NEW YORK, April 8 The New York Yankees Sunday placed veteran outfielder Hideki Matsui on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained left hamstring.He suffered the injury in Saturday's 9-7 win over Baltimore while running out a ground ball in the second inning."When you play baseball, these things happen," Matsui said through an interpreter on the Yankees ' Web site. "You just can't help it. I look forward to just getting back as soon as possible." The injury caused Matsui to miss Sunday's 6-4 loss to Baltimore.This is the second straight season Matsui has been placed on the DL after a major injury. He missed four months last season with a broken left wrist.To fill his roster spot, the Yankees recalled outfielder Kevin Thompson from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.Thompson batted .300 in 19 games with the Yankees last season.Copyright 2007 by UPI
