NEW YORK -- It's pronounced loh-AYE-see-gah.
But above his locker it might as well read "Lasagna."
Yankees rookie starting pitcher Jonathan Loaisiga, in his first MLB start, threw five scoreless innings in a 5-0 win over the Rays at Yankee Stadium on Friday night.
But because Loaisiga, to some, is nearly im-pasta-ble to say, teammates and fans nicknamed him after the gooey Italian favorite not long after he signed with the Giants in 2012.
The 23-year-old doesn't mind it, he said.
"They've been calling me that for a while, especially after I signed, the guys in the minor leagues," he said, via the team's translator Marlon Abreu.