Yankees Power Their Way to AL East Lead Once Again

Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira hit a two-run homer in his first game back in the lineup since September 8. (Elsa)

Entering tonight, the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles were tied for the AL East lead. Both teams had one last three-game series against a division rival to end the season. The Yankees are hosting the Boston Red Sox, while the Orioles are in St. Petersburg to take on the Tampa Bay Rays.

Yankees 10 Red Sox 2
 
Sitting 23 games out of first place, the Red Sox simply hoped to play spoiler to the Yankees hopes of a division crown. Those plans got off to an abrupt start Monday night. The Bronx Bombers lived up to their name in the second inning. They tied a club record with four home runs in the inning. Red Sox starting pitcher Clay Buchholz only lasted 1 2/3 innings, giving up eight earned runs on six hits (three home runs).

Following his recovery from a strained left calf, Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira returned to the Yankees lineup for the first time since September 8. He greeted Red Sox reliever Alfredo Aceves with a two-run slam to the second-deck. The Yankees scored nine runs on eight hits in the inning to break the game wide open.

Meanwhile, Yankees ace CC Sabathia was dealing on the mound. He threw eight strong innings, giving up just two runs on four hits while striking out seven. Freddy Garcia came out and threw a eight pitch ninth inning to complete the Yankees 10-2 victory.

Rays 5 Orioles 3

The Rays came into this final series holding onto the slimmest of playoff hopes.  They completed step one Monday night. The game began as a pitchers' duel between Rays starter Alex Cobb and Orioles starter Wei-Yin Chen. The Rays struck the first blow of the game in the fourth inning on a solo shot by shortstop Ben Zobrist. In the seventh inning, Orioles catcher Matt Weiters answered with a solo home run of his own.

In the bottom half of the frame, Rays designated hitter Ben Francisco broke the deadlock with a sacrifice fly. Later that inning, catcher Chris Gimenez came through with the big hit, a two-RBI double to deep right. The Rays tapped on one more run in the eight to take the 5-1 lead into the ninth.

In their last at-bats of the game, the Orioles tried to make a comeback. They got halfway there on a two-run home run by right fielder Chris Davis. This forced the Rays to bring in their closer Fernando Rodney. Rodney struggled some, but still managed to close the door on the Rays 5-3 win for his 47th save of the season.

Looking Ahead

The Yankees now lead the AL East by one game. They have decided to start rookie David Phelps tomorrow against Red Sox starter Jon Lester. In the other pivotal matchup, the Orioles will go with Miguel Gonzalez against Rays ace James Shields. If the Yankees win and the Orioles lose, the Yankees will win the division. The Rays must win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Both games tomorrow are scheduled to begin shortly after 7:00.