Bronx, N.Y., April 27, 20113 — Despite being confronted with their third straight lefty-throwing starter — against whom the much-injured 2013 Yankee squad have struggled mightily — Saturday afternoon, the Bombers came away with a closely battled come-from-behind victory, for a 3-0 mark on their homestand. Staff ace CC Sabathia surrendered two booming home runs after allowing three in a 5-1 loss his last time out, but he prevailed through eight gutsy, gritty innings to earn the 5-4 win.
Already forced to people his lineup with three lefthanded defensive players, manager Joe Girardi threw up his arms and embraced the crazy, reacting to the poor start by righty DH Ben Francisco by inserting Travis Hafner, another portsided bat, though Haf hasn’t had the best of southpaws in years.
Facing Toronto’s A.J. Happ, whose first contribution to the ’13 season was to break Curtis Granderson’s forearm in the first Spring Training game by hitting him with a pitch, Joe G looked the genius, as five of the eight New York hits against this portsider were struck by his lefthanded hitters. But just one of those hits cost Happ a win, as he was reached for a three-run Hafner home run, immediately after back-to-back walks, the only free passes he issued all game.
This blast came in the fourth inning, and came in response to the three runs Toronto had pushed across, one on a third-inning Jose Bautista fence clearer against Sabathia, and two more on a multi-hit rally and one huge error in the fourth. CC was reached for eight hits but just the three runs (two earned) through five, but the ninth and last hit in the sixth, a singleton home run by Brett Lawrie, threatened to make him a loser for the second straight game.
Jays Manager John Gibbons, who had been forced to use his bullpen for 10 innings over the first two games of the series, started the bottom of the seventh with righty Esmil Rogers, but the Yanks tied the game on a Robbie Cano one-out double and Vernon Wells single. Wells moved up two bases on a fielder’s choice grounder and a surprise steal of third, but Vernon needn’t have risked it. When Gibbons trotted in lefthander Brett Cecil to face Hafner, Travis blasted his second pitch off the center field wall for a run-scoring triple, and the first Yankee lead of the day. Hafner had seven total bases and four rbi’s in the 5-4 Yankee win, and just might now be the permanent Yankee DH against all pitching.
Meanwhile, Sabathia earned his fourth April win for the first time in his very successful career. Much has been made of some loss of velocity on the big southpaw’s fastball, and nine hits over eight innings is more than he is likely to surrender on any given day. But CC is not just a big guy who throws hard; he is a pitcher, a master craftsman with a strong left arm and a plan. Pounding 22 first-pitch strikes three times through the Toronto order, he made it through the eighth inning by throwing strikes, to an 80/33 strikes/balls ratio. And, as opposed to Happ, no opposing hit scored a batter who walked because not one Jays batter reached base via “four wide.” Sabathia threw exactly four pitches off the plate in seven of his eight innings, slipping to a nine/five ratio in the seventh only.
But alhough CC left with a lead, Girardi was forced to go with Joba Chamberlain to close, as both David Robertson and Mariano Rivera had been much used over the last few days, and Toronto did not raise the white flag. Pounding fastballs as hot as 97 mph, Joba got the save with a strike out, a fly to right, and a grounder to third, but not before allowing two singles.
April 27 has been a day with some significant Yankee history. On this day in 1947, all of baseball celebrated Babe Ruth Day, though the Yankees strangely fell 1-0 to the Senators on that day, one devoted to the best power hitter the game has ever seen. On this day in 1903, the New York Highlanders also failed to score, suffering the team’s first-ever shutout, 6-0 to the Philly A’s. On the other hand, 20 years ago, pinstriper Jimmy Key shut out the Angels 5-0 while yielding but one hit.
And on Saturday afternoon in the Bronx, Joe Girardi responded to Yankee weaknesses against southpaws by turning over the game to a pitcher and a hitter who do their work from the port side. If teams heading to the Bronx think it’s time to line up the lefties, well, I’m with Joe G. Let’s …
Embrace the Crazy
BTW,TYW
YANKEE BASEBALL!!!