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Yankees thrash Twins, Dodgers grind past St Louis
2009-10-08
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Derek Jeter and Hideki Matsui supplied the punch that supported pitcher CC Sabathia in the New York Yankees' 7-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins in the opening game of their AL Division series on Wednesday. In the NL Division, the Los Angeles Dodgers triumphed 5-3 over the St Louis Cardinals, while World Series champions Philadelphia made a confident start to the postseason with a 5-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies in the other NLDS opener. The Twins, who arrived in New York at 3 a.m. (0700 GMT) after their thrilling Tuesday night win over Detroit for the AL Central title, struck first with two runs in the third inning. Yankees captain Jeter wiped out the deficit in the bottom of the third, however, smacking a hanging curve from Twins rookie Brian Duensing down the left-field line to score the first postseason homer in the new $1.5 billion Yankee Stadium. "That's Derek Jeter this time of the year," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of the shortstop, whose round-tripper brought home Melky Cabrera and was the 18th of his postseason career. Nick Swisher doubled in a run in the fourth, and Alex Rodriguez stroked an RBI single in the fifth just before Matsui's towering homer rattled around in Monument Park behind the wall in dead center to put the game out of reach. Sabathia yielded two runs, one unearned, in six and two-thirds innings, and gave up only eight hits while striking out eight with no walks. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said his team ran into double-trouble -- Sabathia's pitching and the Yankee lineup. "Everyone is a stinking All-Star," moaned Gardenhire of the Yankees' star-studded batting order. The best-of-five series resumes on Friday in the Bronx, where regular season leaders New York (103-59) will try to extend their record this year against Minnesota to 9-0. DODGERS LEAN ON BULLPEN The Los Angeles Dodgers faced stiffer resistance against St Louis in a laborious contest that left 30 players on base, an MLB playoff record for a nine-inning game. Matt Kemp belted a two-run homer in the first, but the Dodgers had to rely on their bullpen to close out the game. Jeff Weaver was credited with the win, one of five relief pitchers used, after relieving first-time playoff starter Randy Wolf in the fourth. "Our bullpen is great, they've been doing it all year," Kemp said. LEE OMINOUS Philadelphia used a mid-game one-two punch to knock out the Rockies, breaking a scoreless tie with two runs in the fifth and three in the sixth. The fifth-inning damage came on Raul Ibanez's RBI-double and a run-scoring single by Carlos Ruiz off starter Ubaldo Jimenez. In the next frame, Ryan Howard stroked a run-scoring double, Jayson Werth belted an RBI triple, and a single from Ibanez made it 5-0 -- a daunting lead with Cliff Lee in ominous form. Colorado finally scored in the ninth, but Lee bowed with a six-hit, complete game win in his first playoff start. "We hit the ball very good and Cliff pitched a hell of a game," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. (Additional Reporting by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by Ian Ransom)
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 Yankees, Angels tied at 2 through 6 in ALCS Game 2 (2009-10-17) |  Yankees thrash Twins, Dodgers grind past St Louis (2009-10-08) | | On the board: Yanks earn first win against Red Sox (2009-08-07) | | Yankees set errorless record in win over Indians (2009-06-01) | | A-Rod, Yankees rally for 3 in 9th to beat Lidge (2009-05-24) | | AP Sources: Teixeira agrees to $180M Yankees deal (2008-12-23) | | NY, NY: Yanks and Mets big winners at meetings (2008-12-11) | | Xavier Nady rallies Yankees past sloppy Angels (2008-08-03) | | A-Rod leads Yankees to 8th straight home victory (2008-07-21) | | Rivera escapes jam in 9th, Yanks hold off Red Sox (2008-07-06) | | Guillen homers off Rivera, Royals beat Yankees 3-2 (2008-06-09) | | Wang wins sixth in a row as Yankees top Mariners (2008-05-03) | | Tigers earn first 3-game sweep at Yankee Stadium since 1966 (2008-05-02) | | Wang's fifth consecutive win helps Yankees top Indians (2008-04-28) | | White Sox hand Yankees' Chamberlain first major-league loss (2008-04-25) | | Ramirez's 2 homers help Beckett, Red Sox beat Yankees 7-5 (2008-04-17) | | Wang's two-hitter leads Yankees to win over Red Sox (2008-04-12) | | Pettitte gets first win as Yankees end skid (2008-04-11) | | Yankees launch last season at stadium with win (2008-04-02) | | MLB suspends Cabrera, Duncan and Gomes (2008-03-15) | | New York Mets meet with Santana's agent (2008-01-31) | | Mets, Twins agree on Johan Santana trade (2008-01-30) | | Tigers work deal to land Cabrera, Willis (2007-12-04) | | Indians eliminate Yankees with 6-4 win (2007-10-09) | | Damon HR keeps Yankee season alive (2007-10-08) |
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