from MLB.com

TAMPA -- It was the perfect photo opportunity. All five Yankees starting pitchers lined up in a row, throwing their first pitches of the spring, while manager Joe Torre and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre watched from just a few feet away. For Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown, Javier Vazquez and Jose Contreras, those pitches were just the first of the new season. For Jon Lieber, they were the first of the second chapter of his big-league career.

Lieber, 33, is returning to action after 1 1/2 years of recovery from his 2002 Tommy John elbow surgery. Unlike the past couple of seasons, the Yankees enter Spring Training with five pitchers slotted into the five spots of the rotation, a position about which Lieber couldn't be happier.

"It felt good. To actually be a part of something, working toward the season, I was thrilled to death," he said. "I want to be counted on. I don't want it to be, 'I wonder what we'll get today from Lieber.' I want to give us a good chance to win every fifth day."

The Yankees inked Lieber to a two-year deal worth $3.5 million guaranteed, though it could reach more than $8 million based on incentives. Lieber's main incentive right now is simply making it to Opening Day without any setbacks, something he feels confident about.

"You go through surgery like that, you just hope that everything holds together. I'm trying to get that out of the back of my mind," he said. "I feel stronger, like there's even more to come out. You hear guys say it's like getting a whole new arm, and it does. I feel like there's room to grow, and there will probably be some growing pains this year."

"The people who have watched him swear up and down [that he's healthy]. Watching him throw, he has no hesitation. He's not holding back at all," Torre said. "Staying out of the game as long as he did because of the surgery, you're always keeping your fingers crossed."

Lieber won 20 games with the Chicago Cubs in 2001, his last full season in the Majors. He injured his arm the next summer, undergoing the elbow surgery in August. After a full year of rehab in 2003, Lieber can't wait to get back on the mound in a game.

"I've expected this for 18 months now, ever since I had the surgery," he said. "I expect to be healthy, I'm going to be competitive again and do the job out there. If those things fall into place, there won't be any pressure whatsoever."

Earlier this week, catchers Jorge Posada and John Flaherty said Lieber's health was one of the primary keys to the Yankees' success this season. Considering that this year's club has 17 former All-Stars, Lieber considers it quite an honor to have his new teammates think that much of him.

"It's very flattering to have people speak of you like that," he said. "It's great to hear things like that. It makes me feel like I'm going about my business the right way whenever I'm on the mound."

Thursday's bullpen session was not a major step in his rehab, as Lieber has thrown 50 pitches off a mound every fourth day since December. It was more of a symbolic thing for the right-hander, who watched from 1,200 miles away last year as the Yankees made a run to the World Series.

"This was more meaningful, being out there with the guys," he said. "The next hurdle will be when hitters get in here, then the first game.

"The main thing is that I felt good throwing for 10 minutes and that I feel good now," he said. "This is as excited as I've been heading into a season since my first pro camp. It's been a long time."