GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: NY YANKEES (81-62) at TORONTO (72-71)

AL: NY YANKEES (81-62) at TORONTO (72-71)

<h3>Red-hot Rodriguez, Yankees aim for sixth straight win</h3>

NY Yankees (81-62) at Toronto (72-71) 7:07 pm EDT


TORONTO (Ticker) -- Alex Rodriguez has the New York Yankeesstreaking towards the postseason.


The Yankees aim for their sixth straight win Tuesday when theytake on the Toronto Blue Jays in the opener of a three-gameseries at Rogers Centre.


The leading American League MVP candidate, Rodriguez leads themajors with 52 homers, 140 RBI and 132 runs. He belted sevenhomers in his last five games - becoming the first Yankee to hit50 in a season since Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in thefabled 1961 campaign.


It was another big performance on Sunday for Rodriguez, whohomered to lead the Yankees to a 6-3 victory over the KansasCity Royals and complete a three-game sweep.


New York, which is five games behind the Boston Red Sox (87-58)in the AL East, moved 3 1/2 games ahead of the Detroit Tigers(78-66) and 5 1/2 games in front of the fading Seattle Mariners(75-67) in the wild card standings.


The Yankees will look to keep it going behind rookie Phil Hughes(2-3, 5.33 ERA), who came up with a big performance against theMariners last Wednesday, allowing just two runs in six inningswhile striking out six.


However, he did not figure in the decision in the 10-2 rout.The 21-year-old has not won since August 10 at Cleveland.

The Blue Jays counter with Shaun Marcum (12-5, 3.74), who didnot record a decision in a 5-4 win at Boston last Wednesday.The righthander yielded two runs and five hits while walkingthree and striking out two.


Toronto, which has lost three straight, suffered a 5-4 loss atDetroit on Monday.

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES AT TORONTO -- LINEUPS

NY YANKEES TORONTO
AVG HR RBI AVG HR RBI
Johnny Damon LF .258 10 54 Vernon Wells CF .251 16 79
Derek Jeter SS .318 9 62 Russ Adams 3B .214 0 0
Bobby Abreu RF .287 16 94 Alex Rios RF .304 23 77
Alex Rodriguez 3B .318 52 140 Frank Thomas DH .268 21 82
Hideki Matsui DH .292 23 91 Matt Stairs LF .312 19 59
Jorge Posada C .336 19 84 Aaron Hill 2B .275 15 71
Jason Giambi 1B .243 12 30 Lyle Overbay 1B .242 10 43
Robinson Cano 2B .302 16 80 Gregg Zaun C .242 9 44
Melky Cabrera CF .294 8 62 John Mcdonald SS .252 1 28

Phil Hughes RHP (2-3, 5.33) Shaun Marcum RHP (12-5, 3.74)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO
WARMUPS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES (2-3, 5.33)
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM (12-5, 3.74)

UMPIRES: HP - TIM TSCHIDA
1B - JIM JOYCE
2B - JEFF NELSON
3B - JIM WOLF

WEATHER: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO
STARTING BATS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES AND JORGE POSADA
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM AND GREGG ZAUN

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: J DAMON (.258, 10 HR, 54 RBI)
D JETER (.318, 9 HR, 62 RBI)
B ABREU (.287, 16 HR, 94 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 0 1 0
TORONTO 0 0 0 (BOT 1)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: V WELLS (.251, 16 HR, 79 RBI)
R ADAMS (.214, 0 HR, 0 RBI)
A RIOS (.304, 23 HR, 77 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (0) VS TORONTO (0) - MID 1ST - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .260
D Jeter ss 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .318
B Abreu rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .287
A Rodriguez 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .317
H Matsui dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .291
J Posada c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .336
J Giambi 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .243
R Cano 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .302
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .294

Totals 4 0 1 0 1 3 6

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - H Matsui 1. Team LOB - 2.


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
V Wells cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .251
R Adams 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .214
A Rios rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .304
F Thomas dh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .268
M Stairs lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .312
A Hill 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .275
L Overbay 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
G Zaun c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .252

Totals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

BATTING: Team LOB - 0.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 0 -- 0
TORONTO - -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
P Hughes 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.33

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
S Marcum 1 1 0 0 1 3 0 3.72

Pitches-strikes: S Marcum 21-16. Ground balls-fly balls: S Marcum 0-0.
Batters faced: S Marcum 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Tschida. 1B--Jim Joyce. 2B--Jeff Nelson. 3B--Jim Wolf.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO
CONFIRMED STARTERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 0 1 0
TORONTO 0 0 1 0 (TOP 2)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: J POSADA (.336, 19 HR, 84 RBI)
J GIAMBI (.243, 12 HR, 30 RBI)
R CANO (.302, 16 HR, 80 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (0) VS TORONTO (0) - END 1ST - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .260
D Jeter ss 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .318
B Abreu rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .287
A Rodriguez 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .317
H Matsui dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .291
J Posada c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .336
J Giambi 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .243
R Cano 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .302
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .294

Totals 4 0 1 0 1 3 6

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - H Matsui 1. Team LOB - 2.


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
V Wells cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .250
R Adams 3b 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .214
A Rios rf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .305
F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .268
M Stairs lf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .312
A Hill 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .274
L Overbay 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
G Zaun c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .252

Totals 4 0 1 0 2 1 5

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Hill 2. Team LOB - 3.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 0 -- 0
TORONTO - 0 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
P Hughes 1 1 0 0 2 1 0 5.22

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
S Marcum 1 1 0 0 1 3 0 3.72

Pitches-strikes: P Hughes 30-17; S Marcum 21-16. Ground balls-fly balls: P
Hughes 1-1; S Marcum 0-0. Batters faced: P Hughes 6; S Marcum 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Tschida. 1B--Jim Joyce. 2B--Jeff Nelson. 3B--Jim Wolf.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE
WILD PITCH BY SHAUN MARCUM ALLOWED JORGE POSADA TO SCORE.
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, R CANO ON FIRST, J GIAMBI ON SECOND, 0 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 1
TORONTO 0 TOP, 2ND

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: M CABRERA (.294, 0-FOR-0)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY JOHNNY DAMON SCORED JASON GIAMBI AND ROBINSON
CANO.
SITUATION: 3 RUNS IN, J DAMON ON FIRST, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 3
TORONTO 0 TOP, 2ND

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: D JETER (.318, 0-FOR-0, BB)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 3 3 4 0
TORONTO 0 0 1 0 (BOT 2)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: L OVERBAY (.242, 10 HR, 43 RBI)
G ZAUN (.242, 9 HR, 44 RBI)
J MCDONALD (.252, 1 HR, 28 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (3) VS TORONTO (0) - MID 2ND - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 .261
D Jeter ss 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .317
B Abreu rf 2 0 0 0 0 1 3 .286
A Rodriguez 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .317
H Matsui dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .291
J Posada c 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .338
J Giambi 1b 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .243
R Cano 2b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .303
M Cabrera cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 .293

Totals 10 3 4 2 2 4 11

BATTING: 2B - J Posada (38, S Marcum). RBI - J Damon 2 (56). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - H Matsui 1. Team LOB - 3.


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
V Wells cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .250
R Adams 3b 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .214
A Rios rf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .305
F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .268
M Stairs lf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .312
A Hill 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .274
L Overbay 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
G Zaun c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .242
J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .252

Totals 4 0 1 0 2 1 5

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Hill 2. Team LOB - 3.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 03 -- 3
TORONTO - 0 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
P Hughes 1 1 0 0 2 1 0 5.22

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
S Marcum 2 4 3 3 2 4 0 3.87

WP - S Marcum. Pitches-strikes: P Hughes 30-17; S Marcum 45-31. Ground
balls-fly balls: P Hughes 1-1; S Marcum 1-1. Batters faced: P Hughes 6; S
Marcum 12.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Tschida. 1B--Jim Joyce. 2B--Jeff Nelson. 3B--Jim Wolf.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY RUSS ADAMS SCORED GREGG ZAUN. ERROR BY MELKY
CABRERA ALLOWED JOHN MCDONALD TO SCORE.
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, R ADAMS ON THIRD, 2 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 3
TORONTO 2 BOTTOM, 2ND

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: A RIOS (.305, 1-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 3 3 4 1
TORONTO 0 2 2 3 0 (TOP 3)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: A RODRIGUEZ (.317, 0-FOR-1)
H MATSUI (.291, 0-FOR-1)
J POSADA (.338, 1-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (3) VS TORONTO (2) - END 2ND - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 .261
D Jeter ss 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .317
B Abreu rf 2 0 0 0 0 1 3 .286
A Rodriguez 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .317
H Matsui dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .291
J Posada c 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .338
J Giambi 1b 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .243
R Cano 2b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .303
M Cabrera cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 .293

Totals 10 3 4 2 2 4 11

BATTING: 2B - J Posada (38, S Marcum). RBI - J Damon 2 (56). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - H Matsui 1. Team LOB - 3.

FIELDING: E - M Cabrera (4, throw). Outfield assists - M Cabrera (L Overbay
at 3rd base).


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
V Wells cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .250
R Adams 3b 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 .267
A Rios rf 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 .305
F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .268
M Stairs lf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .312
A Hill 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .274
L Overbay 1b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .244
G Zaun c 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .242
J McDonald ss 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 .251

Totals 9 2 3 1 3 1 10

BATTING: 2B - L Overbay (30, P Hughes). RBI - R Adams (1). 2-out RBI - R Adams.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Rios 1, A Hill 2. Team LOB - 4.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 03 -- 3
TORONTO - 02 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
P Hughes 2 3 2 2 3 1 0 5.47

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
S Marcum 2 4 3 3 2 4 0 3.87

WP - S Marcum. Pitches-strikes: P Hughes 54-34; S Marcum 45-31. Ground
balls-fly balls: P Hughes 3-2; S Marcum 1-1. Batters faced: P Hughes 12; S
Marcum 12.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Tschida. 1B--Jim Joyce. 2B--Jeff Nelson. 3B--Jim Wolf.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE
SOLO HOME RUN BY JORGE POSADA (20) TO RIGHT WITH 2 OUT IN
THE 3RD OFF SHAUN MARCUM.
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 4, TORONTO 2

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: J GIAMBI (.243, 0-FOR-0, BB)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 3 1 4 5 1
TORONTO 0 2 2 3 0 (BOT 3)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: F THOMAS (.268, 0-FOR-1)
M STAIRS (.312, 0-FOR-0, BB)
A HILL (.274, 0-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (4) VS TORONTO (2) - MID 3RD - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 .261
D Jeter ss 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .317
B Abreu rf 2 0 0 0 0 1 3 .286
A Rodriguez 3b 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .317
H Matsui dh 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .291
J Posada c 2 2 2 1 0 0 0 .339
J Giambi 1b 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 .242
R Cano 2b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .303
M Cabrera cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 .293

Totals 14 4 5 3 2 4 11

BATTING: 2B - J Posada (38, S Marcum). HR - J Posada (20, 3rd inning off S
Marcum 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - J Damon 2 (56), J Posada (85). 2-out RBI - J Posada.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - H Matsui 1. Team LOB - 3.

FIELDING: E - M Cabrera (4, throw). Outfield assists - M Cabrera (L Overbay
at 3rd base).


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
V Wells cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .250
R Adams 3b 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 .267
A Rios rf 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 .305
F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .268
M Stairs lf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .312
A Hill 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .274
L Overbay 1b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .244
G Zaun c 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .242
J McDonald ss 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 .251

Totals 9 2 3 1 3 1 10

BATTING: 2B - L Overbay (30, P Hughes). RBI - R Adams (1). 2-out RBI - R Adams.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Rios 1, A Hill 2. Team LOB - 4.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 031 -- 4
TORONTO - 02 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
P Hughes 2 3 2 1 3 1 0 5.29

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
S Marcum 3 5 4 4 2 4 1 3.91

WP - S Marcum. Pitches-strikes: P Hughes 54-34; S Marcum 56-39. Ground
balls-fly balls: P Hughes 3-2; S Marcum 3-2. Batters faced: P Hughes 12; S
Marcum 16.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Tschida. 1B--Jim Joyce. 2B--Jeff Nelson. 3B--Jim Wolf.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 3 1 4 5 1
TORONTO 0 2 0 2 3 0 (TOP 4)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - PHIL HUGHES
TOR - SHAUN MARCUM

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: R CANO (.303, 1-FOR-1)
M CABRERA (.293, 0-FOR-1)
J DAMON (.261, 2-FOR-2, 2 RBI)</div>