It’s is a remarkably slow day here in Yankees camp. The BYU-Florida game was the center of attention in the clubhouse as players filtered in for the past hour or so.

If there is any news today, I guess it’s the fact Alfredo Aceves will start Saturday’s game against Houston. Yesterday, Joe Girardi said he wasn’t sure whether Aceves would start on Saturday or pitch in relief on Friday.

Friday’s split squad has CC Sabathia starting at home against Rick Porcello. Sergio Mitre will start on the road against Dan Wheeler, with Chad Gaudin pitching in relief.

• Nick Swisher has a five-game hitting streak, Jorge Posada has gone 8-for-11 in his past four games and Robinson Cano has a hit in six of eight games, with multiple hits in four of them.

• Available to pitch today: Javier Vazquez, Chan Ho Park, Dave Robertson, Dustin Moseley, Mark Melancon, Romulo Sanchez and Boone Logan.

• Scheduled to play off the bench: C Austin Romine, 1B Jon Weber, 2B Reegie Corona, SS Kevin Russo, 3B Eduardo Nunez, LF Colin Curtis, CF Greg Golson, RF Reid Gorecki, DH P.J. Pilittere.

• Tomorrow’s split squad at home: Francisco Cervelli, P.J. Pilittere, Mike Rivera, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Nick Johnson, Alex Rodriguez, Kevin Russo, Mark Teixeira, Jorge Vazquez, Greg Golson, Jamie Hoffmann, Marcus Thames, Jon Weber and David Winfree.

• Tomorrow’s split squad on the road: Jesus Montero, Jorge Posada, Austin Romine, Reegie Corona, Brandon Laird, Juan Miranda, Eduardo Nunez, Ramiro Pena, Colin Curtis, Brett Gardner, Reid Gorecki, Curtis Granderson, Nick Swisher and Randy Winn.

• The Yankees will almost certainly add some position players from minor league camp for tomorrow’s games. Basically, the starting outfield is going on the road and the starting infield is staying here.

• Pitchers going on the road tomorrow: Sergio Mitre, Chad Gaudin, Jason Hirsh, Amaury Sanit and Zack Segovia.

• Tampa Bay’s lineup tonight:

Jason Bartlett SS
Carl Crawford LF
Ben Zobrist RF
Carlos Pena 1B
Willy Aybar 3B
B.J. Upton CF
Pat Burrell DH
Sean Rodriguez 2B
Dioner Navarro C

LHP Carlos Hernandez

UPDATE, 3:21 p.m.: Pitchers who traveled with Tampa Bay: RHP Jeff Bennett, RHP Joe Bateman, RHP Richard De Los Santos, RHP Mike Eckstrom, LHP Heath Phillips, RHP Heath Rollins and RHP Dale Thayer.

Also, according to the Rays media notes, the team has already optioned Desmond Jennings, Jeremy Hellickson and Jake McGee to minor league camp. Tim Beckham has also been reassigned there. They’ve named James Shields as their Opening Day starter.

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada C
Robinson Cano 2B
Marcus Thames DH
Randy Winn LF
Juan Miranda 1B
Ramiro Pena 3B

Javy Vazquez is on the mound.

Just a reminder that individual game tickets go on sale tomorrow at noon. Here’s the full press release from the Yankees.

Tickets for individual games to see the defending World Champion New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium will go on sale to the general public on Friday, March 19 at noon at www.yankees.com and www.yankeesbeisbol.com, and via Ticketmaster phone only at (877) 469-9849 and Ticketmaster TTY at (800) 943-4327. Beginning Wednesday, March 24, tickets may also be purchased at the Yankee Stadium Ticket Office, all area Ticketmaster outlets and all Yankees Clubhouse Shops.

As in past years, the Yankees will make available individual-game ticket value programs throughout the 2010 season. A complete list of ticket specials, including game dates, seating locations, and terms and conditions, can be found at www.yankees.com/ticketspecials, by calling (718) 293-6000 or e-mailing tickets@yankees.com. Please note that all ticket specials are subject to availability.

E-Saver Games – Fans can register at www.yankees.com/esaver to receive weekly e-mail ticket offers for E-saver Games available only to Yankees e-mail subscribers.

$5 Games – For select games during the 2010 season, fans can purchase tickets in select areas of the Terrace and Grandstand Levels and Bleachers for $5. Tickets for $5 Games may be purchased in advance or on the day of the game. (Excludes all Premium Games*.)

Family Games – Families can enjoy specially priced tickets on designated Monday through Thursday games in April, May and September. Tickets may be purchased in advance or on the day of game. (Excludes all Premium Games*.)

Senior Citizen Games – Senior Citizens (60 and older) can purchase $5 tickets in designated seating locations for select Monday through Thursday games. Tickets may be purchased ONLY on the day of the game at Yankee Stadium Ticket Windows outside Yankee Stadium, adjacent to Gate 4, subject to availability. All tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis. A valid form of identification must be presented at the time of purchase. (Excludes all Premium Games*.)

Student Games – For select games during the 2010 season, students who present their valid high school or college ID cards when purchasing tickets can receive one half-price ticket in designated seating locations. Tickets may be purchased ONLY on the day of the game at Yankee Stadium Ticket Windows outside Yankee Stadium, adjacent to Gate 4. (Excludes all Premium Games*.)

Youth Games – All fans 14 and younger, when accompanied by an adult, can purchase half-price tickets in designated seating locations for Saturday games. Tickets may be purchased ONLY on the day of the game at Yankee Stadium Ticket Windows outside Yankee Stadium, adjacent to Gate 4. (Excludes all Premium Games*.)

* The term “Premium Games” is defined as the Opening Day game, the Old-Timers’ Day game (July 17 vs. Tampa Bay) and all games played against the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets.

The 27-time World Champion Yankees will begin their 81-game home regular season schedule on Tuesday, April 13 at 1:05 p.m. vs. the Los Angeles Angels.

The Yankee Stadium Ticket Office is located outside Yankee Stadium adjacent to Gate 4 on the corner of 161st Street and Jerome Avenue. Beginning Wednesday, March 24, the Yankee Stadium Ticket Office will be open Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. On game days during the season, the Yankee Stadium Ticket Office will be open Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until two hours after the scheduled first pitch and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. until two hours after the scheduled first pitch.

GROUP TICKETS:

Groups of 20 or more are eligible to take advantage of a variety of group ticket discounts. For complete group ticket information, please visit www.yankees.com, call the Yankees Group Sales Department at (718) 293-6000 or e-mail groups@yankees.com.

In order to keep pace in the Yankees fifth-starter competition, Joba Chamberlain needed to pitch well on Wednesday. He responded with four good innings. Joe Girardi singled out three things that made a difference — better pace, better mechanics, better command — all of which led to Chamberlain’s best outing of the spring.

Before Chamberlain got in the game, Andy Pettitte made his first spring start and looked sharp for his first time facing live hitters. The notebook also has items on Damaso Marte’s not-so-good debut, a few outfielders getting some hits and the pitching scheduled for the next few days.

You know that Opening Day is getting ever closer when the NCAA tournament starts up, and poring over brackets is a nice way to pass those final few weeks until baseball begins. In that vein, I offer two options that are appealing for different reasons:

1. Visit www.lohud.com/brackets to set up an account and fill out your bracket for this year’s tournament. See how well you do against several Journal News sports staffers – including Chad and me – and if you’re good enough to somehow put together a perfect bracket you’ll win $10,000. (Which you should probably use to start-up your new fortune-telling business.)

2. According to an e-mail from Curtis Granderson’s PR man, anyone who donates at least $1 to Granderson’s Grand Kids Foundation via Paypal will receive an invitation into his NCAA bracket challenge. The top 10 final bracket scores will win Curtis Granderson autographed prizes, including bats, balls and photos. The link to donate is right here.

When the Yankees boarded the bus to Clearwater this morning, the sky was grey and the forecast said a 30 to 50 percent chance of rain. Not great considering Andy Pettitte opened the exhibition schedule with a sim game, then had to pitch another simulated game when his second outing was rained out last week.

By game time, the sky was mostly clear, and Pettitte was able to get on the mound for an encouraging spring training debut: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K. The walk came on a 3-2 curveball, a pitch Pettitte said he decided to try just to work on it. The first run came when Ryan Howard fought off a pretty good pitch inside.

“I threw a lot of good stuff, a lot of good pitches,” Pettitte said. “My location I thought was fairly good. The balls they hit were just balls that I just didn’t quite finish on a couple of them.”

Here’s Pettitte talking about his outing.

• Damaso Marte said he’s fine after being hit by a Ryan Howard line drive in the lower back. “He’s going to be sore,” Girardi said. “I asked if he had Bud’s signature on there. They said, just seams.”

• Joba Chamberlain threw 47 pitches in the game and another 15 or so in the bullpen. He wasn’t sure how many pitches he threw in the pen, but he said it was three batters worth. Pettitte was at 55 pitches, 36 strikes.

• Since Pettitte and Chamberlain are on the same scheduled, Girardi said there’s a good chance Pettitte’s next start will come in a minor league game so that Chamberlain can start another big league game.

• Girardi said once again that every fifth starter candidate will get at least one more outing before the Yankees start eliminating people from the competition.

• Two hits brought Brett Gardner’s spring average up to .240. Marcus Thames and Randy Winn also had hits today, just the third spring hit for each of them. “Marcus has swung the bat a little bit and run into a little bit of bad luck,” Girardi said. “You want to see everyone get into their groove because as we get going further, there are going to be less at-bats for people.”

• Give some credit to Amaury Sanit. He was easily the smallest-name Yankees pitcher in this game, but he did throw a hitless, walkless inning with two strikeouts. He hasn’t walked a batter or allowed a run through 3.2 spring innings.

• Three hits for Francisco Cervelli, who’s suddenly batting .583 this spring. That sort of number makes that goofy helmet look good on him. Jon Weber also had another hit. He’s batting .571. Cervelli and Weber have the highest batting averages in camp.

• None of the fifth starter candidates will pitch tomorrow night against the Rays. “We’re going to see some relievers,” Girardi said. Javier Vazquez will start. Chan Ho Park and Dave Robertson are among those scheduled to pitch in relief.

• Split-squad on Friday. CC Sabathia and Mariano Rivera will pitch at home. Chad Gaudin and Sergio Mitre will pitch on the road. The Yankees still haven’t decided when Alfredo Aceves will pitch next. He might pitch in relief of Sabathia on Friday, or he might start on Saturday.

• Recently discovered that I’m allowed to post Associated Press photos on here. It’s very helpful. That’s an AP shot of Pettitte at the top and of Marte in the middle.

Damaso Marte is fine. After being drilled by a Ryan Howard line drive, he has a bruise on his lower back but was already going through exercises within a few innings of leaving the game. Joe Girardi said he’s not sure Marte will make his next scheduled appearance on Friday, but he’s not concerned about any lasting impact.

The story of the day, obviously, was Joba Chamberlain. The Yankees lost 6-2, but that hardly mattered because Chamberlain closed the game with four strong innings. Even then, he was at such a low pitch count that he pitched to an additional three simulated hitters in the bullpen.

Chamberlain allowed two hits, walked one and struck out five. Only three strikeouts will show up in the box score and in his spring stats because Chamberlain’s 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth came after the game was official, but the Yankees are well aware of exactly how well he pitched. They’ve said the spring training results are starting to matter, and Chamberlain was even better than the results.

“Outstanding,” Joe Girardi said. “Worked quickly. Attacked the zone. He’s got to go out and throw more, and that’s what you want to see. Quality.”

Here’s Chamberlain talking about his outing.

YANKEES
Brett Gardner CF
Nick Johnson DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Marcus Thames LF
Randy Winn RF
Francisco Cervelli C
Ramiro Pena SS
Kevin Russo 2B

LHP Andy Pettitte

PHILLIES
Jimmy Rollins SS
Shane Victorino CF
Jayson Werth RF
Ryan Howard 1B
Ben Francisco LF
Cody Ransom 3B
Juan Castro 2B
Carlos Ruiz C
Joe Blanton P

RHP Joe Blanton

TIME/TV: 1:05 p.m., not carried by any of the usual New York stations, but Bryan Hoch tells me that it is available through mlb.tv.

WEATHER: The sky looked bad when we got here, but the dark clouds have gone. No longer looks like rain will be an issue. Breeze blowing right to left.

UMPIRES: HP Marty Foster, 1B Jerry Crawford, 2B Mark Carlson, 3B Andy Fletcher

ON THE LINE: Phil Hughes looked good last night, now it’s Joba Chamberlain’s turn. Joe Girardi said that a bad outing wouldn’t eliminate Chamberlain from the fifth-starter competition, but it certainly seems that he needs a good one to remain a viable candidate… Andy Pettitte and Damaso Marte are each pitching in a game for the first time this spring… Marcus Thames, Randy Winn and Brett Gardner are in the lineup. Jamie Hoffmann is scheduled to play off the bench. I’m sure the Yankees would like to see one of those four get his average above .200.

UPDATE, 1:15 p.m.: Gardner led off with a clean single to right, then got his first stolen base of the spring.

UPDATE, 1:49 p.m.: Andy Pettitte is giving up some hits and some runs — four hits and two runs in the first two innings — but he doesn’t seem especially wild or especially bad for his first time facing hitters. Nothing hit too hard off him. It’s 2-0 Phillies heading into the bottom of the third.

UPDATE, 2:02 p.m.: Two-out single by Randy Winn, followed by an RBI double from Francisco Cervelli. Winn can still move a little bit. Nice job scoring from first on that base hit. It’s now 2-1 Phillies with Pena at the plate.

UPDATE, 2:15 p.m.: Two-hit day for Gardner, who just tripled to center field. Shane Victorino tried to make a diving catch but missed, and Gardner jogged into third. For a while there, it looked like he had a shot at an inside-the-park home run, but he was given the stop sign. He scored on a sac fly by Nick Johnson. We’re tied, 2-2.

UPDATE, 2:22 p.m.: Pettitte’s line: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 R 2 H, 1 BB, 4 K. He threw 55 pitches, 36 for strikes. I think you’ll take that for a first time facing batters. He was solid, and that’s pretty much what you expect a veteran pitcher to be with two and a half weeks to go in spring training. Damaso Marte now pitching.

UPDATE, 2:25 p.m.: Marte’s spring debut, not as good as Pettitte’s. Three-run home run by Werth and Marte still hasn’t gotten an out.

UPDATE, 2:27 p.m.: Now it’s worse. Marte was just drilled in the back by a Ryan Howard line drive. He’s coming out of the game. Amaury Sanit now pitching.

UPDATE, 2:55 p.m.: With two outs, a flare double into no-mans land and an RBI single have led to a run off Chamberlain. Cervelli threw out a runner stealing second to end the inning. Neither hit was hard hit, but the double got just past Russo, who tried to make a diving play going back into right field. The RBI was a routine single to right. It’s now 6-2.

UPDATE, 2:57 p.m.: Bronson Sardinha’s brother Dane is now catching for the Phillies. Bronson was once a big prospect in the Yankees system, and played briefly in the big leagues a few years ago.

UPDATE, 3:05 p.m.: The Yankees have made all of their defensive changes except at catcher. Cervelli is still in there catching Chamberlain.

Phil Hughes seemed to raise the bar with his four scoreless innings on Tuesday. This afternoon, Joba Chamberlain has to keep pace against the Phillies. It will be Chamberlain’s third outing of the spring, and it needs to be better than his first two.

“I told him, just pitch. Do what you have to do,” Joe Girardi said. “We’re not expecting you to work on things any more. We’re expecting you to compete. Show us what you’ve got.”

Despite the fact Chamberlain opened last season in the bullpen, Girardi said he never considered the fifth-starter role to be Chamberlain’s to lose. Girardi said he wouldn’t rule out sending Chamberlain to Triple-A, but it remains more likely Chamberlain will end up in the bullpen if he’s not in the big league rotation.

“I believe he really wants to start,” Girardi said. “For him, he knows this is the time you really have to show us something.”

Here’s Girardi’s morning media session.

• Clearly the most important thing that happened this morning was that Brett Gardner showed up with his hair cut short again. He said his hair was the longest it had been since 2001. That’s him with Posada in the AP photo.

• Girardi told all of the starters that they no longer have to work on things. They can simply pitch for results, but Phil Hughes still used his changeup in key spots last night. “It shows me that he has confidence in it,” Girardi said.

• The pitching plan is the same as yesterday except with different names: Andy Pettitte for four innings, then Damaso Marte for one, then Chamberlain for four. Royce Ring, Amaury Sanit and Ryan Pope are also available.

• Brandon Laird has a sore elbow, but it doesn’t sound serious. “He’s not going to play for a couple of days,” Girardi said.

• Jason Hirsh threw in the bullpen this morning.

• Scheduled to play off the bench: C Mike Rivera, 1B Juan Miranda, 2B Reegie Corona, SS Eduardo Nunez, 3B Jorge Vazquez, LF Jamie Hoffmann, CF Reid Gorecki, RF David Winfree, DH Jon Weber.

• Scheduled Phillies pitchers: RHP Joe Blanton, RHP Jose Contreras, LHP Sergio Escalona, RHP Chad Durbin, RHP David Herndon.

• Top Phillies prospect Domonic Brown was sent to minor league camp yesterday, so you won’t see him this afternoon.

• The Phillies elected not to use a designated hitter, but the Yankees will use one. Cody Ransom is starting at third for the Phillies.

• The Phillies lineup:

Jimmy Rollins SS
Shane Victorino CF
Jayson Werth RF
Ryan Howard 1B
Ben Francisco LF
Cody Ransom 3B
Juan Castro 2B
Carlos Ruiz C
Joe Blanton P

UPDATE, 11:22 a.m.: Yikes. Just saw my mistake in the Yankees lineup. Brett Gardner is leading off and playing center field. Sorry about that. I posted the lineup from my phone in the clubhouse, then drove to Clearwater and started working on this notes post before checking the comments of the previous post. I guess I’d gotten used to putting Jeter’s name at the top.

Four players return from yesterday’s starting lineup. There is roughly a 50 percent chance of rain today in Clearwater.

Derek Jeter SS (oops, my bad)
Brett Gardner CF
Nick Johnson DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Marcus Thames LF
Randy Winn RF
Francisco Cervelli C
Ramiro Pena SS
Kevin Russo 2B