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NEW YORK(AP)
Derek Jeter
got a standing ovation - when he came on the field for his pregame wind sprints. He didn't give fans more to cheer about,
failing to gain ground on
Lou Gehrig
.
Jeter went 0 for 4 and remained three hits behind the Iron Horse as the
New York Yankees
beat the
Tampa Bay Rays
4-1 in the opener of Monday's day-night doubleheader. After a sparkling pitcher's duel between CC Sabathia and
Matt Garza
,
Robinson Cano
hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in a three-run eighth inning.
''I think everybody's excited,'' Sabathia said, ''and wants to see him get that record.''
Applauded ahead of every at-bat, Jeter stayed stuck at 2,718 hits. He did match another Yankees great - the first game was
his 2,116st, tying
Yogi Berra
for third on the Yankees list behind only
Mickey Mantle
(2,401) and
Lou Gehrig
(2,164).
''I'm sure he wants to get this behind him so he doesn't have to talk about it,'' Yankees manager
Joe Girardi
said.
Fading Tampa Bay lost its fifth straight, equaling its season high. Making matters worse, slugger
Carlos Pena
broke two fingers on his left hand when he was hit by a pitch in the first. Because he swung, he didn't even get to take first
base.
''I knew when the ball hit me it was going to be bad,'' he said. ''You don't take a 95 mph fastball on the finger and live
to tell about it - or the finger live to tell about it.''
Pena was to return to Florida and meet with the Rays medical staff before a determination was made whether he needs surgery.
He leads the AL with 39 homers and finished with 100 RBIs.
''It's very discouraging,'' manager Joe Maddon said. ''He was swinging the bat about as well as anyone I've seen this season.''
New York went ahead off
Lance Cormier
(2-2), dropping Tampa Bay's bullpen to 2-9 since Aug. 6.
Nick Swisher
walked leading off the eighth and took third when
Mark Teixeira
singled and
Gabe Kapler
bobbled the ball. Kapler then hit Swisher with the throw for an error that allowed Teixeira to advance. After an intentional
walk to
Alex Rodriguez
, Cano hit a flyout to center that scored pinch-runner Jerry Hairston Jr.
Chad Bradford
allowed
Jorge Posada
's RBI single off the right-field wall and
Eric Hinske
's sacrifice fly.
''I didn't catch the ball cleanly. Then it came up and bounced away,'' Kapler said. ''My responsibility. I should have handled
it.''
Sabathia matched his season high with 10 strikeouts and allowed one run, three hits and four walks in seven innings. He is
6-0 with 2.31 ERA in eight starts since 6-2 loss at Tampa Bay on July 28.
Garza gave up only an unearned run, five hits and a walk in seven innings, striking out seven. Even though his opponents'
batting average of .233 coming in was the best in the AL, he is 0-2 in eight starts since July 24.
''All I can do is go out there and pitch as well as I can,'' he said.
Phil Hughes
(6-3) pitched the eighth and
Mariano Rivera
, out since Sept. 1 with a sore left groin, struck out two in finishing the three-hitter for his 39th save in 40 chances.
''It responded real well,'' Rivera said. ''I'm not worried about it.''
Rodriguez lined a two-out double past left fielder
Fernando Perez
in the first that scored Teixeira, who reached when second baseman
Ben Zobrist
misplayed his grounder for an error.
Evan Longoria
tied the score in the second with his career-best 29th homer, a drive into the first row of the right-field seats.
Brett Gardner
, activated before the opener, made a sliding, backhand catch on Perez in right-center field in the fifth with a runner on
first, saving a run. The speedy center fielder had been on the disabled list since breaking his left thumb on July 25
''It's a different game if that ball falls,'' Girardi said.
NOTES: A.J. Burnett, 0-4 in seven starts since winning at Tampa Bay on July 27, was to pitch the second game for the Yankees
against
Andy Sonnanstine
. ... The doubleheader was caused by a June 5 rainout. ... Posada caught Sabathia for the first time since Aug. 18. ...
Carl Crawford
was thrown out by Posada trying to steal second on a pitchout in the eighth. Maddon argued - replays weren't clear cut. ...
New York is 15-0 when tied after seven innings - the longest such streak at the start of a season in major league history,
according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
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