Hughes set to pitch this weekend

BOSTON - Phil Hughes will pitch at some point this weekend, Joe Girardi said. In which game and for how long, he wouldn't or couldn't say.

Hughes said he's been told the same. "I've just gotten prepared to pitch at some point this weekend," he said before Friday night's rainout. "Be ready for whatever."

Girardi did not name a starter for Sunday's game and was evasive when asked if Hughes might start it if that game means the division title.

"We're not exactly sure what we're going to do Sunday," he said. "So we'll just wait to evaluate that. We'll see what happens tonight and then we'll evaluate."

When Hughes, who has thrown 1751/3 innings and has an innings limit that is believed to be about 175, pitches this weekend, the outing is likely to be relatively brief.

Girardi said rookie Ivan Nova is a possibility for Sunday. "It won't be CC [Sabathia], I can tell you that," Girardi said with a smile. "And it won't be Andy [Pettitte] or A.J. [Burnett].''

Stayin' alive

The Yankees' annual tradition with their rookies, which involves having them dress up in costumes toward the end of the season, is supposed to occur after Saturday's games. This year's costumes are said to have a "Saturday Night Fever" theme.

Extra bases

Although the tarpaulin briefly came off the field at one point, Friday night's game finally was postponed at about 10:30 p.m. . . . Girardi all but said that if the Yankees end up as the wild card and face the Twins - rife with lefthanded hitters - LHP Royce Ring likely will be on the roster to give him a second lefty option to go with Boone Logan . . . Curtis Granderson was back in the No. 2 spot in the lineup Friday night. His solid work against lefthanders since having his swing remade by hitting coach Kevin Long - 16-for-54 (.296) with three homers and eight RBIs - prompted Girardi to say Granderson is likely to remain there next week. "We think that it makes our lineup harder to navigate through," Girardi said.