GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: NY YANKEES (62-50) at TORONTO (56-55)

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 3 1 0 3 0 2 0 9 14 0
TORONTO 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 5 0 (BOT 9)

CURRENT PITCHERS: NYY - JOBA CHAMBERLAIN
TOR - JASON FRASOR

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: F THOMAS (.260, 2-FOR-3, 2 RBI)
H LUNA (.000, 0 HR, 0 RBI)
A HILL (.275, 1-FOR-3)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (9) VS TORONTO (2) - MID 9TH - IN PROGRESS

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 2 3 2 1 2 0 0 .258
D Jeter ss 5 0 2 2 0 0 3 .328
B Abreu rf 5 1 2 4 0 0 2 .285
A Rodriguez 3b 4 1 0 0 0 0 3 .298
W Betemit 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500
J Posada c 5 0 3 2 0 1 1 .340
R Cano 2b 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 .308
A Phillips 1b 5 0 1 0 0 0 4 .288
S Duncan dh 4 1 1 0 0 1 2 .303
a-J Giambi ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .260
M Cabrera cf 4 3 3 0 0 0 1 .302

Totals 36 9 14 9 5 2 17

a-grounded into fielder's choice to third for S Duncan in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - M Cabrera 2 (19, J Towers, J Frasor); J Posada (32, J Towers). 3B
- B Abreu (3, J Towers); M Cabrera (7, J Towers). S - M Cabrera. SF - J Damon.
RBI - B Abreu 4 (74), J Posada 2 (67), J Damon (42), D Jeter 2 (54). 2-out RBI
- B Abreu, J Posada 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Phillips 1,
A Rodriguez 1, S Duncan 2. GIDP - D Jeter, A Rodriguez. Team LOB - 9.

BASERUNNING: SB - R Cano (3, 2nd base off J Towers/G Zaun), J Damon (20, 2nd
base off J Frasor/G Zaun).

FIELDING: DP: 2 (D Jeter-R Cano-A Phillips, R Cano-D Jeter-A Phillips).


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
R Johnson lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .258
L Overbay 1b 2 0 0 0 2 2 1 .246
A Rios rf 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 .301
V Wells cf 3 1 0 0 1 1 3 .256
F Thomas dh 3 0 2 2 0 1 0 .260
T Glaus 3b 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .253
H Luna 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
A Hill 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .275
G Zaun c 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .245
J McDonald ss 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .273
a-R Olmedo ph-ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333

Totals 27 2 5 2 3 8 9

a-struck out swinging for J Mcdonald in the 8th.

BATTING: 2B - F Thomas (18, J Brower). RBI - F Thomas 2 (65). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - V Wells 1. GIDP - T Glaus, G Zaun. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: Outfield assists - R Johnson (J Posada at 2nd base), A Rios (J
Posada at 2nd base). DP: 2 (J Towers-T Glaus-L Overbay, J McDonald-A Hill-L
Overbay).


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 003 103 020 -- 9
TORONTO - 000 000 20 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
R Clemens 6 2 1 1 1 6 0 4.00
J Brower 1 2 1 1 1 1 0 6.75
J Chamberlain 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0.00

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
J Towers 5 9 5 5 4 1 0 5.36
B Tallet 2 1 2 2 1 0 0 3.61
J Frasor 2 4 2 2 0 1 0 4.54

J Towers pitched to 1 batter in the 6th.
R Clemens pitched to 1 batter in the 7th.

IBB - R Cano (by J Towers). HBP - A Rodriguez (by J Towers); R Cano (by B
Tallet); A Rios (by R Clemens). Pitches-strikes: R Clemens 90-54; J Brower
23-14; J Chamberlain 21-13; J Towers 97-56; B Tallet 33-19; J Frasor 38-24.
Ground balls-fly balls: R Clemens 6-6; J Brower 2-0; J Chamberlain 1-1; J
Towers 9-3; B Tallet 7-0; J Frasor 3-2. Batters faced: R Clemens 21; J Brower
5; J Chamberlain 5; J Towers 26; B Tallet 9; J Frasor 10.

UMPIRES: HP--Angel Hernandez. 1B--Derryl Cousins. 2B--Chad Fairchild.
3B--Mark Carlson.
EJECTIONS: NY YANKEES' Clemens by Hernandez (7th), NY YANKEES' Torre by Hernandez (7th).
Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: C Thigpen hit for F Thomas.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: NY YANKEES 9
TORONTO 2 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TORONTO: C Thigpen (.280, 0 HR, 4 RBI)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 0 3 1 0 3 0 2 0 9 14 0
TORONTO 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 5 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: NYY - ROGER CLEMENS, JIM BROWER (7TH), JOBA CHAMBERLAIN (8TH) AND
JORGE POSADA

TOR - JOSH TOWERS, BRIAN TALLET (6TH), JASON FRASOR
(8TH) AND GREGG ZAUN

HOME RUNS: NYY - NONE

TOR - NONE</div>

 

Clemens, Yankees crush Blue Jays

<h3>NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2</h3>TORONTO (Ticker) -- Roger Clemens helped keep the New YorkYankees rolling.


Clemens pitched six stellar innings before getting ejected andBobby Abreu had four RBI to lift the Yankees to their fifthconsecutive win, a 9-2 triumph over the Toronto Blue Jays onTuesday.


Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter each drove in two runs for NewYork, which remained one-half game behind the Detroit Tigers inthe American League wild card.


The 45-year-old Clemens (4-5) yielded just two hits and a walkwith five strikeouts before being ejected after hitting AlexRios with a pitch to lead off the seventh frame.


Clemens, who surrendered 12 runs - seven earned - and 17 hitsover eight innings in his previous two starts, retired 13straight Blue Jay hitters after Frank Thomas led off the secondinning with a single.


Abreu put the Yankees on the scoreboard in the third inning withan RBI triple off Blue Jays starter Josh Towers (5-9) and laterscored on Posada's two-run double, which opened a 3-0 lead.

Abreu, who now has driven in 15 runs over his last eight games,added an RBI groundout in the fifth and a two-run single in theeighth. The 12-year veteran is batting .286 with 11 home runsand 74 RBI this season.


New York took a 4-0 lead in the fourth when Johnny Damon'ssacrifice fly plated Melky Cabrera, who had two doubles, atriple and scored three times.


The Yankees broke open the game in the fifth frame after Jeterdrove in two runs with a base hit to right field and Abreu's RBIgroundout scored Damon to take a 7-0 advantage.


Both benches were cleared after Towers beaned Alex Rodriguez inthe third inning. Nobody was removed from the game but warningswere issued, which led to Clemens' ejection four innings later.

After Clemens was thrown out of the contest, Rios came around toscore on Thomas' two-run double, which cut the deficit to 7-2.

The 30-year-old Towers lasted just five innings, allowing fiveruns and nine hits with four walks to register his thirdconsecutive loss.

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY YANKEES 0 0 3 1 0 3 0 2 0 9 14 0
TORONTO 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 5 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: NYY - ROGER CLEMENS, JIM BROWER (7TH), JOBA CHAMBERLAIN (8TH) AND
JORGE POSADA

TOR - JOSH TOWERS, BRIAN TALLET (6TH), JASON FRASOR
(8TH) AND GREGG ZAUN


WP - ROGER CLEMENS (4-5)
LP - JOSH TOWERS (5-9)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: NYY - NONE

TOR - NONE


TIME: 3:15 ATT: 38,078

PROBABLES: NYY - CHIEN-MING WANG (13-5, 3.49)
TOR - ROY HALLADAY (12-5, 4.13)</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">NY YANKEES (9) VS TORONTO (2) - FINAL

NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Damon lf 2 3 2 1 2 0 0 .258
D Jeter ss 5 0 2 2 0 0 3 .328
B Abreu rf 5 1 2 4 0 0 2 .285
A Rodriguez 3b 4 1 0 0 0 0 3 .298
W Betemit 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500
J Posada c 5 0 3 2 0 1 1 .340
R Cano 2b 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 .308
A Phillips 1b 5 0 1 0 0 0 4 .288
S Duncan dh 4 1 1 0 0 1 2 .303
a-J Giambi ph-dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .260
M Cabrera cf 4 3 3 0 0 0 1 .302

Totals 36 9 14 9 5 2 17

a-grounded into fielder's choice to third for S Duncan in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - M Cabrera 2 (19, J Towers, J Frasor); J Posada (32, J Towers). 3B
- B Abreu (3, J Towers); M Cabrera (7, J Towers). S - M Cabrera. SF - J Damon.
RBI - B Abreu 4 (74), J Posada 2 (67), J Damon (42), D Jeter 2 (54). 2-out RBI
- B Abreu, J Posada 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Phillips 1,
A Rodriguez 1, S Duncan 2. GIDP - D Jeter, A Rodriguez. Team LOB - 9.

BASERUNNING: SB - R Cano (3, 2nd base off J Towers/G Zaun), J Damon (20, 2nd
base off J Frasor/G Zaun).

FIELDING: DP: 3 (D Jeter-R Cano-A Phillips, R Cano-D Jeter-A Phillips 2).


TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
R Johnson lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .258
L Overbay 1b 2 0 0 0 2 2 1 .246
A Rios rf 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 .301
V Wells cf 3 1 0 0 1 1 3 .256
F Thomas dh 3 0 2 2 0 1 0 .260
b-C Thigpen ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .275
T Glaus 3b 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .253
H Luna 3b 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .000
A Hill 2b 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 .275
G Zaun c 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .245
J McDonald ss 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .273
a-R Olmedo ph-ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333

Totals 29 2 5 2 4 9 10

a-struck out swinging for J Mcdonald in the 8th; b-struck out swinging for F
Thomas in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - F Thomas (18, J Brower). RBI - F Thomas 2 (65). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - V Wells 1. GIDP - T Glaus, G Zaun, A Hill. Team LOB -
5.

FIELDING: Outfield assists - R Johnson (J Posada at 2nd base), A Rios (J
Posada at 2nd base). DP: 2 (J Towers-T Glaus-L Overbay, J McDonald-A Hill-L
Overbay).


----------------------------------------------------
NY YANKEES - 003 103 020 -- 9
TORONTO - 000 000 200 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
R Clemens (W, 4-5) 6 2 1 1 1 6 0 4.00
J Brower 1 2 1 1 1 1 0 6.75
J Chamberlain 2 1 0 0 2 2 0 0.00

TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era
J Towers (L, 5-9) 5 9 5 5 4 1 0 5.36
B Tallet 2 1 2 2 1 0 0 3.61
J Frasor 2 4 2 2 0 1 0 4.54

J Towers pitched to 1 batter in the 6th.
R Clemens pitched to 1 batter in the 7th.

IBB - R Cano (by J Towers). HBP - A Rodriguez (by J Towers); R Cano (by B
Tallet); A Rios (by R Clemens). Pitches-strikes: R Clemens 90-54; J Brower
23-14; J Chamberlain 33-19; J Towers 97-56; B Tallet 33-19; J Frasor 38-24.
Ground balls-fly balls: R Clemens 6-6; J Brower 2-0; J Chamberlain 3-1; J
Towers 9-3; B Tallet 7-0; J Frasor 3-2. Batters faced: R Clemens 21; J Brower
5; J Chamberlain 8; J Towers 26; B Tallet 9; J Frasor 10.

UMPIRES: HP--Angel Hernandez. 1B--Derryl Cousins. 2B--Chad Fairchild.
3B--Mark Carlson.
EJECTIONS: NY YANKEES' Clemens by Hernandez (7th), NY YANKEES' Torre by Hernandez (7th).
T--3:15. Att--38,078.
Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
NY YANKEES 9
TORONTO 2 FINAL</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY YANKEES (9) AT TORONTO (2) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NY YANKEES 3RD: M Cabrera doubled to deep center. J Damon walked. D Jeter
grounded into double play, pitcher to third to first, M Cabrera out at third,
J Damon to second. B Abreu tripled to deep center, J Damon scored. A Rodriguez
hit by pitch. J Posada doubled to left, B Abreu and A Rodriguez scored.
R Cano intentionally walked. A Phillips flied out to right. (3 Runs, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 4TH: S Duncan grounded out to third. M Cabrera tripled to deep
center. J Damon hit sacrifice fly to center, M Cabrera scored. D Jeter
singled to right. B Abreu grounded out to pitcher. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY YANKEES 4, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 6TH: S Duncan singled to left. B Tallet relieved J Towers.
M Cabrera sacrificed into fielder's choice to catcher, S Duncan to second.
J Damon walked, S Duncan to third, M Cabrera to second. D Jeter singled to
center, S Duncan and M Cabrera scored, J Damon to third. B Abreu grounded into
fielder's choice to shortstop, J Damon scored, D Jeter out at second.
A Rodriguez grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, B Abreu out
at second.(3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 7TH: A Rios hit by pitch. NY Yankees's R Clemens ejected by
A Hernandez in the 7th. NY Yankees's Manager J Torre ejected by A Hernandez in
the 7th. J Brower relieved R Clemens. V Wells walked, A Rios to second.
F Thomas doubled to deep left, A Rios and V Wells scored. T Glaus struck out
swinging. A Hill singled to center, F Thomas to third. G Zaun grounded into
double play, second to shortstop to first, A Hill out at second.(2 Runs,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 2.

NY YANKEES 8TH: J Frasor relieved B Tallet. M Cabrera doubled to deep
center. J Damon reached on infield single to second, M Cabrera to third.
J Damon stole second. D Jeter grounded out to second. B Abreu singled to center,
M Cabrera and J Damon scored. A Rodriguez fouled out to catcher. J Posada
struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2.</div>

 

AL: NY YANKEES at TORONTO

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY YANKEES (9) AT TORONTO (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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

Toronto Starting Lineups -- R Johnson LF, L Overbay 1B, A Rios RF, V Wells CF,
F Thomas DH, T Glaus 3B, A Hill 2B, G Zaun C, J McDonald SS, J Towers RHP.

Umpires -- Angel Hernandez (HP), Derryl Cousins (1B), Chad Fairchild (2B),
Mark Carlson (3B).

Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


NY YANKEES 1ST: J Damon reached on infield single to shortstop. D Jeter
grounded out to third, J Damon to second. B Abreu grounded out to first, J
Damon to third. A Rodriguez flied out to right. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
NY YANKEES 0, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 1ST: R Johnson bunt grounded out to pitcher. L Overbay walked.
A Rios flied out to right. V Wells flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY YANKEES 0, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 2ND: J Posada singled to left, J Posada out stretching at
second. R Cano walked. R Cano stole second. A Phillips grounded out to
shortstop. S Duncan struck out looking. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 0,
TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 2ND: F Thomas singled to left center. T Glaus grounded into double
play, shortstop to second to first, F Thomas out at second. A Hill flied out to
center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 0, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 3RD: M Cabrera doubled to deep center. J Damon walked. D Jeter
grounded into double play, pitcher to third to first, M Cabrera out at third,
J Damon to second. B Abreu tripled to deep center, J Damon scored. A Rodriguez
hit by pitch. J Posada doubled to left, B Abreu and A Rodriguez scored.
R Cano intentionally walked. A Phillips flied out to right. (3 Runs, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 3RD: G Zaun grounded out to second. J McDonald flied out to right.
R Johnson struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 3,
TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 4TH: S Duncan grounded out to third. M Cabrera tripled to deep
center. J Damon hit sacrifice fly to center, M Cabrera scored. D Jeter
singled to right. B Abreu grounded out to pitcher. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY YANKEES 4, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 4TH: L Overbay struck out swinging. A Rios grounded out to second.
V Wells struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 4, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 5TH: A Rodriguez grounded out to shortstop. J Posada singled to
right, J Posada out stretching at second. R Cano walked. A Phillips grounded
into fielder's choice to shortstop, R Cano out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) NY YANKEES 4, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 5TH: F Thomas struck out swinging. T Glaus lined out to shortstop.
A Hill grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 4,
TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 6TH: S Duncan singled to left. B Tallet relieved J Towers.
M Cabrera sacrificed into fielder's choice to catcher, S Duncan to second.
J Damon walked, S Duncan to third, M Cabrera to second. D Jeter singled to
center, S Duncan and M Cabrera scored, J Damon to third. B Abreu grounded into
fielder's choice to shortstop, J Damon scored, D Jeter out at second.
A Rodriguez grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, B Abreu out
at second.(3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 6TH: G Zaun flied out to left. J McDonald struck out swinging.
R Johnson singled to center. L Overbay struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 0.

NY YANKEES 7TH: J Posada grounded out to pitcher. R Cano hit by pitch.
A Phillips grounded out to third, R Cano to second. S Duncan grounded out to
third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 7TH: A Rios hit by pitch. NY Yankees's R Clemens ejected by
A Hernandez in the 7th. NY Yankees's Manager J Torre ejected by A Hernandez in
the 7th. J Brower relieved R Clemens. V Wells walked, A Rios to second.
F Thomas doubled to deep left, A Rios and V Wells scored. T Glaus struck out
swinging. A Hill singled to center, F Thomas to third. G Zaun grounded into
double play, second to shortstop to first, A Hill out at second.(2 Runs,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 7, TORONTO 2.

NY YANKEES 8TH: J Frasor relieved B Tallet. M Cabrera doubled to deep
center. J Damon reached on infield single to second, M Cabrera to third.
J Damon stole second. D Jeter grounded out to second. B Abreu singled to center,
M Cabrera and J Damon scored. A Rodriguez fouled out to catcher. J Posada
struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2.

TORONTO 8TH: W Betemit at third base. J Chamberlain relieved J Brower.
R Olmedo hit for J McDonald. R Olmedo struck out swinging. R Johnson grounded
out to second. L Overbay walked. A Rios singled to center, L Overbay to
second. V Wells flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 9,
TORONTO 2.

NY YANKEES 9TH: H Luna at third base. R Olmedo at shortstop. R Cano flied
out to left. A Phillips singled to right center. J Giambi hit for S Duncan.
J Giambi grounded into fielder's choice to third, A Phillips out at second.
M Cabrera grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, J Giambi out at second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2.

TORONTO 9TH: C Thigpen hit for F Thomas. C Thigpen struck out swinging.
H Luna walked. A Hill grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first,
H Luna out at second.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2.</div>

 

Clemens, Yankees crush Blue Jays

<h3>NY YANKEES 9, TORONTO 2</h3>TORONTO (Ticker) -- Roger Clemens helped keep the NewYork Yankees rolling.


Clemens pitched six stellar innings before getting ejected andBobby Abreu had four RBI to lift the Yankees to their fifthconsecutive win, a 9-2 triumph over the Toronto Blue Jays onTuesday.


Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter each drove in two runs for NewYork, which remained one-half game behind the Detroit Tigers inthe American League wild card.


The 45-year-old Clemens (4-5) yielded just two hits and a walkwith five strikeouts before being ejected after hitting AlexRios with a pitch to lead off the seventh frame.


Clemens, who surrendered 12 runs - seven earned - and 17 hitsover eight innings in his previous two starts, retired 13straight Blue Jay hitters after Frank Thomas led off the secondinning with a single.


"I'm working on my mechanics after watching a little video,"Clemens said. "There's things in my delivery I can clean up."

Abreu put the Yankees on the scoreboard in the third inning withan RBI triple off Blue Jays starter Josh Towers (5-9) and laterscored on Posada's two-run double, which opened a 3-0 lead.

"He (Clemens) had a little bit more today," Posada said. "Youcould see it in the bullpen, he was going to have a good gametoday."


Abreu, who now has driven in 15 runs over his last eight games,added an RBI groundout in the fifth and a two-run single in theeighth. The 12-year veteran is batting .286 with 11 home runsand 74 RBI this season.


New York took a 4-0 lead in the fourth when Johnny Damon'ssacrifice fly plated Melky Cabrera, who had two doubles, atriple and scored three times.


The Yankees broke open the game in the fifth frame after Jeterdrove in two runs with a base hit to right field and Abreu's RBIgroundout scored Damon to take a 7-0 advantage.


Both benches were cleared after Towers beaned Alex Rodriguez inthe third inning. Nobody was removed from the game but warningswere issued, which led to Clemens' ejection four innings later.

"We have to protect Alex he's the best player in the game, wedefinitely need Alex down the stretch," Damon said.

"We'll see how I wake up in the morning, I'm a little sore todayit just hit me in the calf," Rodriguez said.


Yankees manager Joe Torre also expressed frustration regardinghis star third baseman getting hit in the leg with a fastball.

"He got thrown behind yesterday and then he got hit and that sethim off," Torre said.


After Clemens was thrown out of the contest, Rios came around toscore on Thomas' two-run double, which cut the deficit to 7-2.

The 30-year-old Towers, who claimed he did not hit Rodriguez onpurpose, lasted just five innings, allowing five runs and ninehits with four walks to register his third consecutive loss.

"Of course I was trying to pitch inside, he's a power hitter, itwas a key situation it just got away a little bit," Towerssaid.