Giambi Blasts Yankees Into First, 4-1

Home Run Backs Mussina Winning Effort

Jason Giambi continued his assault on April Sunday at Yankee Stadium by belting his 9th home run of the season. He also leads the AL with 27 RBI. Giambi didn't reach either total last season until July. Mike Mussina (4-1) meanwhile was mixing all of his pitches with the same accuracy he's had all season. Mussina made his sixth straight quality start in as many tries. He did get scored up on first though when Frank Catalanotto doubled in Alex Rios from first base in the third. With 2 hits yesterday, Catalanotto is now hitting .472 against Mussina.

Tempers flared in the fifth inning when both managers didn't like the way home plate umpire Adam Dowdy was calling balls and strikes. Mussina thought he had Shea Hillenbrand out on strikes to end the top of the inning, but Dowdy felt otherwise. That caused Mussina to bark at him and he did again as he walked off the mound after getting Hillenbrand on a swinging strike out. Words continued from the Yankee dugout to the point that Dowdy, a temporary call up from the minors, took off his masked and asked the Yankee bench to repeat what was said. Joe Torre was then tossed out of the game. He didn't leave without giving Dowdy a piece of mind.

Torre's argument may have had an effect in the bottom of the inning. Andy Phillips, continuing to try to take advantage of playing time, drove a Gustavo Chachin (4-1) pitch the opposite way for his first home run of the season, tying the score 1-1. After a Johnny Damon ground-rule double, Chacin walked both Derek Jeter and Giambi to load the bases. Chacin worked Alex Rodriguez to a 2-2 count before beginning to head off the mound on what he thought was strike 3 looking. Dowdy called the inside pitch ball three, setting of Chacin and Jays manager John Gibbons. The next pitch was low and inside, but might have been called a strike earlier in the game. The walk forced home Damon with the go-ahead run and got Gibbons out of the dugout. He was quickly tossed out by Dowdy as well.

With Mussina having thrown 95 pitches through 6, substitute manager Lee Mazzilli signaled for Kyle Farnsworth to start he seventh. Alex Rios led off with a single, but was quickly erased when Jorge Posada threw him out attempting to steal second. Farnsworth than struck out Catalanotto and Vernon Wells to end the inning.

Giambi finished off the scoring in the bottom of the 7th when he hit a Pete Walker pitch off of the upper-deck with Derek Jeter aboard. Jeter had doubled with 2 outs setting up a confrontation the Blue Jays probably liked. Giambi had been 0-12 lifetime against Walker.

Mariano Rivera came on to get the final four outs to record his fourth save.

Notes

Aaron Small was added to the roster after the game with Matt Smith optioned down to Columbus.

The Yankees also promoted top prospect Phillip Hughes from single-A Tampa to double-A Trenton.

Gary Sheffield had further tests down on his arm, hand, and wrist, and no breaks were found. This contradicted a report Sunday by ESPN that Sheffield had broken his hamate bone. His status for the 2 game Boston series is still uncertain.