Carlos Pena hit a three-run homer off reliever LaTroy Hawkins in a seven-run eighth and the Rays trounced New York 13-4 on Friday night in the first regular-season meeting between the Yankees and Rays since they fought and exchanged nasty words during spring training.
At Detroit, A.J. Pierzynski drove in five runs with three hits, including a tiebreaking, three-run homer in the seventh inning that led the Chicago White Sox over the Tigers 8-5.
Detroit, the only winless team in the major leagues, is 0-4 for the first time since the Tigers dropped their first nine games in 2003 en route to an AL-record 119 losses. Not exactly the start hoped for by team with the second-highest payroll in the majors behind the Yankees.
"We've just got bad combinations going," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We got pretty good pitching the first three games. Today we swung the bat better, but we didn't add runs and didn't pitch quite as well."
In other AL games, it was: Baltimore 7, Seattle 4; Toronto 6, Boston 3; Minnesota 4, Kansas City 3; Oakland 6, Cleveland 3; and Texas 11, the Los Angeles Angels 6.
The Yankees played without center fielder Melky Cabrera and the Rays were without Jonny Gomes. Each dropped their appeals of suspensions
- which were reduced by a game each - for their roles in the bench-clearing scrap on March 12. Cabrera is out for two games and Gomes for one.
Yankees reserve Shelley Duncan also dropped his appeal and will sit out two games
- reduced from three - starting Sunday. He instigated the fight by making a spikes-high hard slide into Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura. Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon called the play "borderline criminal."
Duncan's hard slide came four days after Rays infielder Elliot Johnson barreled into Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli, breaking his hand. At the time, manager Joe Girardi angrily complained the play was uncalled for in spring training.
Girardi missed the game Friday because of an upper respiratory infection.
The only bad news for Tampa Bay was starting catcher Dioner Navarro being taken to the hospital after he took a gruesome fall down the dugout steps.
Navarro left the game in the third. He sliced open his right ring and middle fingers on his throwing hand. He needed 12 stitches, and was placed on the 15-day disabled list.
"It was freaky," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "I think he grabbed on the net and cut the inside of his hand. I didn't even want to look at it."
Backup catcher Shawn Riggans replaced Navarro and hit a three-run double in his first at-bat at Yankee Stadium.
"Then Riggans came in and obviously he is supposed to hit a double with the bases loaded," Maddon added with a laugh.
Riggans doubled his career RBI total and chased rookie starter Ian Kennedy.
"I was excited," Riggans said. "No words really could describe the feeling."
Kennedy gave up six runs and four hits with four walks in 2 1-3 innings.
The Rays took advantage of Kennedy's wildness to score six times in the first three innings, and the 23-year-old lefthander appeared to struggle with umpire Doug Eddings' tight strike zone.
"His body language said he was a little frustrated," said bench coach Rob Thomson, who filled in for Girardi.
Tigers reliever Jason Grilli (0-1) entered the game with the score tied at 5 in the seventh. Three pitches later, the White Sox led 8-5.
Paul Konerko led off with a double, Jermaine Dye singled on the next pitch to send him to third and Pierzynski followed with a home run into the right-field seats.
