Matsui Hits Homer No. 26 in Romp Over Mariners
Hideki Matsui hit his 26th home run in the fourth, a towering drive off rookie starter Doug Fister that had the large crowd gasping. It was his 86th RBI, and contributed to the 10-1 win over the Seattle Mariners Saturday night.
Matsui had arthroscopic surgery on his knee last Sept. 22 and has had his knee drained multiple times this season, and Girardi said before the game he may not have been able to predict such production this season for the 35-year-old.
CC Sabathia ignored a scary comebacker off his chest for his 18th victory, Mark Teixeira homered twice and drove in a season-high five runs and the New York Yankees resumed their cruise to the AL East title.
Sabathia (18-7), who was 1-3 in early May, allowed four hits and one run in seven innings to bolster his candidacy for the AL’s Cy Young Award. He walked two, struck out eight and tied Adam Wainwright of St. Louis for the major league lead in wins.
He also kept New York six games ahead of second-place Boston for the division lead, with 13 games left in the regular season.
One night after closer Mariano Rivera was stunned by a game-winning, two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth by Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki, the Yankees reduced their magic number for clinching a 14th postseason appearance in 15 seasons to two games. Their magic number to clinch the division is nine.
Teixeira’s five RBIs leaves the MVP candidate with 118, most in the AL. He is second in the AL with 37 home runs, two behind injured Carlos Pena.
Sabathia was coasting while up 6-0 in the bottom of the fifth, thanks to Teixeira’s three-run homer in New York’s four-run fifth. Then Franklin Gutierrez hit a liner high off Sabathia’s chest near the collarbone. Manager Joe Girardi and a trainer rushed to Sabathia from the dugout, and captain Derek Jeter ran in from his shortstop position. For a moment, the key to New York’s postseason rotation seemed to be in jeopardy.
Nah. The burly left-hander simply winced, rubbed where the ball hit, talked for a minute and then shooed everyone away.
Sabathia finished the inning but lost the shutout when third baseman Alex Rodriguez skipped a rushed, one-hop throw way past Teixeira at first base on a ball hit by Jose Lopez. Gutierrez scored from first on the error.
Robinson Cano had four of New York’s 18 hits, three of them doubles.
Fister (2-3) allowed nine hits and six runs in four-plus innings. The 25-year-old allowed half that many runs when he beat New York on Aug. 16.
9/20/2009 1:23 AM GREGG BELL, AP Sports Writer SEATTLE