Results tagged ‘ Aaron Laffey ’

Yanks Rally Past Blue Jays But Lose Cervelli, Nova

GAME 22

YANKEES 6, BLUE JAYS 4

Some victories are just victories but on Friday the New York Yankees earned a hard-fought victory that came at a very high price.

Lyle Overbay stroked an RBI triple in the bottom of the fourth inning that broke a 2-2 tie and New York went on to defeat Toronto in front of paid Yankee Stadium crowd of 36,151 despite the fact they lost their starting battery within the first three innings of the game.

The seemingly cursed Yankees lost starting catcher Francisco Cervelli in the first inning with a fractured right hand after he was struck by a foul tip off the bat of Blue Jays leadoff hitter Rajai Davis. Cervelli’s hand will require surgery and he will be sidelined a minimum of six weeks.

Two innings later, right-hander Ivan Nova was removed from the game with soreness in his right elbow. He was scheduled to undergo an MRI late Friday but his status is unclear.

But the Yankees were able to win the game behind the stellar relief pitching of David Phelps (1-1). Phelps took over for Nova with two on and no out in the third inning and he was able to mostly shut the Blue Jays down over the next four innings.

After Phelps surrendered an RBI single to Colby Rasmus in the third inning, he settled in and only was touched for a solo home run  -  his second of the game  -  by Edwin Encarnacion to lead off the sixth inning. Phelps gave up one run on two hits and walked two while he struck out a career-high nine batters.

The Yankees, meanwhile, were the beneficiaries of a season-high 10 walks from Blue Jays pitchers. They also benefitted from a wild pitch and a passed ball to score a pair of runs.

Two pitches after Overbay tripled in the tie-breaking run off Blue Jays reliever Brad Lincoln (0-1) in the fourth, Lincoln uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Overbay to score.

The Yankees also scored in the seventh after Robinson Cano doubled and advanced to third on a Vernon Wells groundout. One out later, Ichiro Suzuki was intentionally walked and Cano trotted home when J.P. Arencibia was unable to catch a pitch thrown by Blue Jays reliever Steve Delabar.

After Jose Bautista blasted a solo home run in the eighth off Yankees reliever David Robertson to draw the Blue Jays to within a run at 5-4, Brett Gardner closed out the scoring for the Yankees with a solo home run in the bottom of the inning off Blue Jays left-hander Darren Oliver.

Although the Blue Jays were able to string out three hits in the ninth inning off closer Mariano Rivera to load the bases with two out, Rivera struck out Rasmus swinging to record his eighth save in eight opportunities this season.

With the victory, the Yankees are 13-9. The slumping Blue Jays fell to 9-15.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • Overbay’s triple in the fourth came off the only right-hander that the lefty swinging first baseman faced on Friday. Overbay was 0-for-3 against three different left-handers on Friday and he is now 1-for-24 (.042) against lefties this season. Overbay is 15-for-48 (.313) against right-handers. He has been forced to make a lot of starts at first base against left-handers due to the back injury that has sidelined Kevin Youkilis since last Saturday.
  •  Though he gave up an RBI single to Rasmus and a solo home run to Encarnacion, Phelps was absolutely brilliant in his four innings of relief. Phelps faced 15 batters over his four innings of work and struck out nine, seven of them swinging. Phelps had devastating command off both sides of the plate and he likely will replace Nova in the starting rotation should he have to miss time with his right elbow injury.
  • Wells continues to swing a hot bat. The Yankees only collected six hits but Wells had two of them. He was 2-for-3 with two singles and a sacrifice fly that tied the game at 2-2 in the third inning. In five games against his former team, Wells is 12-for-26 (.462) with three home runs and and five RBIs.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

  • The Yankees were 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position on Friday and they stranded nine runners in the game. The Yankees mainly took advantage of the 10 walks, the wild pitch and passed ball from Blue Jays starter Aaron Laffey, relievers Lincoln, Aaron Loup, Delabar and Oliver, and the catcher Arencibia. This was a night of being lucky and not especially being good.
  • The Yankees had chances for big innings in the second and third against Laffey but Overbay grounded into an inning-ending double play with runners at first and third and one out in the second inning. In the third inning, Laffey was removed when he walked the bases loaded with two out but Suzuki struck out swinging against Lincoln to end that threat.
  • It was almost a blessing Nova was removed in the third inning. He was not pitching well again. He left having given up two runs on four hits and he struck out two in two-plus innings. Nova has been unable to recapture his rookie season form of 2011. Phelps promises to be a big improvement as the No. 5 starter.

BOMBER BANTER

Youkilis, 33, took swings in a batting cage on Friday but was unable to start for the sixth consecutive game. Manager Joe Girardi said if Youkilis is unable to play on Saturday the Yankees likely will place him on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 21. That means Youkilis could not return until May 7 when the Yankees open a series against the Colorado Rockies in Denver.  . . .  Laffey started for the Blue Jays on Friday because the scheduled starter, right-hander Josh Johnson, reported pain in right triceps and he had to be scratched.

ON DECK

The Yankees have a shot to win the four-game weekend series against the Jays with a victory on Saturday.

Left-hander CC Sabathia (3-2, 3.34 ERA) will start for the Yankees. He is coming off a very poor outing against the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday in which he gave up five runs in seven innings, serving up three home runs. Sabathia, 32, is 13-4 with a 2.98 ERA in his career against the Blue Jays.

Sabathia will be opposed by left-hander J.A. Happ (2-1, 3.68 ERA). Happ allowed just one run on four hits in his last start against the Baltimore Orioles. But he did not get a decision. Happ is 2-0 with 5.40 ERA in his career against the Yankees.

Game-time will be 4:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.

 

Yankees Outslug Blue Jays In Ugly But Key Victory

GAME 149

YANKEES 10, BLUE JAYS 7

Let’s make this perfectly clear. This game on Thursday is not going to go down as a Yankee Classic. With both teams combining for 17 runs on 18 hits, 13 walks, two hit batters, an error, two wild pitches and two passed balls, it likely could be disseminated without the expressed written consent of the either team.

But it was a victory for the Yankees and they will take it.

Ichiro Suzuki continued his hot hitting by driving in three runs and Nick Swisher blasted his third grand slam of the season as part of seven-run fourth inning as New York outslugged Toronto to give themselves a one-game lead in the American League East over the idle second-place Baltimore Orioles.

Phil Hughes (16-12) did not so much win this game as he did not lose it. He gave up four runs on four hits and three walks while he struck out nine batters in five innings to collect his team-leading 16th win of the season.

The Yankees, meanwhile, had to wait out soft-tossing left-hander Aaron Laffey (3-6) to throw a pitch within a neighboring area code of the strike zone before they drove him out of the game in the fourth.

The Blue Jays held a slim 2-1 lead in the fourth when Laffey issued a leadoff walk to Russell Martin and Curtis Granderson reached when second baseman Kelly Johnson treated his routine grounder as if it was a hand grenade.

Laffey then issued another one of the five free passes he handed out on the evening to Casey McGehee to load the bases for Suzuki, who started the night 7-for-8 in the series and had homered in his first at-bat off Laffey to lead off the third inning.

Suzuki brought most of the paid crowd of 40,511 at Yankee Stadium to their feet with a two-run double that gave the Yankees their first lead of the night. Little did they know they would hold the lead for the rest of the night.

Manager John Farrell mercifully ended Laffey’s evening in favor of right-hander Brad Lincoln. However, unlike the vehicles that sport his name, Lincoln was neither original or inspired.

Lincoln walked Jayson Nix to refuel the bases to full and he put it in gear to face Derek Jeter. But Jeter stroked a lined single into right to make it 4-2.

Lincoln then wished he could have put the whole thing in reverse or hit the brakes when Swisher smacked a fat 2-1 fastball into the third row of bleachers in right-center over the auxiliary scoreboard to put a serious dent in the Blue Jays’ night and give the Yankees what they thought might be some breathing room so they could rest up for their weekend series with the Oakland Athletics.

Laffey’s line read five runs given up (four earned) on just two hits but five walks and he struck out three in three-plus innings.

However, in his effort to get five innings in for his victory, Hughes surrendered a two-run home run to  to rookie Moise Sierra in the bottom of the fifth.

The Yankees got those two runs back in the bottom of the frame off reliever Brett Cecil on RBI singles by Nix and Jeter to make it 10-4.

After Derek Lowe pitched two shaky but scoreless innings, manager Joe Girardi called upon Cory Wade to pitch the eighth.

Wade spent most of the season at Triple A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre because he was unable to get anyone out consistently at the major-league level this season. That should have been a huge red flag for Girardi.

Wade opened the third by giving up a solo home run to Johnson that still might be traveling. A single, a strikeout and a double later and Wade was gone in a New York minute. Joba Chamberlain then allowed a an RBI single to Brett Lawrie and a Mike McCoy drove in another run on a fielder’s choice groundout to make it 10-7 .

Chamberlain then gave up a single to Edwin Encarnacion to bring up the tying run in Adam Lind. I bet Girardi loved this part of the game.

Fortunately, Chamberlain got Lind to fly out to medium right and David Robertson struck out the side in the ninth to collect his second save of the season.

It’s a good thing, too. Whew!

With the victory, the Yankees have now officially righted themselves and have won seven of their last eight games. Their season record improved to 86-63 and they have but 13 contests left to play. The Blue Jays are pretty much sucking on the tailpipe of their own Lincoln after having been swept in the series and they are now 66-82.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • All Suzuki did in the three-game series was go 9-for-12 (.750) with a home run, three doubles, four stolen bases, four runs scored and four RBIs. About the only thing he did not do was deliver margaritas in the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar. Girardi has chosen to keep Suzuki in the lineup against left-handers because Andruw Jones seemingly has not gotten a big hit since Memorial Day.
  • Swisher struck out three times and walked in the game. However, his grand slam was the biggest hit of the game and it was a game the Yankees needed to win badly. Swisher hit a franchise record-tying 10th grand slam of the season and it was his third. It also was the seventh grand slam of his career. Swisher now has 21 home runs and 83 RBIs on the season. He has hit at least 20 home runs and driven 80 runs in all four of his seasons with the Yankees.
  • Hughes tied a franchise record when he struck out four batters in the fourth inning. Hughes struck out in order J.P. Arencibia, Adeiny Hechavarria, Anthony Gose and Lawrie, however, Hechavarria reached first on one of the two passed balls charged to Russell Martin on the evening. A.J. Burnett also did it for the Yankees on June 24, 2011 against the Colorado Rockies.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

  • The Yankees scored 10 runs but Robinson Cano was 0-for-4 with a walk. That snapped his modest four-game hitting streak and pushed him under the .300 mark this season. Cano is having an unusually quiet September, hitting just .279 with three home runs and eight RBIs.
  • Wade had pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings in his two appearances since his Sept. 1 recall but he was tagged hard by the Blue Jays. Wade is 0-1 with a 5.84 ERA on the season after he was 6-1 with a 2.04 ERA for the Yankees last season. It is not likely Wade will make the postseason roster and his days with the team appear numbered.
  • Martin’s two passed balls give him seven on the season, which is the most he has been charged with in any of his major-league seasons. The Yankees still rave about his defense but it is hard to imagine the Yankees will re-sign him after he thoroughly flopped at the plate this season.

BOMBER BANTER

Mark Teixeira took swings in a batting cage at Yankee Stadium before the game on Thursday and he will travel to Tampa, FL, on Monday in order to rehab his left calf strain in some Instructional League games. Teixeira is targeting a Sept 27 return date so he can get in some game action before the playoffs.  . . .  The Yankees elected not to activate Brett Gardner on Thursday although the move is imminent in the next few days.

ON DECK

The Yankees open a three-game weekend series against the A’s beginning on Friday and they have some payback in mind after they were swept in Oakland.

The Yankees send to the mound left-hander CC Sabathia (13-6, 3.63 ERA). Sabathia has allowed nine earned runs in his last two starts covering 13 innings. Though the Yankees say he is fine, Sabathia has not pitched well since his return from the disabled list with left elbow soreness. He is 8-8 with a 4.80 ERA lifetime against the A’s.

Oakland will start right-hander Jarrod Parker (11-8, 3.51 ERA). Parker allowed two runs on seven hits with one walk and seven strikeouts in seven innings in a victory over the Orioles on Saturday. He is 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA in his one career start against the Yankees.

Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by MY9.

 

Ichiro’s Heroics Nudge Yankees To Sweep Of Jays

GAME 148

YANKEES 2, BLUE JAYS 1

By the time 10-time All-Star Ichiro Suzuki came up in the eighth inning with the game on the line, he already had a what could be considered a great two games in the day-night doubleheader. He was 6-for-7 with two doubles, two stolen bases and two runs scored plus a game-saving catch in the first game.

Suzuki obviously was not satisfied with it.

With Curtis Granderson at third and two out, Suzuki sliced a bloop single into left off reliever Aaron Loup that broke a 1-1 tie and New York went on to complete a sweep of Toronto in the doubleheader to insure they will remain in first place in the American League East.

Since Suzuki was acquired from the Mariners in July, he is 52-for-164 (.317).

Rafael Soriano was summoned in the ninth and he dispatched the Blue Jays in order to record his second save of the day and his 42nd save in 45 chances on the season.

The Yankees were just happy to carve out a victory at Yankee Stadium in a game when they had repeated chances to score but they could not come through with the big hit until Suzuki did it in the eighth.

The Blue Jays claimed an early 1-0 lead in the second inning by taking advantage of the one inning of the game rookie right-hander David Phelps struggled with his control.

Phelps issued back-to-back one-out walks to J.P. Arencibia and Kelly Johnson before he managed to fan Yan Gomes swinging for the second out. But Adeiny Hechavarria slapped a single under Phelps’ glove and into center-field to score Arencibia.

The Yankees got the run back in the bottom of the inning off Blue Jays left-hander Ricky Romero, who entered the contest with a franchise-tying record of 13 consecutive losing decisions dating back to June 22. The Yankees also took advantage of some wildness by Romero.

Romero issued a one-out free pass to Jayson Nix and Nix stole second before Romero also walked Casey McGahee.

Suzuki singled into center-field but Colby Rasmas threw out a sliding Nix at the plate with a perfect throw to Arencibia.

Chris Stewart then followed with a ground-rule double down the left-field line that scored McGahee.

But in the rest of the contest, the Yankees pretty much squandered chance after chance to score off Romero, who gave up seven hits, walked five and struck out five in six innings. They did the following:

  • The Yankees had Derek Jeter on first with his 200th hit of the season in the first and Nick Swisher walked. But Robinson Cano flew out and Alex Rodriguez hit into an inning-ending double play.
  • After Stewart’s double in the second, they had runners at second and third and two out but Jeter struck out swinging.
  • Swisher and Cano stroked consecutive one-out singles in the fifth but Rodriguez and Granderson both struck out swinging.
  • Suzuki hit a two-out single in the sixth and he stole second and third base while Stewart drew a walk. However, Jeter grounded out to third.
  • After Suzuki’s RBI single broke the tie in the eighth, he stole second and third base for the second time in the game. Stewart drew a walk and he also stole a base. Then Jeter drew a walk from reliever Brandon Lyon to load the bases. But Swisher struck out swinging.

Other than Stewart’s RBI double and Suzuki’s two singles with runners on second, the Yankees were 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left 12 runners on base.

However, they did break out a new weapon in their arsenal: The stolen base. They stole a season-high seven bases in the game, including Suzuki’s four.

Phelps deserved a better fate. He gave up one run on just three hits and three walks and he struck out six in 6 1/3 innings.

Cody Eppley (1-2) pitched to one batter in the eighth and struck him out to get credit for the victory.

Blue Jays reliever Steve Delabar (4-3) took the loss after surrendering a leadoff walk to Granderson in the eighth. Nix sacrificed him to second on a perfect bunt.

Loup then came on and struck out pinch-hitter Steve Pearce swinging but Suzuki was able to come through with his fourth hit of the game and give the Yankees an important victory.

Coupled with the Baltimore Orioles’ 10-inning 3-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners, the Yankees maintained a half-game lead in the American League East. The Yankees are also a game up in the loss column at 84-63. The Blue Jays fell to 66-81.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • Suzuki’s day was just absolutely mind-boggling. He did it all with his glove, his bat and his feet. The 7-for-8 day raised his season average to .277. Also give credit to Girardi for playing the 38-year-old Suzuki in both games despite the fact Romero is a left-hander and Suzuki had been benched against most lefties lately. Of course, Suzuki was 9-for-25 (.360) in his career against Romero. So it was an easy decision.
  • Phelps was a late addition to start this game because the Yankees did not want to have Phil Hughes and Pettitte on the same rest next week. So Hughes was pushed back a day and Phelps pitched a real gem. In his 10 starts this season, Phelps is 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA. He now becomes a valuable arm in the bullpen because he is 4-4 with a 3.24 ERA overall.
  • Stewart had his best game in a while. He was 1-for-2 with a double, two walks and a stolen base. He also called a great game for Phelps and he even caught the American League second-leading base-stealer in Rajai Davis trying to take second in the third inning.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

  • The 0-for- 11 number for the starters other than Suzuki and Stewart is important. This team needs to start doing a better job with runners in scoring position if they want to advance in the playoffs. Home runs will not bail them out against top-flight pitching. So they better improve on this in a hurry.
  • Rodriguez was the poster child for the team’s futility. He was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and he grounded into a double play. With Mark Teixeira still out for the forseeable future, A-Rod has to deliver with runners on base and stop stinking up the joint as he did Wednesday.
  • Jeter’s hit gave him 200 on the season which makes him the sixth oldest player in the majors to reach 200 hits in a season. He is the first player to reach 200 hits at age 38 since Paul Molitor did it in 1996. But he also failed two times with runners in scoring position to deliver the big hit. He left four runners on base and A-Rod left five.

BOMBER BANTER

Jeter returned to short in the second game of the doubleheader, his first start at the position in a week due to a nagging deep bone bruise in his left ankle. Jeter committed his 10th error of the season on a high throw to first after fielding a ball off the bat of Arencibia in the seventh inning.  . . .  The Yankees elected not to activate outfielder Brett Gardner from the disabled list. Gardner, who has missed most all of the season with a strained right elbow and elbow surgery, may be activated on Thursday but it will require the Yankees to make a move on their 40-man roster. They activated Andy Pettitte by moving pitcher Dellin Betances to the 60-day disabled list.

ON DECK

The Yankees will go for a sweep of their three-game series with the Blue Jays on Thursday.

Hughes (15-12, 3.96 ERA) will start for the Yankees. Hughes is coming off 7 1/3 innings of shutout baseball in a victory over the Boston Red Sox last Thursday. He has a 3.24 ERA since June. He is 4-5 with a 4.66 ERA in his career against the Blue Jays.

The Blue Jays will start journeyman left-hander Aaron Laffey (3-5, 4.55 ERA). Laffey gave up three runs on four hits and four walks in just 3 2/3 innings against the Red Sox. He has lost his last four starts. He is 0-2 with a 9.56 ERA lifetime against the Yankees.

Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast regionally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.

 

Nova Baffles Jays As Yanks Notch Fourth Straight

GAME 113

YANKEES 5, BLUE JAYS 2

When Ivan Nova struck out 10 Red Sox batters on July 8, he headed into the All-Star break with a 10-3 record and a 3.92 ERA. The New York Yankees had not seen that Nova since – until Saturday.

After going 0-3 with a 8.36 ERA in his last five starts, Nova was looking to turn a page on an ugly chapter of his sophomore major-league season and he did just that.

Nova struck out 10 batters and held the Blue Jays to just two runs on five hits in 7 1/3 innings as New York got a big three-run home run from newly acquired corner infielder Casey McGehee and defeated Toronto in front of a sellout crowd of 45,582 at Rogers Centre.

The Yankees have now won four straight games.

Nova (11-6) rediscovered the form on his swing-and-miss slider and used it along with his 12-to-6 curveball to keep the Blue Jays swinging mostly at air throughout the day. In his previous starts, his slider spun up to the plate and the 25-year-old paid the price – especially in his last two starts, giving up 16 runs on 21 hits in 10 1/3 innings.

But that Nova was a distant memory and the reliable old Nova re-emerged on this day.

Meanwhile, the Yankees did most of their damage against Blue Jays starter Aaron Laffey (3-3) in the fourth inning and it all happened with two out.

Mark Teixeira led off the frame with a single up the middle and, one out later, Andruw Jones drew a walk. But they remained there with two out until Jayson Nix slapped a lined single to left to score Teixeira and advance Jones to third.

McGehee, who was making only his fourth start for the Yankees since being acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 31, hit his first home run with the Yankees into the second deck in the left-field bleachers to expand the lead to 4-0.

Nova retired the the first nine batters he faced, striking out four. However, he gave up a leadoff single to Rajai Davis in the fourth inning, balked him to second and David then scored on a line-dive single to right by Edwin Encarnacion.

The Yankees tacked on a run in the sixth off Laffey when McGehee slapped a one-out double down the left-field line and he scored on a two-out ground-rule double from Derek Jeter, who with that double reached the 150-hit mark for the 17th straight season and he and Henry Aaron are the only two major-league players to have accomplished the feat.

The Blue Jays rallied in the eighth for another run off Nova and it again was Davis and Encarnacion right in the middle of it.

Davis opened the inning with a double into center and he stole third. One out later, Encarnacion plated Davis with an infield single and Nova was removed from the game by manager Joe Girardi.

David Robertson ended the inning by inducing a double-play grounder off the bat of Omar Vizquel on Robertson’s first and only delivery of the game.

Rafael Soriano pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn his 28th save in 30 opportunities this season.

With the victory the Yankees improved their season record to 67-46, the best mark in the American League. They lead the second-place Tampa Bay Rays by six games in the American League East. The Blue Jays have now lost five straight and they are last in the division and 14 games out.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • Nova’s rediscovery of his slider was the big key in order for him to get back on track. Girardi was very clear in saying that Nova needed to return to form and he did. In his last two seasons, Nova is 27-10 with a 4.17 ERA. His importance to the Yankees going forward is immense. The Yankees simply need him to pitch this way the rest of the season.
  • McGehee’s home run was his first with the Yankees and his ninth of the season. If he hits another homer, the Yankees would have 10 players on the roster who have double-digit home runs. McGehee gives the Yankees an additional power bat from the right side in the absence of Alex Rodriguez. With his 2-for-4 game, a double, a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored he is showing indications he will be a key contributor against left-handed pitching.
  • Jeter’s double put him in elite territory by recording 150 or more hits in 17 straight seasons. Aaron is the only player to have done it. Pete Rose had a run of 16 consecutive seasons going in 1981 but the strike-shortened season left him short with 140 hits. He then recorded a 172-hit season in 1982. So it is safe to say that Rose would have easily put together 18 consecutive 150-hit seasons if not for the strike.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

  • Curtis Granderson was 0-for-3 and had a pair of chances to get a key hit with two runners on base in the fourth and fifth innings and he did not get the ball out of the infield in either at-bat. He popped out to third in the fourth and rolled out to first in the fifth. But the good news was that Granderson did not strike out in the game.
  • Robinson Cano was 0-for-4 with a walk and he did not exhibit much patience in his at-bats other than the walk. He hit two weak grounders and was called out on strikes in three of his at-bats. Cano entered the contest 15-for-37 (.405) in his last nine games with a home run and eight RBIs. He and Jeter are each hitting .315 on the season.
  • Nick Swisher had a rough day in his old No. 2 spot in the batting order. He was 0-for-4 with a walk and he struck out twice. He also failed to get a ball out of the infield. Despite the bad day, Swisher does appear to more comfortable in the No. 2 spot and Girardi looks like he intends to keep him there.

BOMBER BANTER

What started out as a ripple of a rumor turned into a big wave when Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reported Saturday that CC Sabathia was suffering with left elbow stiffness. The Yankees then confirmed it and placed the ace left-hander on the 15-day disabled list. Sabathia first felt some discomfort after an Aug. 3 start against the Seattle Mariners. But the discomfort subsided and Sabathia started on Wednesday against the Detroit Tigers. The stiffness returned and it did not subside. Originally the Yankees were planning to skip Sabathia for just his next start on Monday against the Texas Rangers. However, they later decided to place him on the disabled list and he will be eligible to return on Aug. 23. In the interim, the Yankees are planning to use David Phelps, who is 2-3 with a 2.42 ERA and has made three starts this season, in Sabathia’s place on Monday. The Yankees also agreed to a contract with veteran right-hander Derek Lowe and he will pitch out of the bullpen.  . . .  In keeping with his plan to rest his veterans, Girardi did not start Ichiro Suzuki following his five-RBI night on Friday and he used Jeter as the team’s DH. Suzuki entered the game in the ninth inning as defensive replacement for Jones in left-field.

ON DECK

The Yankees will have a chance for a road sweep of the three-game series against the Blue Jays on Saturday.

Right-hander Phil Hughes (11-9, 4.10 ERA) will get the starting nod for the Yankees. Hughes allowed four runs and eight hits in 4 1/3 innings in a loss to the Tigers on Tuesday. He is 3-4 with 4.38 ERA in his career against the Blue Jays.

The Blue Jays will use their third consecutive left-hander in J.A. Happ (0-1, 6.35 ERA). Happ allowed four runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings in his first start for the Blue Jays against the Rays on Tuesday. Happ has no record and 3.00 ERA in his one start against the Yankees when he was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies in 2010.

Game-time will be 1:07 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.

 

Ichiro Drives In 5 As Yankees Clip Blue Jays’ Wings

GAME 112

YANKEES 10, BLUE JAYS 3

When the New York Yankees acquired Ichiro Suzuki from the Seattle Mariners they were just expecting some great outfield defense and some singles and some steals at the bottom of the batting order. It is now beginning to look like they have a top-flight RBI man instead.

Suzuki drove in five runs to lead a late-inning seven-run assault on Toronto pitching as New York put away a badly depleted Blue Jay team on Friday at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

Suzuki gave the Yankees an early 2-0 lead in the second inning by driving in a run beating out a potential double-play grounder. He added a two-run single in the eighth inning and a bases-loaded two-run double in the ninth inning. Suzuki, who had only 28 RBis when he was obtained on July 23, has driven in 11 runs in his last 11 games and nine and his last four games with the Yankees.

Meanwhile, veteran right-hander Freddy Garcia (6-5) pitched six solid innings to pick up his second straight victory. Garcia gave up two runs on four hits and struck four against a Blue Jays team missing Jose Bautista, Brett Lawrie, J.P. Arencibia and Adam Lind.

The Yankees built an early lead on Blue Jays starter Ricky Romero in second inning after Robinson Cano led off the frame with a single and Romero walked Andruw Jones.

Jayson Nix attempted to bunt the next pitch and it rolled just out in front of home plate. But Blue Jays catcher Jeff Mathis threw the ball past third baseman Omar Vizquel and into left-field to allow Cano to score and Jones to advance to third. Suzuki followed with a grounder that forced Nix at second but Suzuki beat the relay to first and Jones scored.

The Yankees added a run in the following inning on a leadoff single by Nick Swisher and a one-out RBI single by Cano.

Romero ( 8-9) then shut down the Yankees over the next four innings on just one hit. He left having given up four hits and three walks and struck out two over seven innings.

Kelly Johnson proved to be Garcia’s big nemesis. He struck with one-out solo home run in the bottom of the second inning to halve the Yankees’ lead at 2-1. Two innings later, he followed a bunt single by Yunel Escobar and a lined single by David Cooper with a double down the right-field line that scored Escobar to make it 3-2.

But Garcia ended the threat by striking out Vizquel and inducing Mathis to tap back to the mound.

The game stayed 3-2 until Steve Delabar’s first offering in the eighth inning in relief of Romero was tagged by Mark Teixeira for his 22nd home run of the season.

With two out, Nix and Russell Martin each dunked in a pair of bloop hits and Suzuki followed with an RBI single up the middle to break the game open at 6-2.

The Yankees added four runs in the ninth off rookie reliever David Carpenter and Brad Lincoln. Suzuki culminated the scoring with base-loaded liner that Rajai Davis lost in the lights and it was scored a double.

With the victory the Yankees have now won three games in a row and are 66-46 on the season. They remain 5 1/2 games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. The reeling Blue Jays have lost four in a row and are in last place in the division with a record of 53-59.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • Suzuki has had at least one hit in 16 of the 17 games he has played with the Yankees. The five-RBI night tied a career high and it was the third time in Suzuki’s career he achieved the feat. But it was the first time since the 2004 season. He also started his first game in center-field since the 2008 season and he has now started in all three outfield position since coming to the Yankees. He was acquired to provide speed, defense and a consistent bat at the bottom of the order and he has done all three very well.
  • Teixeira’s home run was the second straight game in which he has delivered a home run in the eighth inning on the road. Teixeira and Eric Chaez combined to hit back-to-back solo home runs to turn a 3-2 Yankee deficit on Thursday into a 4-3 victory over the Tigers. It was the first time two Yankees had hit consecutive home runs in the eighth inning or later to win a game on the road since Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle did it during the 1955 season. Teixeira extended his team-leading RBI total to 76.
  • Garcia is never going to be confused with Felix Hernandez or Justin Verlander, but he put in another solid effort to win his second straight start. In his eight starts since replacing Andy Pettitte in the rotation, Garcia is 4-3 with a 3.83 ERA. The 35-year-old right-hander has been valuable as a placeholder for Pettitte.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

I can’t think of much to complain about. Garcia pitched well and the offense has scored 31 runs and notched double-digits in hits over the team’s last four games. Perhaps they can put that stretch of nine losses over 12 games behind them now.

BOMBER BANTER

It is possible that left-handed reliever Pedro Feliciano could be added to the Yankees’ expanded roster in September. Feliciano has not pitched since the 2010 season with the New York Mets because he underwent surgery for  torn rotator cuff. On Friday, Feliciano made his second rehab appearance for the Yankees’ rookie Gulf Coast League. Feliciano was signed to a two-year $8 million deal prior to the 2011 season but he has not pitched a single game for the Yankees. He is 22-19 with a 3.31 ERA over 459 appearances over his eight-season career.

ON DECK

The Yankees will continue their weekend road series with Blue Jays on Saturday.

Ivan Nova (10-6, 4.81 ERA) will get the start for the Yankees. Nova has a lot to prove after giving up seven runs on 11 hits on Monday against the Tigers. He is 0-3 with a 8.36 ERA in his last five starts. Nova is 2-1 with a 3.75 ERA against the Blue Jays in his career.

The Blue Jays will counter with left-hander Aaron Laffey (3-2, 4.39 ERA), who pitched briefly for the Yankees last season. Laffey gave up four runs on six hits in his last start, a victory over the Oakland Athletics. He is 0-1 with an 11.74 ERA against the Yankees in his career.

Game-time will be 1:07 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.

 

Yanks Lower Rays’ Shields To Clinch Playoff Spot

GAME 154

YANKEES 4, RAYS 2

The Yankees have earned so many postseason invitations that the 2010 version did not carry any special meaning for the players. No hoopla, no high-fives and no hollering. Just handshakes.

But the team’s 16th postseason berth in the last 17 seasons was made possible by a dramatic three-run eighth inning rally off James Shields and Tampa Bay as New York clinched at least a wild-card spot with a victory over the Rays on Wednesday in front of a Yankee Stadium crowd of 42,755.

Manager Joe Girardi and the Yankees would have been forgiven if they had mailed the game in when they found out scheduled starter Phil Hughes was unable to pitch due to recurring back spasms. That forced Girardi to press into service reliever Hector Noesi and he was on a pitch count of about 60 pitches.

The Yankees, in turn, were facing Shields, the Rays ace right-hander, who entered the game with a 15-11 record and a 2.91 ERA.

But the Yankees held the score to 2-1 beginning the eighth inning. Shields had only been touched by a Derek Jeter single and an Alex Rodriguez double off the wall in straightaway center that scored Jeter easily in the first inning. In the next six innings, Shields had given up only an infield single by Jeter with two outs in the third and a one-out single to Eduardo Nunez in the fifth. He had struck out six and walked one, relying mostly on his changeup.

However, Shields paid dearly for throwing one too many when Nunez connected with one on an 0-1 count to lead off the eighth inning and he lined it into the first row of the bleachers in left to tie the game at 2-2. Shields knelt to the left of the mound and bowed his head in frustration.

One out later, Brett Gardner stroked a 3-2 pitch for a single to the opposite field in left and Jeter drew a four-pitch walk, which ended the day for Shields.

Manager Joe Maddon summoned left-hander J.P. Howell to face Robinson Cano. Cano entered play with a .315 batting average against lefties this season, but Maddon made the move anyway. He also paid a dear price for it.

Howell fell behind Cano at a count of 3-1 and Cano laced Howell’s next offering over the head of Upton in center-field to score Gardner and Jeter and allow the Yankees to regain the lead late.

Mariano Rivera, fresh off his record-setting 602nd career save on Monday, tossed another dominant 11-pitch perfect ninth inning to wrap up the victory with his 45th save of the season to put the Yankees in the playoffs once again.

The defeat really hurt Shields (15-12) and the Rays. The Rays started the day 2 games in back of the slumping Boston Red Sox in the wild-card race. The loss dropped to them 2 1/2 games back.

The win was improbable for the Yankees because Noesi, making his first major-league start, had a hard time commanding his pitches. In the third inning, Elliot Johnson led off with a ground-rule double to left. He advanced to third on a groundout and then Desmond Jennings blasted a high 2-1 fastball into the left-field bleachers to give the Rays the lead.

Girardi almost treated the game like a spring-training game, running in a total of seven relief pitchers starting in the third inning to replace Noesi. It almost seemed as if they were coming off the No. 4 train, entering and then exiting the game before you could look them up in your program.

From Noesi to Raul Valdes to George Kontos to Aaron Laffey to Cory Wade to Boone Logan to Luis Ayala and finally to Rivera in the ninth. Ayala (2-2), who struck out the only two hitters he faced in the top of the eighth got credit for the victory. The relievers pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings on five hits and one walk and they struck out eight batters.

Girardi, mindful the Yankees would be playing the Rays in an evening doubleheader nightcap, also used the occasion to rest starters Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Russell Martin.

But the Grapefruit League lineup and pitchers were still able to bring the Yankees on the verge of clinching the American League East title, which is something the Yankees will celebrate with more than handshakes.

The Yankees improved their season record to 94-60. The Rays fell to 85-69.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • Jeter is making a nice a last-week push to bring his average to .300. He was 2-for-3 with a walk and scored two of the Yankees’ four runs. In his last three games, Jeter is 7-for-12 (.583) and has raised his average from .292 to .298. Jeter has failed to hit .300 or better in only four of his 16 major-league seasons.
  • Cano’s two RBIs give him 115 on the season and he trails his teammate Granderson, the major-league leader, by only four RBIs. In his last nine games, Cano is 12-for-33 (.364) with a home run and nine RBIs. It may be too late to earn him the MVP award over Granderson but he is entering into the discussion.
  • Give Girardi a lot of credit for this victory. He kept bringing in lefties to face Rays lefties and then summoning righties to face Rays righties. Maddon mistakenly left his lineup lopsided with three right-handed hitters at the top of the order and then three lefties, two switch-hitters and one lefty at the bottom. Girardi took advantage of it by being able to mix and match the whole game with his bullpen.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

The Yankees clinch the wild card by beating Shields and the Rays with a bunch of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitchers and a spring-training lineup? Why complain? This was a nice victory.

The BOMBER BANTER and ON DECK reports will be contained in the next posting.

 

Jesus Saves: Montero’s 2 HRs Key Yankee Victory

GAME 139

YANKEES 11, ORIOLES 10

Some rookies arrive in the major leagues with so much hype they can never seem to be great enough to measure up to it. In just four games, Jesus Montero is writing a whole new chapter of his own greatness and nothing appears overhyped.

Montero, 21, hit his first and second major-league home runs and they proved to be the margin of victory as New York edged Baltimore in a Labor Day slugfest in front of 45,069 fans at Yankee Stadium on Monday.

With the game tied at 8-8 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Montero greeted Orioles reliever Jim Johnson by swatting an 0-1 fastball to the opposite field in right for his his first major-league home run. Yankee fans got on their feet and demanded a curtain call from their rookie power-hitting designated hitter. Montero complied and the Yankees had a 9-8 lead.

Before facing Montero in the fifth, Johnson had allowed only three home runs in 76 2/3 innings this season.

Two innings later, Johnson faced Montero again with one out and Russell Martin on first with a single. Johnson tried to pitch in to the rookie but on a 2-2 fastball, he missed over the plate and Montero hit an even longer blast into the right-field seats.

Yankee fans got on their feet and requested an encore curtain call from their new hero and Montero obliged. After four games, Montero is hitting .385 with two home runs and three RBIs.

Meanwhile, a fellow rookie Brett Lawrie of the Blue Jays made his impact on the 2010 division title race by cracking a walk-off solo home run with two out in the bottom of the 11th inning off Red Sox reliever Dan Wheeler as Toronto blanked Boston 1-0. The Yankees, who have won eight of their last nine games, have extended their lead in the American League East to 2 1/2 games over the Red Sox, who have dropped five of their last seven games.

The Yankees received a rare poor start from 34-year-old right-hander Freddy Garcia, who lasted only 2 2/3 innings and he gave up seven runs on nine hits. Garcia entered the game having thrown 15 quality starts in the 22 games he started this season. But he was victimized by four-run second inning and Mark Reynolds added a two-run home run in the third inning that drew the Orioles back to a one-run game at 8-7.

The Yankees pretty much did the same damage to the O’s’ young lefty Brian Matusz by scoring two runs in the first and adding six runs in the second inning.

Curtis Granderson chased Matusz in the second inning with a one-out, two-run double that drew the Yankees back to a one-run deficit at 5-4. However, Orioles reliever Chris Jakubauskas threw gasoline on the fire when he entered the game and walked Mark Teixeira, who hit his 36th home run of the season in his first at-bat, and hit Alex Rodriguez in the left arm on an 0-2 pitch to load the bases.

Jakubauskas paid dearly for his lack of control by giving up a grand slam home run to Robinson Cano, which landed well into the bleachers in right-center and gave the Yankees an 8-5 lead in an inning in which the Yankees sent 11 batters to the plate.

Matusz was touched up for five runs on five hits and two walks and he fanned three in 1 1/3 innings. Jakubauskas was charged with three runs on two hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning.

However, Garcia could not keep Baltimore from scoring. Reynolds’ home run drew the Orioles back to within 8-7 and Garcia was removed after giving up a single to Ryan Adams with two outs in the third inning.

Newly signed and recently called up lefty Aaron Laffey surrendered a one-out solo home run to Robert Andino in the fifth inning that drew both teams even on the day.

But Montero’s two home runs provided the Yankees with a margin they actually really needed badly because their bullpen continued to crack.

Luis Ayala was touched for a run in the eighth on a one-out double by J.J. Hardy and a single to right by Nick Markakis that scored Hardy. Markakis took second on an error by Chris Dickerson, who was inserted into right as a defensive replacement for Andruw Jones when the inning started. However, Markakis was thrown out on a relay from Dickerson to Derek Jeter to Rodriguez, who applied the tag on Markakis at third base.

The Orioles added another run in the ninth off future Hall-of-Fame closer Mariano Rivera.

Reynolds stroked a one-out single and reached second on a stolen base. One out later, Ryan Adams delivered a single to center to score Reynolds to make it an 11-10 game.

Rivera then hit pinch-hitter Nolan Reimold on a 3-2 pitch. Reynolds and pinch-runner Matt Angle then moved up a base on a double steal. However, Rivera ended the rally right there by striking out Hardy looking on a 2-2 pitch on the outside corner. For Rivera it was a very shaky 38th save in 43 opportunities this season.

Rivera now has 597 saves in his career and he soon could pass all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman, who has 601.

Laffey (2-1) got credit for the victory in relief. Johnson (5-5) took the loss.

With the victory the Yankees’ season record stands at 86-53. The Orioles fell to 55-84 and they 31 games out of first in last place in the division.

PINSTRIPE POSITIVES

  • When the Montero legend grows to epic proportions over the years you can say you were there to see the first two home runs and three RBis. When Montero was recalled on Sept. 1, manager Joe Girardi made it clear that Montero would start as the right-hand DH against left-handers. After this Labor Day exhibition, teams may revise their rotations to make sure they throw just right-handers. Montero easily blasted two long home runs to the opposite field in two at-bats. That is some major-league skills for just a 21-year-old rookie. General manager Brian Cashman better not trade this guy. It will be over my dead body. He is a keeper.
  • Cano extended his hitting streak to nine games with a single in the first inning. In the second inning he launched his third grand slam of the season. Before his nine-game hitting streak started, Cano had a 17-game hitting streak snapped at Baltimore on Aug. 28. Over his last 27 games, Cano is 39-for-112 (.348) with six home runs and 30 RBIs. With Cano’s four RBIs he passed Adrian Gonzalez for second place in the A.L. with 105 RBIs. Cano trails teammate Curtis Granderson by four RBIs.
  • Granderson took over the major-league lead in RBIs with his two-run double in the second inning. Granderson leads the Brewers’ Cecil Fielder by two and the Phillies’ Ryan Howard by three. A few weeks ago it seemed Granderson’s competition for MVP would come from Adrian Gonzalez and Jacoby Ellsbury of the Red Sox. It appears that Cano is entering the discussion now.

NAGGING NEGATIVES

  • Brett Gardner was the only Yankee starter without a hit. He was o-for-4 with two strikeouts looking and two routine infield grounders. To show how bad Gardner’s day at the plate was he made two of the three outs of the second inning. He started the inning out by striking out looking and ended the inning with a groundout. Gardner’s season average is down to .266
  • Garcia was unable to keep his pitches down and it cost him dearly in this game. Of the 18 batters he faced, 10 of them reached base. This also refuels the discussion from so-called”experts” who say that the Yankees will regret using Garcia and Bartolo Colon in the playoffs because they will not pitch as well as they did during the regular season against inferior offenses. Garcia entered the game with the second-lowest ERA of the Yankee starters at 3.09. After this game it is now up to 3.50.
  • Rivera did not look sharp in his inning of work. After giving up two hits, he hit Reimold on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases. In the 27 pitches Rivera threw, 12 were balls. That is not the usual Rivera. Let’s hope it is a hiccup and not a trend going forward.

ON DECK

The Yankees continue their three-game series with the Orioles on Tuesday.

The Yankees will start or audition, if you prefer, Phil Hughes (4-5, 6.75 ERA). Hughes allowed six runs on eight hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings against the Red Sox in a 9-5 loss last Wednesday. However, Girardi saw enough positives in the effort to give Hughes another shot to stay in the rotation. Hughes is 4-2 with 5.51 ERA in his career against the Orioles.

The Orioles will throw right-hander Tommy Hunter (2-1, 6.21 ERA). Hunter has gone at least six innings in his last six starts for the Orioles. He is 1-1 with a 6.06 ERA in his career against the Bronx Bombers.

Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.

 

 

| back to blog home |
Theme: MLB “retro” | Get a free blog at WordPress.com
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.