Derek Jeter tied another record and Ichiro Suzuki capped off a seven-hit day as they New York Yankees took the second game of a double header 2-1 against the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night.
After going 3-4 in the first game, Ichiro added four more hits, including the go-ahead single in the eighth inning that gave the Yankees the lead and the win.
"I came in the middle of the season and I always wanted to contribute, wanted to help in this pennant race and today is a great day that I was able to help," said Suzuki to the Associated Press. "I'm very sad the day is over."
Just to compare, Suzuki had seven hits on Wednesday, while the struggling Andruw Jones has had nine hits since the All-Star break.
The win put the Yankees in first place over Baltimore by .5 games for a few hours, but the Orioles won again in extra innings against Seattle 3-1 to keep pace in the division. The two teams are tied for the lead for the seventh time this month.
Ichiro stole four bases on the day and also made a tough catch in the first game with the bases loaded to help hold a 4-2 Yankee lead.
"I haven't done anything different today so I don't know what the difference was," Suzuki said through a translator.
Rookie David Phelps started for the Yankees in the second game, pitching 6 2/3 innings of one run ball.
Rafael Soriano closed out the game to earn his 42nd save. He also closed out the first game, the first time he has ever saved two games in one day.
In the first at-bat of the second game, Jeter got a hit for his 200th of the season, which tied him with Lou Gehrig for most 200-hit seasons for the Yankees with eight. Jeter was also enthralled with Suzuki, who the Yankees acquired in late July.
"That's tough to do," Jeter said. "Doubleheader. I don't think I've ever done that in a doubleheader. I've been on the other side of it, maybe an 0 for 8."
At 38, Jeter is the oldest player to get 200 hits since Paul Molitor did it at 40 in 1996. He played the second game at shortstop for the first time in a week since he rolled over his ankle running hard to first base.
The Blue Jays took an early lead in the night cap off of an RBI singler by rookie Adeiny Hechavarria, but gave it right back the next inning. Chris Stewart drove in Casey McGehee on a ground rule double to tie the game at 1-1.
The game stayed that way until Suzuki's clutch hit in the eighth. Curtis Granderson was walked and moved to third on a sacrifice and a steal before coming home on the RBI single. That was all the Yankees would need.
Blue Jays pitcher Ricky Romero had previously lost his last 13 starts, a team record, but avoided adding another one in this game, taking a no decision. He gave up one run on seven hits in six innings.
"I had a good delivery," Romero said. "That's one of the things I battled myself all year."
In the first game the Yankees welcomed back Andy Pettitte and got a solid start, giving up no runs on four hits in five innings. Pettitte had planned to make four starts in September before the playoffs, but after Tuesday rainout, he may only be able to make three.
"The beginning of the game it was almost like you could hear people talking -- I'm just trying to focus," Pettitte said. "I think for me it probably would've been better if we had a packed house."
He made his first start since breaking his ankle on June 27.
"My arm feels great. My break area feels great. I'm a hundred percent," Pettitte said. "Just real happy with how my arm is feeling. More than anything it's my legs. I just got to get my legs back in shape."
The Yankees scored three runs in the first inning and kept the Blue Jays at bay for the rest of the game. New York added a run in the eight after an RBI single from Nick Swisher that scored Suzuki.
On the day through two games, Suzuki was 7-for-8 with four steals, one RBI and two runs.
"It was just an unbelievable day," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.
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