New York @ Los Angeles preview
Angel Stadium
Last Meeting ( Apr 24, 2010 ) NY Yankees 7, LA Angels 1
When the New York Yankees re-acquired Javier Vazquez during the offseason from the Atlanta Braves, it was anyone’s guess how things would turn out.
Vazquez was brilliant with the Braves last season, going 15-10 with a 2.87 ERA and 238 strikeouts in 219 innings. However, he was pretty much a disaster in his prior stint with the Yankees in 2004, winning 15 games despite posting an ERA of 4.91 and 150 strikeouts -- the lowest total of his past 10 seasons.
So far in 2010, Vazquez is still looking capture his ace form of last season. He is currently 1-2 with an 8.27 ERA and 15 strikeouts through three starts. On a positive note, he is fresh off his first victory after consecutive losses to open the campaign.
Even in earning the win over the Oakland Athletics, Vazquez was far from impressive, allowing three runs on a pair of homers and six hits over 5 1/3 innings. He has not made it out of the sixth inning in any of the three starts so far.
Vazquez and the Yankees will try to take the three-game series from the Los Angeles Angels as the teams meet in Sunday’s rubber match.
The Yankees captured Saturday afternoon’s second game with an impressive outing from veteran Andy Pettitte, who struck out seven in seven innings of one-run ball, and received some solid run production in a 7-1 win. Nick Swisher and Francisco Cervelli each drove in a pair of runs as the Yankees beat up Los Angeles starter Joel Pineiro for six runs on 11 hits.
Vazquez, who is 0-2 with a 3.51 ERA in five career starts against the Angels, is slated to go against left-hander Scott Kazmir, a man who is familiar with the Yankees from his years pitching with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Kazmir is eyeing a second straight positive start after opening the season the 15-day disabled list because of tightness in his throwing shoulder. He went 5 2/3 innings on Tuesday against the Detroit Tigers, allowing a pair of runs and striking out seven batters while featuring a slightly altered delivery that provided extra deception.
The 26-year-old Kazmir is 6-6 with a 3.14 ERA in 16 appearances against New York.
The Yankees, who defeated the Angeles in last year’s American League Championship Series, have won seven of their last nine. The Angels have dropped three of four following a five-game win streak.