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AL: Dice-K shaky, but enough to beat reeling Yankees
By The Associated Press
Saturday, April 28, 2007 | No comments posted.
NEW YORK - At this rate, the Boston Red Sox will blow the New York Yankees out of the AL East race before summer.
Daisuke Matsuzaka overcame control problems to defeat the Yankees for the second time in six days, and Kevin Youkilis and Julio Lugo homered in a come-from-behind 11-4 victory Friday night that improved Boston to 4-0 against its longtime rival this season.
New York (8-13), whose April began to unravel with three straight losses at Fenway Park last weekend, has lost seven consecutive games for the first time since the final seven of the 2000 season. The last-place Yankees have fallen 61/2 games back of the division-leading Red Sox.
“I wouldn't push a panic button yet,” Yankees captain Derek Jeter said before the game. “I don't look at things negatively. I don't look around and say, ‘Well, if it gets to 30 in a row.”'
By then, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner surely would make changes. Steinbrenner hasn't commented on the slide.
Trying to end New York's run of nine straight AL East titles, Boston (15-7) is building confidence against the Yankees but also is wary. It's come to this for New York: Mariano Rivera, who doesn't have a save this season, was sent in to get some work in the ninth and allowed four of five batters to reach. He gave up four runs and got just one out, raising his ERA to 12.15.
Given a 4-2 lead after the Yankees scored four in the fourth, Andy Pettitte (1-1) immediately gave it back, forcing in the tying run with a bases-loaded walk and allowing the go-ahead run to score on a wild pitch. Pettitte allowed five runs, six hits and five walks in 4 2-3 innings, making it 11 times in 21 games that New York's starters failed to pitch five innings.
Matsuzaka (3-2) beat New York 7-6 in Boston last Sunday to complete the sweep. Making his first appearance at Yankee Stadium, Dice-K wasn't particularly sharp but he got the job done. He gave up four runs and five hits in six innings, striking out seven.
Twins 5, Tigers 3
DETROIT - Pinch-hitter Joe Mauer's two-run single capped a four-run eighth inning, helping the Minnesota Twins rally for a 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night.
With the bases loaded and two outs, Mauer lined a Joel Zumaya (0-1) pitch into shallow center to give the Twins their first lead of the game.
The Tigers got two singles off Juan Rincon with one out in the eighth, but rookie Mike Rabelo grounded out and Brandon Inge struck out. Rabelo is now 0-for-12 for Detroit, and Inge is hitting .129.
Jesse Crain (1-1), the second of four Twins pitchers, picked up the win after allowing one run in an inning. Joe Nathan pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
Nate Robertson allowed three runs and five hits in seven-plus innings for the Tigers, who led 2-0 after six innings.
Justin Morneau homered for the Twins on the first pitch of the seventh.
Rangers 5, Blue Jays 3
TORONTO - Sammy Sosa hit his 595th career home run, and Mark Teixeira and Brad Wilkerson both had two-run shots for Texas.
Sosa followed Teixeira's two-run drive in the third with a shot to center against Blue Jays starter Josh Towers (1-3). It was the seventh home run of the season for Sosa and his first hit in 11 career at-bats against Towers.
Teixeira and Sosa combined for the Rangers' first back-to-back home runs of the season.
Akinori Otsuka struck out the side in the ninth for his third save in as many chances.
Robinson Tejada (3-1) gave up three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings for Texas.
Lyle Overbay and Adam Lind homered for the Blue Jays.
Indians 5, Orioles 4
CLEVELAND - Grady Sizemore hit an inside-the-park home run, Jake Westbrook got his first win in five starts and the Indians won their sixth straight game.
Westbrook (1-2) won for the first time since signing a three-year, $33 million contract extension April 13. He allowed three runs and six hits over 6 1-3 innings, struck out five and walked one.
Joe Borowski struck out the side in the ninth for his ninth save in 10 chances.
Steve Trachsel (1-2) went 5 2-3 innings for Baltimore, allowing two runs and five hits.
Miguel Tejada hit a two-out RBI single in the first for the Orioles, who have lost five straight. It was Tejada's 1,103rd consecutive game, tying Hall of Fame shortstop Joe Sewell for the sixth-longest streak in history. Sewell did it for Cleveland from Sept. 13, 1922, through April 30, 1930.
White Sox 7, Angels 3
CHICAGO - Jermaine Dye homered twice for the White Sox, and Darin Erstad hit a go-ahead double against his former team.
Jose Contreras allowed three runs in 6 1-3 innings. He gave up seven hits but got help from his defense with three double plays. Contreras (2-2) struck out one and walked three in his 50th major league win.
A.J. Pierzynski homered following Dye's solo shot in the fourth. Tadahito Iguchi added a two-run triple in the eighth for Chicago, which has won seven of nine.
Casey Kotchman hit a two-run homer for the Angels, who dropped to 1-8 on the road. Ervin Santana (2-3) pitched 5 2-3 innings, giving up four runs and five hits.
Mariners 7, Royals 4
SEATTLE - Horacio Ramirez Ramirez pitched into the seventh inning, Jose Lopez homered for the second straight day, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals 7-4 Friday night for their season-high fourth straight victory.
Ramirez (2-1) allowed one run and seven hits in 6 1-3 innings. He struck out four and walked two.
Pinch-hitter Ross Gload hit a three-run homer off Seattle reliever Chris Reitsma in the eighth but Adrian Beltre and Lopez had two-out RBI singles in the bottom half to extend the Mariners' lead to 7-4.
J.J. Putz got five outs for the second straight day, picking up his third save in three chances.
Devil Rays 4, Athletics 1
OAKLAND, Calif. - James Shields struck out nine to help Tampa Bay snap an 11-game losing streak on the West Coast with a 4-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Friday night.
Shields (2-0) pushed his season strikeout total to 37 in five starts, and Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton each hit an RBI double in Tampa Bay's ninth win in 35 games at the Coliseum - still the team's worst record in any opposing stadium.
When Shields retired Shannon Stewart in the second, it began a stretch of 12 straight outs for the right-hander before Mike Piazza's two-out single in the sixth.
Chad Gaudin (1-1) lasted only four innings in his shortest start of the year.
Daisuke Matsuzaka overcame control problems to defeat the Yankees for the second time in six days, and Kevin Youkilis and Julio Lugo homered in a come-from-behind 11-4 victory Friday night that improved Boston to 4-0 against its longtime rival this season.
New York (8-13), whose April began to unravel with three straight losses at Fenway Park last weekend, has lost seven consecutive games for the first time since the final seven of the 2000 season. The last-place Yankees have fallen 61/2 games back of the division-leading Red Sox.
“I wouldn't push a panic button yet,” Yankees captain Derek Jeter said before the game. “I don't look at things negatively. I don't look around and say, ‘Well, if it gets to 30 in a row.”'
By then, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner surely would make changes. Steinbrenner hasn't commented on the slide.
Trying to end New York's run of nine straight AL East titles, Boston (15-7) is building confidence against the Yankees but also is wary. It's come to this for New York: Mariano Rivera, who doesn't have a save this season, was sent in to get some work in the ninth and allowed four of five batters to reach. He gave up four runs and got just one out, raising his ERA to 12.15.
Given a 4-2 lead after the Yankees scored four in the fourth, Andy Pettitte (1-1) immediately gave it back, forcing in the tying run with a bases-loaded walk and allowing the go-ahead run to score on a wild pitch. Pettitte allowed five runs, six hits and five walks in 4 2-3 innings, making it 11 times in 21 games that New York's starters failed to pitch five innings.
Matsuzaka (3-2) beat New York 7-6 in Boston last Sunday to complete the sweep. Making his first appearance at Yankee Stadium, Dice-K wasn't particularly sharp but he got the job done. He gave up four runs and five hits in six innings, striking out seven.
Twins 5, Tigers 3
DETROIT - Pinch-hitter Joe Mauer's two-run single capped a four-run eighth inning, helping the Minnesota Twins rally for a 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night.
With the bases loaded and two outs, Mauer lined a Joel Zumaya (0-1) pitch into shallow center to give the Twins their first lead of the game.
The Tigers got two singles off Juan Rincon with one out in the eighth, but rookie Mike Rabelo grounded out and Brandon Inge struck out. Rabelo is now 0-for-12 for Detroit, and Inge is hitting .129.
Jesse Crain (1-1), the second of four Twins pitchers, picked up the win after allowing one run in an inning. Joe Nathan pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
Nate Robertson allowed three runs and five hits in seven-plus innings for the Tigers, who led 2-0 after six innings.
Justin Morneau homered for the Twins on the first pitch of the seventh.
Rangers 5, Blue Jays 3
TORONTO - Sammy Sosa hit his 595th career home run, and Mark Teixeira and Brad Wilkerson both had two-run shots for Texas.
Sosa followed Teixeira's two-run drive in the third with a shot to center against Blue Jays starter Josh Towers (1-3). It was the seventh home run of the season for Sosa and his first hit in 11 career at-bats against Towers.
Teixeira and Sosa combined for the Rangers' first back-to-back home runs of the season.
Akinori Otsuka struck out the side in the ninth for his third save in as many chances.
Robinson Tejada (3-1) gave up three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings for Texas.
Lyle Overbay and Adam Lind homered for the Blue Jays.
Indians 5, Orioles 4
CLEVELAND - Grady Sizemore hit an inside-the-park home run, Jake Westbrook got his first win in five starts and the Indians won their sixth straight game.
Westbrook (1-2) won for the first time since signing a three-year, $33 million contract extension April 13. He allowed three runs and six hits over 6 1-3 innings, struck out five and walked one.
Joe Borowski struck out the side in the ninth for his ninth save in 10 chances.
Steve Trachsel (1-2) went 5 2-3 innings for Baltimore, allowing two runs and five hits.
Miguel Tejada hit a two-out RBI single in the first for the Orioles, who have lost five straight. It was Tejada's 1,103rd consecutive game, tying Hall of Fame shortstop Joe Sewell for the sixth-longest streak in history. Sewell did it for Cleveland from Sept. 13, 1922, through April 30, 1930.
White Sox 7, Angels 3
CHICAGO - Jermaine Dye homered twice for the White Sox, and Darin Erstad hit a go-ahead double against his former team.
Jose Contreras allowed three runs in 6 1-3 innings. He gave up seven hits but got help from his defense with three double plays. Contreras (2-2) struck out one and walked three in his 50th major league win.
A.J. Pierzynski homered following Dye's solo shot in the fourth. Tadahito Iguchi added a two-run triple in the eighth for Chicago, which has won seven of nine.
Casey Kotchman hit a two-run homer for the Angels, who dropped to 1-8 on the road. Ervin Santana (2-3) pitched 5 2-3 innings, giving up four runs and five hits.
Mariners 7, Royals 4
SEATTLE - Horacio Ramirez Ramirez pitched into the seventh inning, Jose Lopez homered for the second straight day, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals 7-4 Friday night for their season-high fourth straight victory.
Ramirez (2-1) allowed one run and seven hits in 6 1-3 innings. He struck out four and walked two.
Pinch-hitter Ross Gload hit a three-run homer off Seattle reliever Chris Reitsma in the eighth but Adrian Beltre and Lopez had two-out RBI singles in the bottom half to extend the Mariners' lead to 7-4.
J.J. Putz got five outs for the second straight day, picking up his third save in three chances.
Devil Rays 4, Athletics 1
OAKLAND, Calif. - James Shields struck out nine to help Tampa Bay snap an 11-game losing streak on the West Coast with a 4-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Friday night.
Shields (2-0) pushed his season strikeout total to 37 in five starts, and Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton each hit an RBI double in Tampa Bay's ninth win in 35 games at the Coliseum - still the team's worst record in any opposing stadium.
When Shields retired Shannon Stewart in the second, it began a stretch of 12 straight outs for the right-hander before Mike Piazza's two-out single in the sixth.
Chad Gaudin (1-1) lasted only four innings in his shortest start of the year.
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