(AP Photo/Rob Carr)| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | ||
| NYY | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 12 | 1 | |
| BAL | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 1 |
WP - Damaso Marte (1-1)
LP - Chris Ray (0-3)
SV - Mariano Rivera (38)
Tonight's win over the Orioles makes it five wins in a row for the Yanks, who are now a season high 36 games over .500. They won despite A.J. Burnett's fifth shaky start in a row. The right-hander allowed six runs on eleven hits in 5.1 innings of work, and once again had very little command of any of his pitches.
The Yankees offense bailed him out only to have him cough up whatever lead they handed him. The led 3-1 after two and half, then the O's scored two to tie the game. Then, after the Yankees regained the lead with another two runs in the fifth, Burnett allowed a three-run homer to Luke Scott that briefly gave the O's a 6-5 lead.
I just can't figure out Burnett. He's got the kind of stuff that he should dominate every time out and some nights looks unhittable. But he can't maintain consistent command of his pitches and seems to get rattled on the mound pretty easily. When he's good, he's really good, and when he's bad he's really bad. I guess it's just something we fans must get used to.
As NoMaas.org pointed out tonight, Andy Pettitte has clearly been the Yankees second best starter this season and deserves to be the no. 2 starter come playoff time.
Luckily for the Yanks, on this night they faced the O's, and they stink. The Yankees pounded out five home runs on their way to their 84th win of the year. Robinson Cano got things started with a two-run shot off O's starter David Hernandez in the second. It was Cano's 22nd of the year. Jorge Posada made it 3-1 with a solo shot in the third. Then, two innings later, he smacked another one, a two-run shot to give the Yanks a 5-3 lead.
Posada did have a couple embarrassing moments tonight. First, with a 3-2 count in the second, he took ball four but forgot how many balls there were and stood at the plate until the ump and his teammates reminded him that he had walks. Then in the fifth he once again forgot the count and thought he struck out when the count was actually 3-2. Later in the at-bat he hit his second homer of the game, but his teammates won't soon let him forget his brain fart.
Baltimore's 6-5 lead wouldn't last too long because the Yanks tied it one half-inning later on an Alex Rodriguez RBI single. This is the part of this team that I like the most, they get hit and get right back up and hit you back. I have not seen a Yankee team with this much resiliency in a long time, maybe since the dynasty teams.
They took the lead for good in the top of the seventh when Nick Swisher launched a two-run homer off O's reliever Chris Ray. Eric Hinske made it back-to-back, and a belly-to-belly when he followed Swisher's blast with a solo shot to extend the Yankees lead to 9-6.
From then on the Yankees bullpen took over and did a phenomenal job. Damaso Marte, who has been great since rejoining the team, retired all three batters he faced and did so on just seven pitches. David Robertson then came on and struck out two in one scoreless inning. Phil Coke followed and retired the two batters he faced. And then the great Mariano Rivera came in for his MLB-leading 38th save of the year.
Boston won again tonight as they continue to solidify their hold on the AL wild card, but the Yanks still knocked a game off their magic number, which now stands at 25.
Yankees ace CC Sabathia takes the mound tomorrow night as the Yanks go for the sweep in Baltimore. He will be facing O's right-hander Jason Berken. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m., and the game can be seen on YES.
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | LOB | AVG | |
| Jeter, SS | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | .333 |
| Damon, DH | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | .288 |
| Teixeira, 1B | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | .281 |
| Rodriguez, A, 3B | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | .269 |
| Posada, C | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | .280 |
| Cano, 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .320 |
| Swisher, LF-RF | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | .248 |
| Hinske, RF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .250 |
| Hairston, J, LF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .258 |
| Cabrera, Me, CF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .273 |
| Totals | 40 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 23 | |
BATTING 2B: Cano (40, Ray, C). HR: Cano (22, 2nd inning off Hernandez, D, 1 on, 0 out), Posada 2 (19, 3rd inning off Hernandez, D, 0 on, 2 out; 5th inning off Hernandez, D, 1 on, 1 out), Swisher (23, 7th inning off Ray, C, 1 on, 0 out), Hinske (7, 7th inning off Ray, C, 0 on, 0 out). TB: Jeter; Damon; Rodriguez, A; Posada 8; Cano 7; Swisher 4; Hinske 4; Cabrera, Me 2. RBI: Cano 2 (74), Posada 3 (66), Rodriguez, A (71), Swisher 2 (72), Hinske (22). 2-out RBI: Posada; Rodriguez, A. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Damon; Posada 2; Rodriguez, A; Teixeira. Team RISP: 2-for-10. Team LOB: 12. BASERUNNING SB: Cabrera, Me (9, 2nd base off Albers/Wieters). FIELDING E: Teixeira (2, missed catch). DP: (Cano-Jeter-Teixeira). | ||||||||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
| Burnett, A | 5.1 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4.29 |
| Marte, D (W, 1-1) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.35 |
| Robertson, D (H, 3) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.46 |
| Coke (H, 16) | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.06 |
| Rivera, Ma (S, 38) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.78 |
Pitches-strikes: Burnett, A 109-70, Marte, D 7-3, Robertson, D 21-14, Coke 9-6, Rivera, Ma 21-13.
ORIOLES STATS
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jorge Posada (2-for-4, 2 HR, 3 RBI, BB, 3 R)
HONORABLE MENTION: Robinson Cano (3-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, 2 R)
Tomorrow's Game
Yankees @ Orioles
Game Time: 7:05 p.m. TV/Radio: YES, WCBS
LHP CC Sabathia (15-7, 3.56) vs. RHP Jason Berken (4-11, 6.33)
LHP CC Sabathia (15-7, 3.56) vs. RHP Jason Berken (4-11, 6.33)
9 Comments:
They should run on Wieters more he has a lot of difficulty throwing out runners but I guess if they are going to hit a bunch of homeruns it really doesn't matter. Camden Yards is really a bandbox the gaps in the ballpark are so close to home. I thought Hinskie and Pie homeruns were just regular pop ups.
Nice job by the bullpen. Good to see Coke bounce back after a couple rough outings. Robertson really is taken it to the next level. He added 2-3 mph on his fastball. His fastball is electric and he has a great curve. He now has two plus pitches. All he does is strikeout hitters. Just need to cut down the walks. Marte has been solid since coming off the dl which is a surprise.
I like this bullpen. I know on a lot of other blogs people get on the bullpen. But I think some fans have unreal expectations on the bullpen. They will give up runs from time to time especially the middle relievers. No bullpen in baseball will have a every pitcher be automatic. But the yanks have two automatic lights out relievers (mo and hughes) and the rest of the pen is a good supporting cast.
"I want to contribute to this team that's doing great, My goal is to be on the playoff roster, definitely. There's a full month and that's a lot of time. I'll throw strikes and do what I've done, and consistency pays off" - Mark Melancon
I love Melancon attitude. If Melancon has a dominant september I think he does make the playoff roster. If you look at the 25 man roster Mitre wont be on the playoff roster his spot will go to Brett Gardner. And Gaudin spot could go to Melancon if he pitches well.
A lot of the writers were writing maybe Dunn has a shot at the playoff roster. I dont see how. I love Dunn arm but his command is a little shakey. Marte has pitched well and Coke has pitched well up until the last few weeks. No way I think Girardi would not have Coke on the playoff roster. After riding Coke the entire year. Coke would really have to be so horrible and gives up multiple runs every apperance which is not going to happen.
Burnett has had a very weird year. He was very dominant in June and July. But has been up and down in the other months. He pitches a dominant game, then a horrible game and then a okay game. His walks are up and his strikeouts are down he has had a strange season.
But I am not really concerned with him. I am hoping he pitches well in the end of september and gets on a nice role in the playoffs.
The only question mark this team has right now is Burnett. Other than him, there's really nothing you can complain about.
You said it Capone, there's nothing to complain about. Even Marte is pitching well. AJ needs to get going, and he most likely will straighten out. I think the Yankee call-ups could be a real advantage for them in the last month. Next years battle for the bullpen spots should be interesting.
it seemed like the yanks were through with Marte, even a couple of weeks ago saying he would not be "active for the rest of the season" - suddenly returns. I think something went on behind the scenes with this whole story. Glad to see him pitching well. Basically Burnette is a baby and last night should dispell any Jorge is the problem talk.
I've said it several times, but this team is a machine right now. They just keep winning.
AJ needs to get his head out of his ass. Were not paying him 16mm to pitch like that..
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