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The Mariners continue their road trip with a series in New York against the Yankees. For more, head over to SB Nation's Lookout Landing.
(Sports Network) - The New York Yankees will once again be without Alex Rodriguez, as they continue a three-game set with the Seattle Mariners today at Yankee Stadium.
New York's star third basemen will not only be missing from the lineup today, but he may be out an extended period of time with a left calf strain. Rodriguez returned to the Yankees' lineup last night after missing the prior three games, but was pulled for a pinch-hitter after just one at-bat due to the lingering injury.
The Yankees are 10-1 when Rodriguez does not play, but last night they weren't able to get any offense going in a 6-0 blanking by Seattle.
Russell Branyan supplied the power, belting two home runs, and Felix Hernandez resumed his dominance of the Yankees, as Seattle took the opener of a three- game series.
Branyan hit a three-run blast off New York starting pitcher A.J. Burnett (9-11) in the first inning and added a solo smash in the sixth, plenty of support for Hernandez (9-10), who came into Friday's contest having notched three consecutive complete-game wins against the Yankees.
Although he didn't go the distance, Hernandez managed to limit New York to four hits over eight solid innings, finishing with three walks and 11 strikeouts. The right-hander has now held the Yankees to three runs in his last four outings versus the club.
"He did what he was supposed to do tonight, especially with a lead early," Burnett said of Hernandez. "He got ahead and put us away pretty easily."
Burnett allowed six runs on a season-high 12 hits in seven full frames.
New York remained a game ahead of Tampa Bay in the American League East. The Rays lost in Oakland later Friday.
With Rodriguez absent, the Yankees will need to rely more on their pitching and Javier Vazquez is one of those starters who needs to step up.
The veteran right-hander, however, has struggled of late, going 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA over his past four starts. On Monday, Vazquez lasted just four innings, allowing two earned runs and five hits in a 3-1 loss to Detroit. He walked four and struck out six while throwing 106 pitches.
In eight career starts versus Seattle, Vazquez owns a 4-3 record and a 3.78 ERA. He allowed just three runs in two starts against the Mariners this season, but the Yankees come up short in each of those outings.
Countering for the Mariners is Jason Vargas, who has won three consecutive starts for the first time in his career. The left-hander last made a start exactly a week ago, when he surrender three earned runs and five hits over seven innings of a 9-3 triumph at Cleveland.
Vargas last faced the Yankees on July 8th, yielding one run and nine hits over seven strong innings. He left without a decision in the team's eventual 3-1 loss. Vargas has yet to earn a decision in three career appearance versus New York.
New York and Seattle have split eight previous matchups this season.
Mariners Chase Vazquez Early But Can't Hold On, Lose 9-5 In New York
Bronx, NY (Sports Network) – Mark Teixeira’s sacrifice fly capped a three-run seventh inning, as the New York Yankees beat Seattle, 9-5, in the second portion of a three-game set.
Robinson Cano hit a two-run single and Jorge Posada added a two-run homer in a productive first inning for the Yankees, who were shut out in the series opener and won for the fourth time in their last five games.
The Yankees entered Saturday with a one-game lead over Tampa Bay in the American League East standings.
New York starting pitcher Javier Vazquez lasted just three-plus innings, allowing four runs on eight hits. Chad Gaudin limited the Mariners to one hit in three innings of relief, while Boone Logan (1-0) tossed a flawless seventh to pick up the win.
Ichiro Suzuki homered to leadoff both the game and the third for Seattle, which also received a mammoth blast from Russell Branyan in the first.
Jason Vargas (9-6) gave up seven runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings. He had won his last three starts.
Ichiro sent Vazquez’s third offering of the game over the wall in right- center. One out later, Branyan destroyed a 3-1 pitch, becoming the first player to reach the fourth deck in right field at new Yankee Stadium.
New York, though, countered in the bottom of the frame to take a 4-2 lead.
Ichiro’s second home run cut the deficit to one in the third. Seattle then tied the game, when three consecutive two-out singles by Jose Lopez, Franklin Gutierrez and Casey Kotchman plated a run. Josh Bard walked to load the bases, but Vazquez got Michael Saunders to fly out to end inning.
Vargas settled down after the rough first inning, retiring 15 in a row before Cano singled with two outs in the sixth. Vargas struck out Marcus Thames to end the frame and fanned Posada to begin the seventh.
However, the left-hander was pulled in favor of Jamey Wright after yielding three straight singles, and the last by Eduardo Nunez — his first major league hit — drove in the go-ahead run.
Derek Jeter greeted the new pitcher with an RBI single to right. Nick Swisher followed with a walk and Teixeira lofted a fly ball to right to score Nunez.
Mariano Rivera came on to record the final out in the eighth, as the Mariners left men on first and second.
New York extended its lead in the home half on a rare fielding error by Kotchman and a fielder’s choice by Ramiro Pena. The miscue snapped a 274-game errorless streak for Kotchman, the longest by a first baseman in the majors.
Rivera recorded his 25th save despite allowing a run in the ninth on a fielder’s choice by Branyan.
The Yankees placed third baseman Alex Rodriguez on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left calf after Saturday’s game. He returned to the lineup as the designated hitter for Friday’s series opener after a three-game absence, only to leave after just one at-bat with tightness in the calf area. Nunez made the first start of his major league career Saturday at third base in Rodriguez’s absence…Kotchman hadn’t committed an error since June 20, 2008…Ichiro recorded the fifth multi-homer game of his career…The Yankees improved to 66-0 this season when leading at the end of the eighth inning.
Aug 21 5:19p by Ben Golliver - 0 comments