Sunday, July 1, 2007

CLICK

That's the sound that followed the sound of a pitch thrown by Andy Pettitte making contact with the bat of Jack Cust. The result was a 3-run HR and a shut off television. Why get aggravated for 7 more innings.

The Yankees managed to score 5 runs this afternoon, but Pettitte (4-6) got rocked for 8 runs (7 earned) in just 1 2-3 innings and the A's took 2 of 3 in the series with an 11-5 win. Danny Haren (10-2) entered the game with a 1.91 ERA, but the Yankees roughed him up for 5 runs in 5 1-3 innings. It jumped Haren's ERA up 2.20.

Ron Villone threw 3 1-3 scoreless innings out of the pen, saving the bullpen and giving the Yankees the chance to chip away. Derek Jeter's 5th inning single cut the margin to 8-5, but the A's pushed 3 more across against Brian Bruney, Mike "I can't get anyone out" Myers, and Luis Vizcaino.

Already leading 1-0 entering the 2nd, the A's made it a short day for Pettitte. Bobby Crosby, Jason Kendall, Mark Kotsay, and Kurt Suzuki strung together 4 straight singles for a 2-0 lead. A Mark Ellis sac fly pushed across a 3rd run before Cust broke it open with his 14th home run of the season.

Joe Torre was hoping Pettitte could still give him some innings, but after an Eric Chavez double and 2-run HR by Dan Johnson (9th), Torre had no choice but to go to the pen.

After Haren exited, the trio of rookies Dallas Braden and Santiago Casilla, and veteran Alan Embree shut down the Yankees over the final 3 2-3 innings.

~~~

As a move to bolster his confidence, and yet continue to overwork him, Torre used Scott Proctor for an inning and a third. Thankfully, nothing was burned after the game.

No comments:

Post a Comment