Monday, July 4, 2011

Bad A.J. Makes For Bad Holiday

The Yankees got the wrong kind of fireworks in Cleveland tonight.

Good A.J. showed up at Jacobs Field for 6 innings. But in the bottom of the 7th, A.J. Burnett (8-7) got tired in a hurry and became Bad A.J. again, and the Indians -- thanks to a down-the-right-field-line double by ex-Yankee Shelley Duncan, a man WCBS' John Sterling described as "Stuh-rong" -- scored 4 times in the frame, on route to a 6-2 victory over the Yankees.

Josh Tomlin (10-4) had a no-hitter going into the top of the 7th, but a Mark Teixeira single, a Robinson Cano single and a Nick Swisher double put a stop to that. But A.J.'s fatigue, Duncan's double, and a home run by Austin Kearns put the Tribe on top to stay.

Derek Jeter did return to action, but he went 0-for-4. He still needs 6 hits for 3,000.

Fortunately, those Pesky Blue Jays of Toronto beat the Red Sox, 9-7 at Fenway, so the Yankees remain a game and a half ahead of The Scum, 2 in the All-Important Loss Column.

Jeter hits 2994 6
Rivera saves 580 21
A-Rod homers 626 137
A-Rod hits 2758 242
Magic Number 78 (to eliminate Scum, 74 for Rays, 68 for O's & Jays)

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