Oakland @ New York preview
Yankee Stadium
Last Meeting ( Aug 30, 2010 ) Oakland 5, NY Yankees 11
Trevor Cahill and the Oakland Athletics were no match for the New York Yankees on Monday night.
One can only wonder how Vin Mazzaro will fare as the two teams meet again in the second contest of a four-game set at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night. Mazzaro hasn't won a game in over a month.
Cahill was perhaps the hottest hurler in the American League and brought a slim 0.92 ERA for the month of August into Monday night's start. The Oakland right-hander with a dynamite sinker, Cahill fell behind New York hitters from the onset and the Bombers made him pay for it on the way to an 11-5 win.
New York scored eight runs off Cahill on nine hits and two walks in just four-plus innings to raise his season's ERA to 2.85. Cahill entered Monday's game second in the American League to Boston Red Sox hurler Clay Buchholz in ERA with a 2.43 mark.
The Yankees spotted Cahill and the A's a 3-0 lead in the top of the first but tied the score in the bottom of the first.
New York then launched back-to-back homers off Cahill in the third inning. Mark Teixeira, who missed Sunday's game with a bruised thumb, hit his 29th home run of the season. Robinson Cano followed with his 26th.
While the Bombers' bat were sizzling, New York starter Dustin Moseley struggled. Moseley, who has taken Andy Pettitte's slot in the rotation, didn't make it out of the fifth inning. He allowed four runs and five hits in this one.
Javier Vazquez, who was dropped from the rotation because of his recent struggles took over for Moseley in the fifth and got the win to improve to 10-9 on the season. Vazquez got out of a jam in the fifth and cruised the rest of the way.
New York remained tied with the Tampa Bay Rays for both first place in the AL East and the best record in baseball. The win also moves the pair seven games ahead of Boston in the standings and it is becoming apparent that the team that doesn't win the division title will secure the wild card.
New York finished with three homers in the game - including another by Marcus Thames, who has six blasts in as many games. Thames is becoming a hard man to keep out of the Yankees' lineup after starting just one game in July.
Mazzaro (6-6) is one of the few A's hurlers who has had little success recently, but much of it is due to lack of run support. Mazzaro actually lowered his ERA over his last five starts, but he is 0-3 during the span.
Mazzaro is 0-1 lifetime in two appearances against the Yankees with a 6.75 ERA.
Phil Hughes (15-6) is coming off a rough outing against the Toronto Blue Jays. He lasted just 3 2/3 innings in that contest, allowing five runs in a 6-3 loss to Toronto.
Hughes is 4-4 in his last nine starts.