With the Baltimore Orioles coming off of an emotional win against the Texas Rangers in the one-game wild-card playoff, the New York Yankees knew it would be a huge momentum stopper to win game one at Camden Yards.
The team did just that on Sunday night, fighting with the Orioles for eight innings before busting out in the top of the ninth to take a 1-0 division series lead after winning 7-2.
C.C. Sabathia pitched a stellar game, lasting 8 2/3 innings before reliever David Robertson came in and closed out the game.
"Fastball command was good, worked off that," Sabathia said to the Associated Press. "Throwing the ball pretty good getting the corners. Tried to stay out there and make some pitches."
According to ESPN.com, Sabathia is 6-1 with the Yankees in his career in the postseason and is now 4-0 in division series games.
"I thought he gave us a great performance," New York manager Joe Girardi said. "Didn't give up a lot of hard hit balls tonight, had a really good changeup tonight, and I thought he used it very effectively."
The game was tied 2-2 in the top of the ninth when catcher Russell Martin smacked a home run to left field to put the Yankees up 3-2. They never looked back.
Martin had been slumping terribly all year, hitting only .211 on the season, but he really started to turn things around in September. Luckily for the Yankees It looks like he is continuing that stream into October.
"I definitely wasn't thinking home run," Martin said. "He left a fastball up and I put good wood on it."
Orioles reliever Jim Johnson, who led the majors with 51 saves in the regular season, gave up the home run to Martin.
"I made mistakes," Johnson said. "I obviously paid for those, and that was location. It wasn't anything else. Two fastballs that really cost us. Just have to make a better pitch. That's all it comes down to."
The Yankees then broke the game wide open, getting four straight hits and adding five runs in the inning for a 7-2 lead. Ichiro Suzuki added an RBI single and Robinson Cano smacked a double that scored two runs after a throwing error by J.J. Hardy.
The Orioles have played close games all season, but by the end of nine innings, this one wasn't close at all.
"We're obviously disappointed we couldn't give them a win, but at least we're playing a five-game series instead of a shootout," Orioles right fielder Chris Davis said "We stayed in as long as we could. We're finding out what playoff baseball is all about. You've got to capitalize on every opportunity that you give yourself and we weren't able to do that."
Baltimore starter Jason Hammel was solid, but Sabathia was just better on this night, pitching his way out of trouble multiple times. He was able to end the inning after allowing runners on first and third in the fifth and later allowed no runs after Hardy led off the eighth inning with a double.
"Being able to get out of that with a tie and give us a chance to get up and score some runs, which we did, was just a big spot," Sabathia said.
Derek Jeter had two hits and scored two runs, while Suzuki added two hits and two RBIs in his first playoff game since 2001 with the Seattle Mariners.
The Yankees took an early lead in the first inning on Suzuki's double to left center field after a Jeter single. The Yankee shortstop was running on the play and easily made it home after Suzuki connected with the ball.
Baltimore bounced back quickly, adding two runs on a Nat McLouth single in the third. In the fourth inning, Mark Texeira blasted a deep single off the outfield wall that scored Alex Rodriguez, tying the game at 2-2.
Bats were quiet the rest of the way until Martin's home run in the ninth.
The Yankees announced that Andy Pettitte will start game two against rookie Wei-Yin Chen in one of the most lopsided playoff matchups based on experience in MLB history. Pettitte has 42 career playoff starts while Chen will be making his first.
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
