Yanks Win 9-5 To Finish Off Sweep Of 'Stros

(AP Photo - Kathy Willens)

Final123456789RHEHouston100004000581N.Y. Yankees «00034200x991WP: P. Hughes (9-1) LP: B. Moehler (0-3)
Even though Phil Hughes wasn't at his best, the Yankees were able to slug their way to a 9-5 win over the Astros to complete the three-game sweep.

It was a weird start for Hughes, who didn't have his best stuff all and had trouble hitting his spots day, but still managed to hold the Astros to just a run on three hits and two walks over the first five. Meanwhile, the Yankees, who were shutdown over the first three, scored three in the fourth and four in the fifth to blow the game open and take a 7-1 lead.

Robinson Cano began the scoring with his 13th homer of the season, a solo shot to tie the game at one. Later, with two out in the inning, Ramiro Pena gave the Yankees the lead with a two-run bloop single to right with the bases loaded.

Jorge Posada followed up his grand slam on Saturday with another one on Sunday to extend the Yankees lead to six. It's the first time a Yankee has hit a grand slam in back-to-back games since Bill Dickey all the way back in 1937. Babe Ruth was the only other Yankee to achieve this feat, doing it twice, once in 1927 and again in 1929.

After being handed a 7-1 lead Hughes' lack of command finally caught up with him in the sixth. Carlos Lee led off the inning with a single. Hughes did retire the next two batters he faced on just four pitches, but the next three batters would be Hughes' last. Geoff Blum put runners on second and third with a double. Then Tommy Manzella battled through a 10-pitch at-bat to drive in both runners with a single. Then, former Yankee Kevin Cash capped off the rally, and ended Hughes' day, with a two-run homer to left. The five runs allowed in just 5.2 innings bumped his ERA over 3, but it was still enough for Hughes to pick up his league-leading ninth win of the year.

Damaso Marte came in to replace Hughes and struck out Michael Bourn to end the inning.

The Yankees didn't waste any time pushing that lead back to four, scoring twice in the bottom half of the inning. Nick Swisher drove in the first with a single. Two batters later, Brett Gardner picked up his second hit of the day and drove in the Yankees ninth run. Besides the two hits, Gardner also stole his 22nd base of the season, and he made a great leaping play in the seventh to rob Carlos Lee of a double.

Chan Ho Park pitched the seventh and needed just eight pitches to get through the inning. Joba Chamberlain followed Park with a 10-pitch, scoreless eighth. Then, even though they were up four, the Yanks went to Mariano Rivera to finish off the game. He struck out two of the three batters he faced in the ninth and the Yankees had their 40th win of the season. And with the Marlins beating the Rays, the Yankees also moved into a tie with the Rays for first in the division. Today's win also finishes off a 16-game stretch that saw the Yankees go 12-4.

Before I forget to mention it, Chad Huffman went 1-for-4 with a walk in his major league debut. His hit was a slow roller to short that he beat out for an infield single, and came in his first AB in the third.

Like I said before the Yanks have an off-day tomorrow before they start a three-game series with the Phillies on Tuesday in a rematch of last year's World Series. The pitching matchup in the opener is a good one, with CC Sabathia facing off against Roy Halladay. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. and the game will be on MY9.

HittersABRHRBIBBSOLOBAVGDerek Jeter, SS5010003.293Curtis Granderson, CF4100112.241Mark Teixeira, 1B4110002.229Robinson Cano, 2B3311210.371Nick Swisher, DH4111132.299Jorge Posada, C3214214.288 Francisco Cervelli, C0000000.282Brett Gardner, LF3121201.317Chad Huffman, RF4010115.250Ramiro Pena, 3B3012111.208Totals33999108

Batting2B - Mark Teixeira (13, Wright)HR - Robinson Cano (13, Moehler), Jorge Posada (8, Daigle)RBI - Robinson Cano (47), Nick Swisher (40), Jorge Posada 4 (23), Brett Gardner (20), Ramiro Pena 2 (8)RISP: 4-13 (D Jeter 0-1, C Granderson 0-1, R Pena 1-1, B Gardner 1-1, J Posada 1-3, C Huffman 0-3, N Swisher 1-2, R Cano 0-1)
2-OUT RBI - Jorge Posada 4 (7), Brett Gardner (9), Ramiro Pena 2 (6)SB - Brett Gardner (22, 2nd base off Daigle/Cash)CS - Derek Jeter (3, 2nd base by Moehler/Cash)Team LOB - 11FieldingE - Mark Teixeira (1, Misplayed grounder)
PitchersIPHRERBBSOHRERAPhil Hughes (W,9-1)5.27552613.11Damaso Marte (H,8)0.10000103.09Chan Ho Park10000105.71Joba Chamberlain11000004.76Mariano Rivera10000201.21Pitches-Strikes - Phil Hughes 110-73, Damaso Marte 5-3, Chan Ho Park 8-6, Joba Chamberlain 10-8, Mariano Rivera 15-11Ground Balls-Fly Balls - Phil Hughes 4-8, Chan Ho Park 1-1, Mariano Rivera 1-0First-pitch strikes/Batters faced: Phil Hughes 17/27, Damaso Marte 1/1, Chan Ho Park 2/3, Joba Chamberlain 2/4, Mariano Rivera 3/3
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jorge Posada
HONORABLE MENTION: Brett Gardner

Posted byGreg Cohen

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Yanks Win 6-3 To Finish Off Sweep Of The O's

(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Final123456789RHEBaltimore001000200331N.Y. Yankees «20300100x6121WP: C. Sabathia (5-3) LP: K. Millwood (0-6)
SV: M. Rivera (12)

The Yankees finished off a very successful 6-1 homestand with a 6-3 win over Baltimore to complete their three-game sweep.

CC Sabathia started for the Yankees and besides two mistakes he pitched very well. In seven innings the left-hander allowed three runs on three hits, walked one, and struck out seven on his way to his fifth win of the season. The first of those two mistakes came in the top of the third with the Yankees leading 2-0, when he gave up a home run to Adam Jones. It was the first base runner CC allowed on the day, and would be his last until Jones reached on an error by Sabathia in the fifth. He then retired the next five in a row before getting into some trouble in the seventh. Ty Wigginton singled with one out and then Luke Scott hammered a Sabathia offering into the second deck in right for a two-run homer. CC would then walk Garrett Atkins before retiring the final two batters he faced. Luckily for Sabathia, the Yankees had already scored six runs at that point so he was able to leave with a relatively comfortable three run lead.

Five of the Yankees six runs came in the first three innings. Derek Jeter started the game with a walk. Nick Swisher followed with a single. Then, with Mark Teixeira batting Jeter stole third and eventually scored on a balk by O's starer Kevin Millwood. Robinson Cano then made it 2-0 with an RBI double to center. The hit extended Cano's hitting streak to 17 games.

Later in the third, Alex Rodriguez made it 4-1 Yankees with a two-run homer to right center. It was his eighth long ball of the season. Then following a walk to Cano and a single by Jorge Posada, Curtis Granderson made it 5-1 with an RBI single.

The Yankees added their sixth and final run on a Brett Gardner solo shot in the sixth.

After CC was done the Yankees turned the ball over to Joba and Mo, but unlike CC's last start they held the lead this time. Joba Chamberlain threw just ten pitches to get through a 1-2-3 eighth. Things weren't as easy for Mariano Rivera, who allowed the first two batters he faced to reach on walk and a hit batsman, but he then settled down and retired the next three batters he faced to pick up his 12th save of the season.

The Yankees did what they were supposed to do and that's beat up on the bad teams. Now they head to Toronto to face the surprising Blue Jays in a three-game set up at Rogers Centre. A.J. Burnett will take the mound in the opener against his former team, and left-hander Brett Cecil will start for the Jays. First pitch is at 7:07 p.m. and the game will be on YES.

HittersABRHRBIBBSOLOBAVGDerek Jeter, SS4110112.302Nick Swisher, RF4110111.318Mark Teixeira, 1B4120112.220Alex Rodriguez, 3B5122005.300Robinson Cano, 2B3111112.373Jorge Posada, DH4010021.323Curtis Granderson, CF4021000.269Francisco Cervelli, C3000102.294Brett Gardner, LF4121011.304Totals35612557

Batting2B - Mark Teixeira (10, Millwood), Robinson Cano (17, Millwood)HR - Alex Rodriguez (8, Millwood), Brett Gardner (3, Millwood)RBI - Alex Rodriguez 2 (43), Robinson Cano (43), Curtis Granderson (11), Brett Gardner (18)2-OUT RBI - Robinson Cano (13)
RISP: 4-13 (M Teixeira 0-2, C Granderson 1-1, F Cervelli 0-2, A Rodriguez 1-4, J Posada 1-2, R Cano 1-2)
SB - Derek Jeter (6, 3rd base off Millwood/Tatum), Brett Gardner (19, 2nd base off Ohman/Tatum)Team LOB - 10FieldingE - CC Sabathia (1, Throwing)
PitchersIPHRERBBSOHRERACC Sabathia (W,5-3)73331724.14Joba Chamberlain (H,12)10000005.32Mariano Rivera (S,12)10001201.47HBP - Wigginton (by Mariano Rivera)Pitches-Strikes - CC Sabathia 94-60, Joba Chamberlain 10-6, Mariano Rivera 26-13Ground Balls-Fly Balls - CC Sabathia 11-4, Joba Chamberlain 2-1, Mariano Rivera 1-0Batters Faced - CC Sabathia 26, Joba Chamberlain 3, Mariano Rivera 5
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Alex Rodriguez
HONORABLE MENTION: Brett Gardner

Posted byGreg Cohen

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Yanks Finish Off Sweep Of O's, But Lose Pettitte in the Process

(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

Final123456789RHEBaltimore0001000225112N.Y. Yankees «11130001x7100WP: A. Pettitte (4-0) LP: D. Hernandez (0-4)
SV: A. Aceves (1)
The Yankees finished off their sweep of the Orioles today, with their 7-5 victory today in the Bronx. It was their fourth win in a row, and seventh in their last eight games. The only problem is that Andy Pettitte had to leave the game with a stiff elbow after just 77 pitches. An MRI later revealed minor inflammation and the Yankees expect him to miss at least one start. That makes it three members of the Core Four to be hit with recent injuries and I'm actually starting to believe in the whole SI cover jinx thing. At least none of the injuries have been major, so far. Still, the Yankees are 19-8 and if they can avoid any major injuries will remain one of, if not the best team in baseball.

On to the game itself, Pettitte was solid while he was in there, allowing just a run on six hits and two walks, and struck out two to pick up his fourth win of the year. He was in trouble for most of the day as he allowed at least one base runner in four of his five innings, but was helped out by three double plays. His roughest inning was the fourth when the O's loaded the bases with one out. Pettitte walked Nolan Reimold to force in a run, but was able to get out of the jam without allowing another run. Pettitte remained in the game for another inning before leaving with the elbow injury.

The O's run cut the Yankees lead to 3-1, but they'd put up three more in the bottom half of the inning to extend their lead to 6-1. The Yankees then put together a National League style rally in the fourth. Brett Gardner started it with a walk. That was followed by a bunt single by Francisco Cervelli and a sac bunt by Randy Winn. Derek Jeter drove in a run on a fielder's choice to make it 4-1. Then, following a walk by Johnson, Mark Teixeira gave the Yanks a five run lead with a two-run double. Johnson would drive in the Yanks seventh run with an RBI single in the eighth. He had a very good game, going 3-for-3, with two walks, an RBI, and a run scored. Johnson was the only Yankee who picked up more than one hit, but every Yankees starter besides Robinson Cano had a hit in the game.

Sergio Mitre replaced Pettitte in the sixth and held the O's off the board until the top of the eighth. With one out in the inning Julio Lugo singled and Ty Wigginton blasted a two-run homer to knock Mitre out of the game. David Robertson came in to finish the inning, but ran into trouble of his own in the top of the ninth. With one out in the inning he allowed back-to-back homers by Matt Wieters and Nolan Reimold before being replaced by Boone Logan. Robertson continues to struggle and now has an ERA of 14.21. He's allowed 10 earned runs and three homers in 6.1 innings and if he doesn't correct things quickly he might need to be sent down to fix whatever problems he's having.

Logan walked Rhyne Hughes, then retired Lou Montanez before being replaced by Alfredo Aceves. Like Logan, he walked the first batter he faced, putting the tying run on base, but got Wigginton to fly out deep to right to end the game.

The Yanks have tomorrow off before starting a three-game series with the hated Red Sox in Fenway on Friday. Phil Hughes will be going up against Josh Beckett in the opener. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. and the game will be on YES.

HittersABRHRBIBBSOLOBAVGDerek Jeter, SS5211011.310Nick Johnson, DH3231200.171Mark Teixeira, 1B4012101.178Alex Rodriguez, 3B4011102.253Robinson Cano, 2B4000024.362Nick Swisher, RF3111102.295Brett Gardner, CF3110101.346Francisco Cervelli, C4010011.371Randy Winn, LF3110011.158Totals33710665

Batting2B: Teixeira (6, Hendrickson), Johnson, N (4, Hendrickson).
HR: Johnson, N (2, 1st inning off Hernandez, D, 0 on, 1 out), Swisher (5, 2nd inning off Hernandez, D, 0 on, 1 out).
TB: Jeter; Johnson, N 7; Teixeira 2; Rodriguez, A; Swisher 4; Gardner; Cervelli; Winn.
RBI: Johnson, N (8), Swisher (17), Rodriguez, A (17), Jeter (21), Teixeira 2 (14).
2-out RBI: Teixeira 2.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Winn; Swisher; Cano; Teixeira; Rodriguez, A.
S: Winn.
Team RISP: 3-for-12.
Team LOB: 9.

BASERUNNING
SB: Winn (1, 2nd base off Simon/Tatum), Gardner (13, 2nd base off Hernandez, D/Tatum).FieldingDP - Cano-Jeter-Teixeira, Jeter-Cano-Teixeira, Jeter-Cano-Teixeira, Jeter-Cano-Teixeira
PitchersIPHRERBBSOHRERAAndy Pettitte (W,4-0)56112202.08Sergio Mitre2.13220012.79Damaso Marte (H,4)0.10000104.76David Robertson (H,2)0.222200214.21Boone Logan (H,2)0.10002003.00Alfredo Aceves (S,1)0.10000003.27Pitches-Strikes - Andy Pettitte 77-46, Sergio Mitre 29-17, Damaso Marte 5-3, David Robertson 18-9, Boone Logan 14-6, Alfredo Aceves 5-3Ground Balls-Fly Balls - Andy Pettitte 7-3, Sergio Mitre 4-2Batters Faced - Andy Pettitte 20, Sergio Mitre 9, Damaso Marte 1, David Robertson 4, Boone Logan 3, Alfredo Aceves 1
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Nick Johnson
HONORABLE MENTION: Andy Pettitte

Posted byGreg Cohen

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