New York @ Baltimore preview
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Last Meeting ( Apr 27, 2010 ) NY Yankees 4, Baltimore 5
Don’t look now, but the Baltimore Orioles have themselves a winning streak.
In beating the New York Yankees, 5-4, on Tuesday, the Orioles secured consecutive wins for the first time this season. The victory at Camden Yards was also a first in 2010. They were 0-6 at home entering the contest.
Baltimore currently sits in the cellar of the American League East with the majors’ worst record at 4-16. That didn’t matter when they met the suddenly struggling Yankees for the first of a three-game tilt.
Caesar Izturis drove in three runs and Alfredo Simon worked out of a jam in the ninth inning for his first career save. The Yankees, meanwhile, have dropped four of their last five after blitzing out to an 11-3 start.
The Orioles will attempt to make it three straight when the squads meet again on Wednesday, but it won’t be easy as the Yankees are sending ace C.C. Sabathia to the mound.
Sabathia is coming off a tough-luck loss in his last outing against the Oakland A’s. He surrendered three runs on four hits with five strikeouts in eight innings in last week’s 4-2 defeat.
Through four starts, Sabathia is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA and 23 strikeouts. He has been even more dominant against the Orioles during his career.
The burly left-hander went 4-1 with a 2.88 ERA in five starts last year against Baltimore and is 9-1 with a 2.55 in 14 career starts.
Baltimore will send Jeremy Guthrie to the hill, who appears to have put the troubles that plagued him last year behind him after he went 10-17 with a 5.05 ERA.
Guthrie is winless on the season, but has made four quality starts in going 0-2 with a 3.46 ERA. The right-hander took a no-decision in his last outing against the Boston Red Sox, surrendering three runs in six innings.
Guthrie has made 12 appearances against New York, 11 of which were starts, compiling of record of 3-6 with a 4.78 ERA.
The Yankees attempted to climb back into Tuesday’s affair, getting within two runs on an error and a Mark Teixeira single in the ninth.
New York’s bullpen allowed four runs in relief of starter Phil Hughes, who worked 5 2/3 solid frames.
Ty Wiggington continued his hot start for the Orioles with a hit and a run scored. He is batting .327 with six homers and 12 RBIs on the year.