For the first time this season, the Yankees were shut out. Josh Beckett and Co. silenced the Yankees’ bats to just two measly hits en route to a 7-0 victory. The two rivals now stand tied atop the AL East sporting 34-24 records – the two best in the American League. A.J. Burnett could not find the strike zone all night, and the Yankees committed an error for their seventh straight game. How much more damage could one game do?
Here’s how it went down (you don’t have to read about it if you don’t want to, just click on the box score at the end).
Quick ‘Cap:
Burnett served up a two-run homer to David Ortiz in the second inning, but that was only the beginning. With a man on first, Alex Rodriguez double clutched on a grounder that could have ended the inning, but instead everyone was safe. J.D. Drew made him pay when he hit a two-run double high off the Green Monster. It took Burnett 43 pitches just to pitch the second inning alone. He was finally pulled with two out in third after 84 pitches and five walks.
After the Burnett nightmare ended, the game quieted down and sped right along. Beckett was untouchable—he allowed one hit to Robinson Cano—and both bullpens did a nice job. Brett Tomko and Jose Veras combined to pitch 4-1/3 innings and each allowed one run. David Robertson struck out two in a scoreless eighth inning. Full box score here.
Thoughts:
The only bright side is that it just counts as one loss. Even if Burnett had pitched well, he wasn’t going to beat Beckett tonight. He almost threw a no-no last time out and he pitched in similar fashion tonight. The Yankees still have a chance to win the series, but I will admit that I am already starting to cringe about tomorrow’s matchup.
Noteworthy Performances:
- Brett Gardner went 1-for-3 and was one of two Yankees who didn’t strike out in the game.
- Mark Teixeira was the only guy that Beckett seemed to have trouble with. He walked him twice.
Up Next:
Chien-Ming Wang (0-3, 14.46) will look to even the series against Tim Wakefield (7-3, 4.50) on Wednesday Night Baseball on ESPN.
