When he did get up to bat for his first time ever in a big- league game, Williams swung at the first pitch and lined a single to leftfield. "I'll remember that to the last day," said the outfielder, who had 10 family members on hand to watch. "I was smiling."

Ibañez down to .065

It was not as happy a night for Raul Ibañez, who went 0-for-3 and dropped his average to .065. He said he is not worried about numbers but about getting a feel at the plate and getting ready for the season. "Kevin [Long, the hitting coach] and I are going to keep working on things," he said.