CC Abuses and Brewses Milwaukee

The first game of the three game series between the Milwaukee Brewers and New York Yankees was a how-to, or more aptly, a how-to-not play baseball. It started in the first inning when Zack Greinke plunked the lead off batter Brett Gardner and centerfielder Nyjer Morgan then did his impression of Bambi on ice and turned a routine Curtis Granderson fly ball into a face plant RBI triple.

A.J. Burnett out pitched Shaun Marcum in game 2 in a do it by the book 5-2 win. David Robertson and Mariano Rivera did their 8th and 9th inning things and the Yankees won their fourth straight.

The finale of the series Thursday afternoon was all about domination in winning their fifth straight. CC Sabathia tied a career high with 13 strikeouts and the Yankees completed a sweep of the Brewers by a final score of 5-0. Sabathia went 7.2 innings on 118 pitches; he scattered six hits (half of them by Ryan Braun) and walked a pair. It was a game in which Sabathia had a lot of strikeouts early but also had his pitch count into the sixties in the 3rd inning. He was much more efficient and deadly from then on. YES' Jack Curry reported that seven of Sabathia's K's came on his slider, which was biting hard on Thursday.

As has been the case of late, the Yankees gave their starting pitcher immediate run support. Randy Wolf walked the first two batters of the game, Gardner (who stole second) and Nick Swisher, and then watched as the Yankees pulled off a double steal. Wolf struck out Mark Teixeira, but Robinson Cano (batting clean up with Alex Rodriguez getting a day off) doubled to left-center for a 2-0 lead.

Teixeira led off the 3rd inning with his Major League leading 25th home run and the 300th of his career. (Yankee Stadium security was able to recover the historic ball from a fan.) Wolf then hit Cano and one batter later Andruw Jones singled. Francisco Cervelli delivered the first of his two RBI singles for a 4-0 Yankees advantage.

Milwaukee threatened when they put two aboard with two out in the 3rd. Sabathia pitched around the right-handed hitting Braun to load the bases, then struck out the left-handed hitting (and good friend of Sabathia) Prince Fielder for the second time in the game.

Fielder nearly got revenge in the 6th when Braun reached on a one out single and Fielder drilled a shot to left that looked like it might go out of the ball park and cut the Yankees lead to 4-2. But Jones caught the ball in front of the wall and the Brewers didn't have a serious threat the rest of the afternoon.

Notes

The Yankees have gone 15-4 in their last 19 games and have won six straight series as they head into Citi Field Friday night to start a three game series with the Mets. They're also now 23-4 in day games compared to 25-27 at night.

Bartolo Colon is expected to be activated from the disabled list to start Saturday's game. Hector Noesi or Brian Gordon are the most likely candidates to be sent to the minors upon Colon's return.

Derek Jeter will have two rehab games in Trenton This weekend and should be activated for the Yankees series with Cleveland beginning on Monday.

Earlier in the day the Yankees reacquired Sergio Mitre, who had been designated for assignment by the Brewers, for cash. He was put in the bullpen and Buddy Carlyle was sent down to make room.

CC Sabathia won for the 8th time in nine starts and won his Major League leading 11th game. (Detroit's Justin Verlander later joined him.)