TORONTO -- Tanyon Sturtze's season got off to a shaky start on the mound, and now the right-hander is dealing with a minor back injury that will keep him off the mound for at least a day or two.

Sturtze tweaked his back on Sunday while working out at the Metrodome, making him unavailable to pitch that day against the Twins.

After receiving treatment on Monday's off-day and again on Tuesday, Sturtze played catch during batting practice on Tuesday, but manager Joe Torre said that the reliever would not be available for the first game against the Blue Jays, either.

"It doesn't seem bad, but it's hanging on," Torre said. "He's moving a little bit, which is a good sign, but it's been a few days and really hasn't gotten better."

"It's tight," Sturtze said. "It feels like everything in the middle of my back is just locked up."

Sturtze, who said he has never had back trouble before, may visit a doctor on Thursday, though he's hoping that he will feel well enough to pitch on Wednesday.

"I'll give it a couple of days, see how it gets loose," he said. "I'm hoping tomorrow it will be better. It feels a lot better than it did yesterday -- each day it's getting better."

While Sturtze is out, Torre will use Kyle Farnsworth and Scott Proctor as his right-handers out of the bullpen.

"Proctor has done a good job," Torre said. "I trust him with what I've seen."

Small getting close: Aaron Small's four-inning outing on Monday was a positive step for the Yankees, who may be less than two weeks away from getting the right-hander back from the disabled list.

Small will pitch again on Saturday in Florida, then make one more start, most likely at Double-A Trenton or Triple-A Columbus.

"Should everything go all right," Torre said, "he should be able to join us after that."

Small has been out since mid-March with a strained right hamstring, but he was sharp during his first extended Spring Training outing on Monday in Clearwater.

Octavio Dotel appeared in his first extended spring game on Tuesday, throwing a scoreless inning with just 10 pitches. Dotel, who is expected to return by the end of May, then went to the bullpen and threw 15 more pitches.

Streaky slugger: Hideki Matsui started as New York's designated hitter on Tuesday, marking his 500th consecutive game as a member of the Yankees.

Matsui, who finished his career in Japan with a streak of 1,250 consecutive games played for the Yomiuri Giants, has a combined streak of 1,750 games.

The 500-game streak is the longest by any Yankee since Lou Gehrig's Iron Man streak of 2,130 games. Matsui's current streak holds the distinction of being the longest to open a career in Major League history.

"When you put streaks together, you think about guys playing every day, you're not sure how important that streak is compared to DiMaggio's or some statistical thing," Torre said. "But when you realize how tough it is to play 162 games every single year, it's a credit to the fact that you're able to stay healthy enough to do things."

Honoring Torre: Torre and his wife, Ali, will receive honorary degrees from Rider University, in Lawrenceville, N.J., during the school's May 12 commencement ceremony.

The couple is being honored for their involvement with the Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation, which combats domestic violence.

"It's nice," Torre said. "It's more recognition for our foundation, which is the best news."

Coming up: The Yankees close out their abbreviated two-game series against the Blue Jays on Wednesday at 12:37 p.m. ET. Mike Mussina takes the ball for New York, facing Toronto's Ted Lilly.