Game 83 - Yanks Pound Twinkies

CC Sabathia rebounded from his previous bad start, tossing 7 innings of 3-hit, 1 run ball, and the Bombers pounded out 16 hits in a 10-2 victory over the Twins. CC's only mistake of the night came on a fastball he grooved to Mike Cuddyer, who hit his 14th HR of the season. The other 2 hits were weakly hit infield singles. CC struck out 3 and walked one - strangely, it was against the very weak hitting, Nick Punto. He held the faux M & M boys, Mauer and Morneau, hitless in 6 ABs after the Yanks had trouble getting either of them out in their 4-game series in the Bronx earlier this season.

The Yankee bats were led by the bottom third of the order. Robinson Cano, Brett Gardner and Francisco Cervelli were a combined 7-14 with 6 RBIs. Each of them had an extra base hit with 2 RBIs. Cano snapped an ungodly 0-22 slump with RISP when he blooped a bases loaded single in the 6th, albeit with the Yanks already up 5-1. Gardner followed with a 2-run triple and Cervelli's double gave the Yanks an insurmountable 10-1 lead. Earlier, Cervelli knocked in the Yanks second run with a long sac fly in the 2nd inning.

Mark Teixeira also went 4-6 with an RBI, hopefully breaking out of his snide. Hideki Matsui demonstrated what a real 5th place hitter in the lineup does when he got the Pinstripers on the board in the 1st with a 2-out RBI single. Hopefully, Cano was taking notes. The Yanks nearly blew the game wide open in the 4th, but Twins CF, Carlos Gomez, made a beautiful leaping catch at the fence, robbing ARod of a grand slam. ARod settled for the sac fly, but just missed HR #568.

Seldom used Brett Tomko pitched the final 2 frames, giving up one run. Oddly enough, he also walked the .218 hitting Punto, who came around to score the Twins last run. Punto has 11 HRs in 2000+ ABs in his career - I'd take my chances pitching the ball underhanded to him before walking this guy. The Sawx won 5-2 against Oakland, remaining 1 game up in the division. Hopefully, AJ Burnett continues his recent hot stretch in game 2.

Yankees Record: 49-34

Game 63 - Yanks Blow Out Mets & Santana

In the "that's why you play the game" category, the Yanks handed Mets ace, Johan Santana, the worse start of his career en route to a 15-0 win.  Santana got shelled for 9 runs in 3+ innings.  Derek Jeter led the Bombers 17-hit attack with 4 hits.  Francisco Cervelli chipped in 3 hits of his own.  His first hit in the 2nd inning led to the Yanks first run, when he blooped a 2-out, 2-strike pitch to rightfield.  That hit may have doomed Santana, because he followed that up with run scoring hits to Jeter and Johnny Damon during a 40+ pitch inning that gave the Yanks a 4-0 lead.

The Pinstripers knocked out Santana in the 4th, scoring 9 more runs in the inning that was highlighted by Hideki Matsui's and Robinson Cano's HRs.  AJ Burnett followed up his stinker in Boston with 7 shutout innings, limiting the Metropolitans to 4 hits while striking out 8.  He wiggled out of a bases loaded jam in the top half of the 3rd after the Yanks gave him a 4-spot.  He struck out Yankee pest, Alex Cora, and then Fernando Martinez, before Carlos Beltran ended the threat by lining out to the Captain. 

After losing yesterday's game that looked favorably for the Yanks against a pitcher who hadn't started in the Majors since 2006, they were able to turn the tide today in the rubber match.  The Mets must have liked their chances with one of the best pitchers in baseball on the mound, but Santana didn't have his stuff today.  The long 2nd inning certainly did him in.  The Yanks improved to 8-1 in series clinching games.  With Boston's loss today, the closed within 2 games for the division lead.  99 games left in the season.  I'm predicting Yanks go 60-40 for their last 100 games to make the playoffs.  

Yankees Record:  36-27