|
 For the rest of the New York Yankees, Thursday seemed like it was an
All-Star type of day.
Gardner homered, first baseman Mark Teixeira equaled his RBI total
from last season, center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury had a two-run
single and right-hander Masahiro Tanaka pitched into the eighth
inning in New York's 6-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics.
The Yankees won for the 16th time in their last 22 home games by
getting a variety of contributions.
Gardner opened his seventh game with at least three hits by homering
on the first pitch he saw from Oakland's Jesse Chavez. Teixeira
increased his league-leading RBI total to 62 with a single in the
third. And Ellsbury drove in his first runs since returning from a
knee injury Wednesday.
After those hits, Gardner found out he was an All-Star, learning the
news via an announcement on the PA system while warming up in left
field for the fifth inning. Gardner, who was fourth in the results
for the final vote, is replacing Kansas City's Alex Gordon, who
injured his groin Wednesday.
"I was kind of turning around, walking towards the bullpen," Gardner
said. "So I saw the camera on me in the outfield, which doesn't
usually happen. I saw myself up on the big screen as I walking out
to left field. I just thought that was kind of random and then
obviously they made the announcement after that. Completely caught
me off guard."
"It makes you feel good about your club," Yankees manager Joe
Girardi said. "It makes you feel good about your club, how close
they are and how bad they wanted it for him."
The announcement came while Tanaka (5-3) was in the midst of ending
a career-high four-game winless stretch. He allowed both his runs
and both his hits in the second inning.
"That second inning when he gave up the runs, he made a couple of
mistakes. And then he didn't make them after that," Girardi said.
Tanaka went a season-high 7 2/3 innings and threw a season-high 114
pitches. He finished with a flourish by retiring the final 13
hitters and 18 of the final 19.
"I think I was able to execute all of my pitches and throw them
where I wanted them to go," Tanaka said through an interpreter.
Tanaka had a 4-2 lead in his final innings thanks to a two-run
single in the fourth by Ellsbury that followed a double by third
baseman Cole Figueroa on a ball that went off the first-base bag and
deflected off first-base umpire John Tumpane and into right field.
After a brief meeting by the umpires, the original call was upheld;
and, two pitches later, Ellsbury followed with a single that began
in fair territory and wound up in foul ground once it reached the
outfield.
"I thought it was foul," Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. "The first
one I thought for sure. The second one ... I mean our angle is tough
and obviously the ball gets there in a hurry and, when a lefty hooks
it, there's some angle to it, but I thought it was foul."
[to top of second column] |
New York added its final two runs when Ellsbury reached on a
throwing error by shortstop Marcus Semien with two outs in the
eighth. The high throw on the routine ground ball was Semien's 28th
error, and it proved somewhat costly because Oakland would have had
the potential tying run up in the ninth.
Designated hitter Billy Butler and left fielder Mark Canha had RBI
doubles in the second off Tanaka, but just two more Oakland runners
reached and the Athletics lost for the eighth time in 13 games.
Chavez (4-9) lost to the Yankees for the first time in five career
decisions, allowing four runs and seven hits in five innings.
"It's just location," said Chavez, who recorded his career-high
ninth loss. "Early in the year, those pitches were getting swung at
and onto the ground, and now they're getting taken for balls and I
have to fight back into the count. And that's the thing that
frustrates me."
New York took a 1-0 lead with one out in the first when Gardner
drove a first-pitch fastball into the right-center-field seats.
Butler's double to left field made it 1-1 with nobody out in the
second after right fielder Josh Reddick had reached on catcher's
interference. Canha's double with two outs gave Oakland a 2-1 lead.
The Yankees tied it on Teixeira's single with nobody out in the
third and went ahead by getting three straight one-out hits in the
fourth.
NOTES: Oakland LHP Scott Kazmir did some light throwing Thursday
after leaving Wednesday's start after the third inning with left
triceps tightness. Manager Bob Melvin said he wanted to see how
Kazmir felt during his throwing session before proceeding and after
the game said there were no issues. ... The Yankees purchased the
contract INF Cole Figueroa from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre,
optioned INF Jose Pirela there and designated OF Taylor Dugas for
assignment. ... Yankees 3B Chase Headley missed his second straight
game with a sore right calf. After the game, he said he rode a bike
for about 20 minutes without difficulty and hopes to play this
weekend in Boston ... New York INF Brendan Ryan (back) began a rehab
assignment with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and was 1-for-3 while playing
five innings at third base. Ryan will continue his rehab Friday with
Double-A Trenton.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
