New York @ Baltimore preview
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Last Meeting ( Apr 28, 2010 ) NY Yankees 8, Baltimore 3
The New York Yankees didn’t need to look any further than their ace to stop a mini slump.
CC Sabathia scattered 11 hits and three runs and struck out five during Wednesday’s 8-3 victory over the host Baltimore Orioles. New York had dropped two straight and four of the last five following an 11-3 start.
The loss snapped a brief two-game winning streak for the Orioles -- their first such streak of the season -- achieved during their first home win of the season on Tuesday.
Sabathia, who had two straight complete games entering the contest, fell four batters shy of matching Davis Wells’ team mark of three in a row set in 1998.
Things don’t figure to get any easier for the Orioles in the finale of the three-game set on Thursday when A.J. Burnett is slated to toe the rubber for the Yankees.
Burnett has been solid through four starts in 2010, going 2-0 with a 3.20 ERA, but is coming off a shaky outing against the Los Angeles Angels in which he allowed season-highs of nine hits and four runs over 6 1/3 innings in the no-decision.
Burnett has enjoyed mixed success during his career against Baltimore, posting a 9-2 record with a 5.23 ERA in 13 starts. He is 2-1 with a 5.84 ERA when facing them as a member of the Yankees.
New York will get its first crack this year at Brian Matusz, who has already earned a reputation as a strikeout machine and is a leading candidate for Rookie of the Year honors.
Matusz made eight starts in 2009, impressing as he went 5-2 with a 4.63 ERA and 38 strikeouts over 44 2/3 innings. The left-hander is off to a 2-0 start with a 4.38 ERA and 27 strikeouts.
The fourth-overall pick in the 2008 draft, Matusz is coming off a no-decision against the Boston Red Sox after giving up three runs on six hits in six innings.
He has faced the Yankees once in his career, securing a win by tossing four-hit ball over seven frames.
Derek Jeter had a pair of hits on Wednesday, moving him into a tie with Don Mattingly for third place on the Yankees’ career hit list with 442.
Slugging first baseman Mark Teixeira, meanwhile, continues to struggle. He went 1-for-5 to drop his batting average to .133.
Baltimore outfielder Nick Markakis enjoyed success against Sabathia Wednesday despite entering with two hits in 17 at-bats against him. Markakis recorded three hits, including a seventh-inning home run in the losing effort.