Mussina, Yanks Top Tribe To Split Series

Baseball

By Associated Press
April 29, 2008

CLEVELAND — Mike Mussina earned his 253rd win, tying Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell on the career list, and the New York Yankees made the most of their five hits in a 5–2 victory over the Cleveland Indians last night.

Mussina (3–3) allowed two runs and seven hits in five innings, just long enough to catch Hubbell for 41st place. The 39-year-old had his second consecutive solid outing after there was speculation he might lose his spot in the starting rotation.

Mussina was followed by Jonathan Albaladejo, Kyle Farnsworth, Joba Chamberlain and Mariano Rivera, who worked the ninth for his eighth save in eight tries.

Hideki Matsui had two RBIs as New York earned a split of the four-game series after losing the first two. The club will now head back to the comforts of Yankee Stadium after playing 18 games on the road in April — the most by any team in the month.

Held without a hit for five innings by Aaron Laffey (0–1), who was called up to make his season debut for Cleveland, the Yankees strung together four hits — three of them didn't leave the infield — two groundouts and a hit batter to score four times in the sixth and take a 4-2 lead. Matsui's RBI double in the eighth made it 5–2.

It wasn't pretty, but the Yankees will take it on a day when they had to place durable catcher Jorge Posada on the disabled list for the first time in his career. The 36-year-old has been bothered by a shoulder problem for weeks. He left the team to have his shoulder examined by famed orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala.

The Yankees didn't have an update on Posada, who played in at least 137 games in each of the past eight seasons, but manager Joe Girardi tried to stay optimistic he'll get his catcher back. Posada signed a four-year, $52.4 million contract before the season.

Laffey had never faced the Yankees, but he didn't look scared of their big names or big salaries.

He gave up a leadoff walk in the first and was in immediate trouble when Derek Jeter reached on second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera's error. Laffey, though, settled down and retired Bobby Abreu, Alex Rodriguez, and Jason Giambi.

With Hall of Famer Bob Feller, who no-hit the Yankees 62 years ago this week, watching from the press box, Laffey took a no-hitter into the sixth before New York manufactured a scoring rally that hardly befit their Bronx Bombing image.

Melky Cabrera hit an infield single and Jeter was safe on a bad-hop roller to third. Abreu's single loaded the bases and Laffey got ahead of Rodriguez 1-2 before hitting him on the left leg to force in New York's first run. Giambi and Matsui followed with RBI groundouts, putting the Yankees up 3-0 and chasing Laffey.

***

The Pittsburgh Pirates and Mets were rained out last night. The game was rescheduled for Monday, August 11, at 1:10 p.m.