Michael Pineda will start a simulated game on Sunday

Fifth starter candidate Michael Pineda will make his spring debut on Sunday. Only it won't be in a Grapefruit League game, it'll be a simulated game that he'll start in Tampa at the Yankees spring training complex.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said that he's moving a little bit slower with Pineda "just to make sure" that he's healthy as he continues to work his way back from shoulder surgery.

“(Pitching a sim game is) just kind of the way it works out,” Girardi said. “We’ve talked about building guys up, and we’ll do a sim for him the first game. I believe his second game is a real game.”

Girardi added that other starters expected to throw in simulated games at some point this spring.

Pineda has been getting a lot of compliments so far this spring, from both coaches and players that have seen him throw in bullpens.

Girardi has said that his slider looks sharp and his changeup has improved pretty well. Even though he hasn't been throwing in front of a radar gun, they believe that he is throwing with some power.

By the time that Pineda takes the mound in an actual game, David Phelps, Vidal Nuno and Adam Warren will have already taken the mound a couple of times in games, it'll be interesting to see if that puts Pineda behind those guys in the fifth starter race.

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Gavin Ewbank is the Lead Writer of Yanks Beat Blog

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