GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: NY YANKEES (53-46) at KANSAS CITY (43-56)

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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">AL AT KANSAS CITY - MID INNING UPDATE
    PLAY: M Cairo at shortstop.
    SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
    CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 7
    KANSAS CITY 1 BOTTOM, 9TH

    DUE UP FOR KANSAS CITY: A Gordon (.240, 1-FOR-3)</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">AL AT KANSAS CITY - PITCHING CHANGE
    NYY: MARIANO RIVERA (2-3, 3.10) STARTING THE 9TH
    CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1

    DUE UP FOR KANSASCITY: A GORDON (.240, 1-FOR-3)</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">AL AT KANSAS CITY - MID INNING UPDATE
    PLAY: M Rivera relieved L Vizcaino.
    SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
    CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 7
    KANSAS CITY 1 BOTTOM, 9TH

    DUE UP FOR KANSAS CITY: A Gordon (.240, 1-FOR-3)</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">AL FINAL
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
    - - - - - - - - - - - -
    NY YANKEES 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 7 13 0
    KANSAS CITY 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 8 0 (FINAL)

    BATTERIES: NYY - MIKE MUSSINA, RON VILLONE (6TH), SCOTT PROCTOR (7TH), MIKE
    MYERS (7TH), LUIS VIZCAINO (8TH), MARIANO RIVERA (9TH) AND
    JORGE POSADA

    KAN - GIL MECHE, JIMMY GOBBLE (8TH), OCTAVIO DOTEL
    (9TH) AND JOHN BUCK

    HOME RUNS: NYY - MELKY CABRERA (5) OFF GIL MECHE IN THE 2ND, 1 ON
    ALEX RODRIGUEZ (35) OFF GIL MECHE IN THE 8TH, 1 ON
    HIDEKI MATSUI (18) OFF JIMMY GOBBLE IN THE 8TH, 0 ON

    KAN - NONE</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">AL FINAL
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
    - - - - - - - - - - - -
    NY YANKEES 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 7 13 0
    KANSAS CITY 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 8 0 (FINAL)

    BATTERIES: NYY - MIKE MUSSINA, RON VILLONE (6TH), SCOTT PROCTOR (7TH), MIKE
    MYERS (7TH), LUIS VIZCAINO (8TH), MARIANO RIVERA (9TH) AND
    JORGE POSADA

    KAN - GIL MECHE, JIMMY GOBBLE (8TH), OCTAVIO DOTEL
    (9TH) AND JOHN BUCK


    WP - MIKE MUSSINA (5-7)
    LP - GIL MECHE (7-7)
    SAVE - NONE

    HOME RUNS: NYY - MELKY CABRERA (5) OFF GIL MECHE IN THE 2ND, 1 ON
    ALEX RODRIGUEZ (35) OFF GIL MECHE IN THE 8TH, 1 ON
    HIDEKI MATSUI (18) OFF JIMMY GOBBLE IN THE 8TH, 0 ON

    KAN - NONE


    TIME: 3:19 ATT: 28,460

    PROBABLES: NYY - KEI IGAWA (2-2, 6.67)
    KAN - JORGE DE LA ROSA (7-10, 5.61)</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">NY YANKEES (7) VS KANSAS CITY (1) - FINAL

    NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
    J Damon lf 5 0 1 0 0 1 1 .245
    D Jeter ss 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 .337
    M Cairo pr-ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257
    B Abreu rf 4 1 1 0 1 0 1 .274
    A Rodriguez 3b 5 1 2 2 0 1 4 .311
    H Matsui dh 5 1 1 1 0 0 6 .290
    J Posada c 4 1 1 0 0 1 0 .333
    R Cano 2b 4 2 3 0 0 0 0 .299
    A Phillips 1b 3 0 1 1 0 0 1 .302
    M Cabrera cf 3 1 1 3 0 0 1 .279

    Totals 37 7 13 7 1 3 14

    BATTING: 2B - A Phillips (4, J Gobble); J Damon (15, O Dotel). HR - M Cabrera
    (5, 2nd inning off G Meche 1 on, 2 Out), A Rodriguez (35, 8th inning off G
    Meche 1 on, 1 Out), H Matsui (18, 8th inning off J Gobble 0 on, 1 Out). S - A
    Phillips. SF - M Cabrera. RBI - M Cabrera 3 (36), A Rodriguez 2 (102), H Matsui
    (67), A Phillips (17). 2-out RBI - M Cabrera 2, A Phillips. Runners left in
    scoring position, 2 out - J Damon 1, H Matsui 3, M Cabrera 1. GIDP - H Matsui.
    Team LOB - 7.

    FIELDING: DP: 1 (D Jeter-R Cano-A Phillips).


    KANSAS CITY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
    D DeJesus cf 5 0 2 0 0 1 1 .274
    E German 2b 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .284
    M Teahen rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 .283
    B Butler dh 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .311
    R Gload 1b 3 1 2 0 1 1 0 .279
    R Sanders lf 3 0 1 1 1 0 1 .333
    A Gordon 3b 4 0 1 0 0 0 3 .239
    J Buck c 4 0 0 0 0 1 4 .232
    T Pena Jr ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .279
    J Smith ss 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .210

    Totals 34 1 8 1 2 5 13

    BATTING: 2B - A Gordon (19, M Mussina); R Gload 2 (11, M Mussina 2). RBI - R
    Sanders (10). 2-out RBI - R Sanders. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out -
    J Buck 3, D DeJesus 1, M Teahen 1. GIDP - E German. Team LOB - 9.

    FIELDING: DP: 1 (E German-T Pena Jr-R Gload).


    ----------------------------------------------------
    NY YANKEES - 020 000 140 -- 7
    KANSAS CITY - 000 001 000 -- 1
    ----------------------------------------------------

    NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
    M Mussina (W, 5-7) 5 2/3 6 1 1 2 4 0 4.77
    R Villone (H, 3) 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.24
    S Proctor (H, 11) 2/3 1 0 0 0 0 0 3.69
    M Myers (H, 4) 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.41
    L Vizcaino 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 4.08
    M Rivera 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 3.02

    KANSAS CITY ip h r er bb so hr era
    G Meche (L, 7-7) 7 1/3 9 5 5 1 1 2 3.76
    J Gobble 2/3 3 2 2 0 1 1 3.09
    O Dotel 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 3.27

    HBP - E German (by S Proctor); D Jeter (by O Dotel). Pitches-strikes: M
    Mussina 95-59; R Villone 1-1; S Proctor 8-7; M Myers 3-3; L Vizcaino 21-13; M
    Rivera 15-12; G Meche 120-75; J Gobble 21-15; O Dotel 17-12. Ground balls-fly
    balls: M Mussina 6-7; R Villone 0-1; S Proctor 1-1; M Myers 0-1; L Vizcaino
    0-2; M Rivera 3-0; G Meche 11-10; J Gobble 0-1; O Dotel 1-1. Batters faced: M
    Mussina 24; R Villone 1; S Proctor 4; M Myers 1; L Vizcaino 3; M Rivera 4; G
    Meche 31; J Gobble 5; O Dotel 5.

    UMPIRES: HP--Derryl Cousins. 1B--Kerwin Danley. 2B--Doug Eddings. 3B--Dana
    Demuth.

    T--3:19. Att--28,460.
    Weather: 85 degrees, clear. Wind: 11 mph, right to
    left.</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
    AL
    NY YANKEES 7
    KANSAS CITY 1 FINAL</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    NY YANKEES (7) AT KANSAS CITY (1) - HOW THEY SCORED
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    NY YANKEES 2ND: J Posada grounded out to second. R Cano singled to left.
    A Phillips flied out to right. M Cabrera homered to right, R Cano scored.
    J Damon grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2,
    KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 6TH: M Teahen grounded out to first. B Butler flied out to
    right. R Gload doubled to deep right center. R Sanders singled to left,
    R Gload scored. R Villone relieved M Mussina. A Gordon flied out to right.
    (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 1.

    NY YANKEES 7TH: J Posada singled to left. R Cano singled to left center,
    J Posada to second. A Phillips sacrificed to catcher, J Posada to third, R Cano
    to second. M Cabrera hit sacrifice fly to center, J Posada scored, R Cano to
    third. J Damon struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3,
    KANSAS CITY 1.

    NY YANKEES 8TH: D Jeter singled to right center. B Abreu grounded into
    fielder's choice to first, D Jeter out at second. A Rodriguez homered to
    center, B Abreu scored. J Gobble relieved G Meche. H Matsui homered to right.
    J Posada struck out looking. R Cano singled to right. A Phillips doubled to
    deep left, R Cano scored. M Cabrera popped out to second. (4 Runs, 5 Hits,
    0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1.</div>
     
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    AL: NY YANKEES at KANSAS CITY

    <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    NY YANKEES (7) AT KANSAS CITY (1) - EVENT LOG
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Ny Yankees Starting Lineups -- J Damon LF, D Jeter SS, B Abreu RF, A Rodriguez 3B,
    H Matsui DH, J Posada C, R Cano 2B, A Phillips 1B, M Cabrera CF, M Mussina RHP.

    Kansas City Starting Lineups -- D DeJesus CF, E German 2B, M Teahen RF,
    B Butler DH, R Gload 1B, R Sanders LF, A Gordon 3B, J Buck C, T Pena Jr SS,
    G Meche RHP.

    Umpires -- Derryl Cousins (HP), Kerwin Danley (1B), Doug Eddings (2B),
    Dana Demuth (3B).

    Gametime Weather: 85 degrees, Clear, wind right to left at 11 mph.


    NY YANKEES 1ST: J Damon grounded out to shortstop. D Jeter singled to
    left. B Abreu walked, D Jeter to second. A Rodriguez popped out to second.
    H Matsui flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 0, KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 1ST: D DeJesus struck out looking. E German struck out
    looking. M Teahen grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
    NY YANKEES 0, KANSAS CITY 0.

    NY YANKEES 2ND: J Posada grounded out to second. R Cano singled to left.
    A Phillips flied out to right. M Cabrera homered to right, R Cano scored.
    J Damon grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2,
    KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 2ND: B Butler flied out to center. R Gload walked. R Sanders
    fouled out to third. A Gordon doubled to deep right, R Gload to third. J Buck
    flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    NY YANKEES 3RD: D Jeter grounded out to shortstop. B Abreu singled to
    right. A Rodriguez singled to left, B Abreu to second. H Matsui grounded into
    double play, second to shortstop to first, A Rodriguez out at second.(0 Runs,
    2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 3RD: T Pena Jr grounded out to shortstop. D DeJesus flied out
    to left. E German singled to right. M Teahen lined out to right. (0 Runs,
    1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    NY YANKEES 4TH: J Posada grounded out to first. R Cano popped out to
    second. A Phillips flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2,
    KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 4TH: B Butler struck out swinging. R Gload doubled to right
    center. R Sanders walked. A Gordon flied out to left. J Buck struck out
    swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    NY YANKEES 5TH: M Cabrera lined out to first. J Damon popped out to
    shortstop. D Jeter grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
    NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 5TH: T Pena Jr grounded out to shortstop. D DeJesus singled to
    left. E German grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first,
    D DeJesus out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    NY YANKEES 6TH: B Abreu fouled out to third. A Rodriguez grounded out to
    shortstop. H Matsui lined out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
    NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 0.

    KANSAS CITY 6TH: M Teahen grounded out to first. B Butler flied out to
    right. R Gload doubled to deep right center. R Sanders singled to left,
    R Gload scored. R Villone relieved M Mussina. A Gordon flied out to right.
    (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 2, KANSAS CITY 1.

    NY YANKEES 7TH: J Posada singled to left. R Cano singled to left center,
    J Posada to second. A Phillips sacrificed to catcher, J Posada to third, R Cano
    to second. M Cabrera hit sacrifice fly to center, J Posada scored, R Cano to
    third. J Damon struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3,
    KANSAS CITY 1.

    KANSAS CITY 7TH: S Proctor relieved R Villone. J Buck grounded out to
    pitcher. T Pena Jr lined out to right. D DeJesus singled to center. E German
    hit by pitch, D DeJesus to second. M Myers relieved S Proctor. M Teahen fouled
    out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3, KANSAS CITY 1.

    NY YANKEES 8TH: D Jeter singled to right center. B Abreu grounded into
    fielder's choice to first, D Jeter out at second. A Rodriguez homered to
    center, B Abreu scored. J Gobble relieved G Meche. H Matsui homered to right.
    J Posada struck out looking. R Cano singled to right. A Phillips doubled to
    deep left, R Cano scored. M Cabrera popped out to second. (4 Runs, 5 Hits,
    0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1.

    KANSAS CITY 8TH: L Vizcaino relieved M Myers. B Butler flied out to right.
    R Gload struck out swinging. R Sanders flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
    0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1.

    NY YANKEES 9TH: J Smith at shortstop. O Dotel relieved J Gobble. J Damon
    doubled to left. D Jeter hit by pitch. M Cairo ran for D Jeter. B Abreu
    grounded out to second, J Damon to third, M Cairo to second. A Rodriguez
    struck out swinging. H Matsui fouled out to third. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
    NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1.

    KANSAS CITY 9TH: M Cairo at shortstop. M Rivera relieved L Vizcaino.
    A Gordon grounded out to first. J Buck grounded out to shortstop. J Smith
    singled to left. J Smith to second on fielder's indifference. D DeJesus
    grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1.</div>
     
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    Yankees stay hot, pound Royals for sixth straight win

    <h3>NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1</h3>KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- Melky Cabrera and AlexRodriguez made sure the New York Yankees continued theiroffensive fireworks en route to a 7-1 victory over the KansasCity Royals on Wednesday.


    Mike Mussina (5-7) pitched 5 1/3 strong innings and the bullpenmade an early lead stand up for the Yankees, who have won sixgames in a row to move within 6 1/2 games of the Boston Red Sox(61-40) in the American League East - the closest they have beensince being six games back on May 9.


    After scoring 56 runs in their previous four games, the Yankeescollected just a pair of runs in the first six innings, asCabrera connected for a two-out, two-run homer in the secondinning.


    Following the first of Robinson Cano's three hits, Cabrerahammered a 1-0 pitch 405-feet over the right field wall to giveNew York an early 2-0 lead.


    Cabrera then matched a season high with his third RBI of thegame, bringing in a run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh topush the Yankees lead to 3-1.


    Mussina turned in his best effort in nearly a month, allowingone run and six hits in 5 2/3 innings while walking two andstriking out four to improve his career record to 9-2 atKauffman Stadium. The veteran righthander overcame a roughouting last Friday in which he surrendered six runs to lowlyTampa Bay to take the loss.


    Five relievers combined to close it out for Mussina. Thebullpen came into Wednesday's contest with a 5.01 ERA inMussina's starts, but turned in 3 1/3 scoreless frames againstthe Royals.


    New York broke the game open with four runs in the eighth,highlighted by Rodriguez's two-run homer, his 35th of the seasonand 499th of his career.


    The perennial All-Star's blast knocked out Kansas City starterGil Meche, who was tagged with his first loss since June 9. TheRoyals' $55 million ace tossed 7 1/3 frames, yielding nine hitsand five runs while striking out one and issuing one walk.

    Hideki Matsui followed Rodriguez with a solo shot, his 18th ofthe season.


    With their sixth straight victory, the Yankees have clinchedtheir sixth straight series win and have a major league-best12-3 record since the All-Star break.


    The Royals lone run came when Ross Gload doubled with two out inthe sixth and came in to score on Reggie Sanders' single toleft.
     
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    Yankees stay hot, pound Royals for sixth straight win

    <h3>NY YANKEES 7, KANSAS CITY 1</h3>KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- Melky Cabrera and AlexRodriguez made sure the New York Yankees continued theiroffensive fireworks en route to a 7-1 victory over the KansasCity Royals on Wednesday.




    Mike Mussina (5-7) pitched 5 1/3 strong innings and the bullpenmade an early lead stand up for the Yankees, who have won sixgames in a row to move within 6 1/2 games of the Boston Red Sox(61-40) in the American League East - the closest they have beensince being six games back on May 9.




    After scoring 56 runs in their previous four games, the Yankeescollected just a pair of runs in the first six innings, asCabrera connected for a two-out, two-run homer in the secondinning.




    "I was looking up there and seeing that we were ahead 2-0 andsaying 'we need more runs'," Yankees Manager Joe Torre said."But, then you shake yourself and say 'hey, that's not thenorm'. We can't expect to score all those runs early all thetime. It's just as important to win the close games, too."



    Following the first of Robinson Cano's three hits, Cabrerahammered a 1-0 pitch 405-feet over the right field wall to giveNew York an early 2-0 lead.




    "As soon as he hit it I put my head down and started running,"Cano said. "I knew he hit it good. He was happy because he washelping the team to win the game and we needed that early inthe game."




    Cabrera then matched a season high with his third RBI of thegame, bringing in a run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh topush the Yankees lead to 3-1.




    "The kid knows how to hit," Torre said. "He sometimes swingsat pitches outside the zone, but he keeps his wits about himand the pressure doesn't bother him. That's impressiveconsidering his age."




    Mussina turned in his best effort in nearly a month, allowingone run and six hits in 5 2/3 innings while walking two andstriking out four to improve his career record to 9-2 atKauffman Stadium. The veteran righthander overcame a roughouting last Friday in which he surrendered six runs to lowlyTampa Bay to take the loss.




    "Moose was great," Torre said. "He did things with his stuffI wish he'd done in his previous start. I don't think he gotas frustrated tonight when he didn't get strikes called.Tonight he stayed the course. I know he was unhappy the othernight, and he didn't let it bother him tonight."




    "I was better tonight," Mussina said. "I pitched in bettercounts and got my curve over. I was able to do what I wantedwith it. I generally know in the first two or three (pitches)if I can count on it. The first batter, DeJesus, I threw hima couple and it felt good coming out of my hand."




    Five relievers combined to close it out for Mussina. Thebullpen came into Wednesday's contest with a 5.01 ERA inMussina's starts, but turned in 3 1/3 scoreless frames againstthe Royals.




    "Our bullpen was great," Torre said. "Villone got a big outfor us, and so did Mike (Myers). It was more impressive uswinning this game when we were ahead 2-1 and getting thosetough outs we needed. It was a good game for us."



    New York broke the game open with four runs in the eighth,highlighted by Rodriguez's two-run homer, his 35th of the seasonand 499th of his career.




    "This is just a stopoff for him," Torre said. "Considering hisage, and in a few years he's going to be going for 600. That'scrazy at his age."




    "It's easier to focus on goals when the team is playing well,"Rodriguez said. "I take as much satisfaction from (the home run)as I do the single up the middle in the ninth. We're justlooking for wins. It's hard for me to focus on this when everywin is so important."




    The perennial All-Star's blast knocked out Kansas City starterGil Meche, who was tagged with his first loss since June 9. TheRoyals' $55 million ace tossed 7 1/3 frames, yielding nine hitsand five runs while striking out one and issuing one walk.



    "I don't know how Alex hit that ball," Meche said. "Well, Iguess I know how, but if I could have walked up there and placedthe ball where I wanted to throw it in that situation, with acutter and on a 3-2 count, I wouldn't have thrown it any otherplace. I mean it was down and on the corner. He just went downthere and got it. He's probably the only guy in this league whocan hit a ball that hard in that location. There's nothing elseyou can do but tip your hat in that situation."




    "I thought he (Meche) was outstanding," Royals Manager Buddy Bellsaid. "Rodriguez hit a great pitch down and away."



    Hideki Matsui followed Rodriguez with a solo shot, his 18th ofthe season.




    With their sixth straight victory, the Yankees have clinchedtheir sixth straight series win and have a major league-best12-3 record since the All-Star break.




    "We like what we're doing," Torre said. "There's a lot of baseballleft. It's important for us to make sure the good streaks outlastthe bad ones."




    "Those guys are hot and playing well," Bell said. "Everybody fromone through nine is swinging well. There's no let up in thatlineup."




    The Royals lone run came when Ross Gload doubled with two out inthe sixth and came in to score on Reggie Sanders' single toleft.




    "We've got to put some hits together," Bell said. "We haven'tbeen able to string anything together. We don't match up withteams that really bang."
     

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