GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: NY YANKEES (22-29) at BOSTON (36-16)

AL: NY YANKEES (22-29) at BOSTON (36-16)

<h3>Red Sox, Yankees series lacks usual luster</h3>

<div class="pre">NY Yankees (22-29) at Boston (36-16) 7:05 pm EDT</div>

BOSTON (Ticker) - While it's always an event when the Boston RedSox and New York Yankees meet, this weekend's series feels quitea bit different than usual.

The first-place Red Sox host the last-place Yankees on Friday inthe opener of a three-game set at Fenway Park.

New York took two of three games from Boston last week, buthas dropped four of five since to fall 13 1/2 games behind itshated rivals. The Yankees are tied with Tampa Bay for lastplace in the American League East.

With the fact that a sweep would still leave New Yorkdouble-digits behind the Red Sox and $28 million mercenary RogerClemens not set to start until Monday, this weekend's seriesshould lack the usual luster.

Tim Wakefield (5-5, 3.36 ERA) will take the mound for Boston.The veteran knuckleballer has struggled against the Yankeesrecently, dropping seven of his last eight decisions since May2005.

Wakefield began the season 4-3 and led the league with a 1.79ERA. Since then, he is just 1-2 with a 7.11 ERA, including astart against the Yankees on May 21 in which he allowed six runsin five innings to take a loss.

New York will counter with Chien-Ming Wang (3-4, 4.13). The27-year-old sinkerballer got the win May 21 against Wakefieldand the Red Sox, tossing 6 1/3 innings and surrendering tworuns.

Wang has struggled against Boston in the past, owning a 3-4career mark with a 4.78 ERA in nine games - eight starts.

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

NY YANKEES BOSTON
AVG HR RBI AVG HR RBI
Johnny Damon DH .264 3 17 Julio Lugo SS .230 3 30
Derek Jeter SS .343 3 28 Kevin Youkilis 1B .354 8 30
Hideki Matsui LF .282 5 25 David Ortiz DH .315 9 38
Alex Rodriguez 3B .292 19 45 Manny Ramirez LF .269 8 31
Jorge Posada C .357 6 30 J.D. Drew RF .226 2 17
Robinson Cano 2B .264 2 23 Mike Lowell 3B .330 10 41
Bobby Abreu RF .228 2 22 Coco Crisp CF .229 1 15
Josh Phelps 1B .281 2 9 Doug Mirabelli C .190 2 4
Melky Cabrera CF .224 2 15 Dustin Pedroia 2B .308 2 11

Chien-Ming Wang RHP (3-4, 4.13) Tim Wakefield RHP (5-5, 3.36)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON
NOTE: THE START OF THE GAME IS BEING DELAYED DUE TO RAIN.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON
WARMUPS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG (3-4, 4.13)
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD (5-5, 3.36)

UMPIRES: HP - BRIAN O'NORA
1B - PHIL CUZZI
2B - CHRIS GUCCIONE
3B - JERRY CRAWFORD

WEATHER: 80 Degrees, rain
WIND: 5 mph, in from left</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON
NOTE: THE GAME IS UNDERWAY AFTER A 23 MINUTE DELAY.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON
STARTING BATS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG AND JORGE POSADA
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD AND DOUG MIRABELLI

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: J DAMON (.264, 3 HR, 17 RBI)
D JETER (.343, 3 HR, 28 RBI)
H MATSUI (.282, 5 HR, 25 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD

DUE UP FOR BOSTON: J LUGO (.230, 3 HR, 30 RBI)
K YOUKILIS (.354, 8 HR, 30 RBI)
D ORTIZ (.315, 9 HR, 38 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .263
D Jeter ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .341
H Matsui lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280
A Rodriguez 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .292
J Posada c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .357
R Cano 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .264
B Abreu rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .228
J Phelps 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .281
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .224

Totals 3 0 0 0 0 0 0

BATTING: Team LOB - 0.


BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Lugo ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .230
K Youkilis 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .354
D Ortiz dh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .315
M Ramirez lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .269
J Drew rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .226
M Lowell 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .330
C Crisp cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .229
D Mirabelli c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .190
D Pedroia 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .308

Totals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

BATTING: Team LOB - 0.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 0 -- 0
BOSTON - -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
C Wang 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4.12

BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
T Wakefield 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.31

Pitches-strikes: T Wakefield 9-7. Ground balls-fly balls: T Wakefield 3-0.
Batters faced: T Wakefield 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Brian O'Nora. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Chris Guccione. 3B--Jerry
Crawford.

(Plus rain delay totaling 23 minutes in the 1st). Weather: 82 degrees, partly
cloudy. Wind: 3 mph, in from left.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON
CONFIRMED STARTERS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: A RODRIGUEZ (.292, 19 HR, 45 RBI)
J POSADA (.357, 6 HR, 30 RBI)
R CANO (.264, 2 HR, 23 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .263
D Jeter ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .341
H Matsui lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280
A Rodriguez 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .292
J Posada c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .357
R Cano 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .264
B Abreu rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .228
J Phelps 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .281
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .224

Totals 3 0 0 0 0 0 0

BATTING: Team LOB - 0.

FIELDING: E - J Phelps (2, ground ball).


BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Lugo ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .229
K Youkilis 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .352
D Ortiz dh 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .315
M Ramirez lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .273
J Drew rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .224
M Lowell 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .328
C Crisp cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .229
D Mirabelli c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .190
D Pedroia 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .308

Totals 5 0 1 0 1 1 5

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lowell 2. Team LOB - 3.


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 0 -- 0
BOSTON - 0 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
C Wang 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 4.04

BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
T Wakefield 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.31

Pitches-strikes: C Wang 23-14; T Wakefield 9-7. Ground balls-fly balls: C
Wang 2-0; T Wakefield 3-0. Batters faced: C Wang 6; T Wakefield 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Brian O'Nora. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Chris Guccione. 3B--Jerry
Crawford.

(Plus rain delay totaling 23 minutes in the 1st). Weather: 82 degrees, partly
cloudy. Wind: 3 mph, in from left.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON - SCORING UPDATE
TWO-RUN HOME RUN BY ROBINSON CANO (3) TO RIGHT WITH 1 OUT
IN THE 2ND OFF TIM WAKEFIELD SCORED ALEX RODRIGUEZ.
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 2, BOSTON 0

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: B ABREU (.228, 2 HR, 22 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON - SCORING UPDATE
BASES LOADED WALK TO JOHNNY DAMON SCORED BOBBY ABREU.
SITUATION: 3 RUNS IN, J DAMON ON FIRST, M CABRERA ON SECOND, J
PHELPS ON THIRD, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 3
BOSTON 0 TOP, 2ND

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: D JETER (.341, 0-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD

DUE UP FOR BOSTON: C CRISP (.229, 1 HR, 15 RBI)
D MIRABELLI (.190, 2 HR, 4 RBI)
D PEDROIA (.308, 2 HR, 11 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon dh 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 .263
D Jeter ss 2 0 0 0 0 0 3 .340
H Matsui lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280
A Rodriguez 3b 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .292
J Posada c 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .355
R Cano 2b 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 .268
B Abreu rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .232
J Phelps 1b 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .281
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .224

Totals 7 3 2 3 4 1 4

BATTING: 2B - B Abreu (7, T Wakefield). HR - R Cano (3, 2nd inning off T
Wakefield 1 on, 1 Out). RBI - R Cano 2 (25), J Damon (18). GIDP - D Jeter. Team
LOB - 2.

FIELDING: E - J Phelps (2, ground ball).


BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Lugo ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .229
K Youkilis 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .352
D Ortiz dh 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .315
M Ramirez lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .273
J Drew rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .224
M Lowell 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .328
C Crisp cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .229
D Mirabelli c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .190
D Pedroia 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .308

Totals 5 0 1 0 1 1 5

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lowell 2. Team LOB - 3.

FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Lugo-D Pedroia-K Youkilis).


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 03 -- 3
BOSTON - 0 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
C Wang 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 4.04

BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
T Wakefield 2 2 3 3 4 1 1 3.66

Pitches-strikes: C Wang 23-14; T Wakefield 41-20. Ground balls-fly balls: C
Wang 2-0; T Wakefield 5-0. Batters faced: C Wang 6; T Wakefield 11.

UMPIRES: HP--Brian O'Nora. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Chris Guccione. 3B--Jerry
Crawford.

(Plus rain delay totaling 23 minutes in the 1st). Weather: 82 degrees, partly
cloudy. Wind: 3 mph, in from left.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON - SCORING UPDATE
GROUND OUT BY JULIO LUGO SCORED COCO CRISP.
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, D PEDROIA ON THIRD, 2 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 3
BOSTON 1 BOTTOM, 2ND

DUE UP FOR BOSTON: K YOUKILIS (.352, 0-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL NY YANKEES AT BOSTON
NOTE: BOSTON SECOND BASEMAN DUSTIN PEDROIA EXTENDED HIS
HITTING STREAK TO 11 GAMES WITH A DOUBLE IN THE SECOND INNING.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

<div class="pre">AL AT BOSTON - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY DAVID ORTIZ SCORED DUSTIN PEDROIA.
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, D ORTIZ ON FIRST, K YOUKILIS ON SECOND, 2 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 3
BOSTON 2 BOTTOM, 2ND

DUE UP FOR BOSTON: M RAMIREZ (.273, 1-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG
BOS - TIM WAKEFIELD

DUE UP FOR NY YANKEES: H MATSUI (.280, 0-FOR-1)
A RODRIGUEZ (.292, 0-FOR-0, BB)
J POSADA (.355, 0-FOR-1)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at BOSTON

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

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon dh 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 .263
D Jeter ss 2 0 0 0 0 0 3 .340
H Matsui lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280
A Rodriguez 3b 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .292
J Posada c 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .355
R Cano 2b 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 .268
B Abreu rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .232
J Phelps 1b 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .281
M Cabrera cf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .224

Totals 7 3 2 3 4 1 4

BATTING: 2B - B Abreu (7, T Wakefield). HR - R Cano (3, 2nd inning off T
Wakefield 1 on, 1 Out). RBI - R Cano 2 (25), J Damon (18). GIDP - D Jeter. Team
LOB - 2.

FIELDING: E - J Phelps (2, ground ball).


BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Lugo ss 2 0 0 1 0 1 0 .228
K Youkilis 1b 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 .352
D Ortiz dh 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 .318
M Ramirez lf 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 .277
J Drew rf 2 0 0 0 0 0 5 .223
M Lowell 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 .328
C Crisp cf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .233
D Mirabelli c 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .186
D Pedroia 2b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .314

Totals 12 2 5 2 2 1 9

BATTING: 2B - D Pedroia (10, C Wang). RBI - J Lugo (31), D Ortiz (39). 2-out
RBI - D Ortiz. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lowell 2, J Drew 2.
Team LOB - 6.

FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Lugo-D Pedroia-K Youkilis).


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 03 -- 3
BOSTON - 02 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
C Wang 2 5 2 2 2 1 0 4.32

BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
T Wakefield 2 2 3 3 4 1 1 3.66

Pitches-strikes: C Wang 49-31; T Wakefield 41-20. Ground balls-fly balls: C
Wang 3-2; T Wakefield 5-0. Batters faced: C Wang 14; T Wakefield 11.

UMPIRES: HP--Brian O'Nora. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Chris Guccione. 3B--Jerry
Crawford.

(Plus rain delay totaling 23 minutes in the 1st). Weather: 82 degrees, partly
cloudy. Wind: 3 mph, in from left.</div>