SARASOTA, Fla. — Tomoyuki Sugano didn’t need his interpreter, Yuto Sakurai, to deliver his answer.

“Me,” Sugano said in English, cracking a smile.

Sugano is better than Adley Rutschman at golf, that is. The battery of Rutschman and Sugano hit the links recently as they continue to form a bond, and Rutschman was struck by the 35-year-old Japanese pitcher’s skill.

“He’s really good,” Rutschman said, eyes wide.

He’s also pretty good at this whole pitching thing, even with a rough first two innings Thursday. Sugano’s final outing of the spring Thursday night was his worst since joining the Orioles. He allowed six hits and two walks, and New York Yankees regular Jazz Chisholm Jr. drove in all five runs with a double and a homer.

But beyond walking two — which Sugano said “wasn’t really acceptable” — his 84-pitch outing set him up well for his first season in Major League Baseball, making the jump after a heralded career in Nippon Professional Baseball for the Yomiuri Giants.

“Yes,” Sugano said when asked if he feels ready, providing his second monosyllabic answer of the night. He was all business, even after he left the mound at the end of 4 2/3 innings.

Those five runs were the first against Sugano this spring. In his first 10 1/3 innings, he had allowed five hits and three walks while striking out 11 batters. Sugano’s command early wasn’t what it has been, though, and for a player who walked only 16 batters in 156 2/3 innings last season, that rankled him.

Still, Rutschman was impressed by more than Sugano’s recent golf performance.

“Facing a lot of the Yankees’ starters, getting a feel for how his stuff plays, and I think honestly he did exactly what he wanted to do tonight,” Rutschman said. “Worked the ball around the zone and just go out there and compete.”

Sugano said he spent additional time focusing on his splitter Thursday because it didn’t play how he wanted it to in his last appearance. That will happen from time to time for a pitcher with a vast mix. Sugano throws six pitches — fastball, sinker, cutter, splitter, curveball, slider.

“I thought, besides the two Chisholm at-bats, he was pretty good,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “A lot of mix, which he’s going to do.”

There was a benefit to facing a Yankees lineup with regulars in it. After three plate appearances against Aaron Judge, Sugano said he’d never faced anyone so tall as the 6-foot-7 slugger. He issued two walks to Judge before striking him out the third time.

Sugano will likely next take the mound in Toronto, during Baltimore’s season-opening series against the Blue Jays. Between then and now, there will be plenty of time for him to continue to mesh with his new teammates. Rutschman said he’s trying to learn a few Japanese words, but Sugano already has a grasp of some English words and phrases.

That made their golf excursion fun. Hyde said the fact his players are hanging out away from the ballpark is a good sign for chemistry. And, while there was still a language barrier, Rutschman said that didn’t stop their fun — or Sugano’s strong performance with a club.

“He’s a funny guy, cool dude, and I know the language barrier, it’s kind of tough sometimes to make those connections, but he seems like a really down-to-earth guy,” Rutschman said.

That’s because Sugano is feeling comfortable in his new environment.

“I feel like everybody talks to me more compared to when I first got here,” Sugano said. “It’s not only Adley, but everybody on the team has communicated with me.”