Most-hyped Yankees pitching debuts ahead of Tanaka’s 1st start

Masahiro Tanaka begins his big-league career on Friday night against the Blue Jays as the Yankees No. 4 starter. But, he might as well be their ace with all the hype surrounding his debut.

Tanaka’s first outing in pinstripes might not be the most-hyped debut of the last 25 years — which also is how old the right-hander is — but it’s up there. Here’s a look at the nine most-anticipated Yankees debuts of the past quarter-century.