New York @ Boston preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 2, 2010 ) NY Yankees 6, Boston 7

After a marathon of baseball at Fenway Park on Saturday, the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees wrap up the regular season Sunday.

After splitting a doubleheader on Saturday, the Yankees need to win today's game and also need a loss by the Tampa Bay Rays to clinch the American East division title and wrap up home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs.

John Lackey (13-11) will start the season finale for the Red Sox.

The Yankees will counter with Dustin Moseley. New York seemed to have several options but ended up using Phil Hughes in the first game Saturday and Ivan Nova in the second game in relief.

New York will not start ace CC Sabathia, who is scheduled to pitch their playoff opener.

Moseley (4-3) beat the Red Sox on Aug. 8, allowing two runs on six hits in 6 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old right-hander made his last start on Sept. 12, coming out of the bullpen in his last two appearances.

Lackey has had a mediocre first season with Boston. He had lost four straight starts prior to beating Baltimore on Sept. 22, allowing one run in seven innings. Lackey got a no-decision last time out, yielding two runs on three hits in six innings against the Chicago White Sox.

In 18 career starts against the Yankees, Lackey is 5-8 with a 4.47 ERA. He blanked New York on three hits over six innings in his first start of the season, and allowed five runs on eight hits in six innings of a 5-2 loss at New York on Aug. 7.

Both of Saturday’s games went extra innings, featuring an incredible 765 pitches thrown on the day. New York won the opener 6-5 in 10 innings while the Red Sox rallied for a 7-6 win in the nightcap, which also went 10 innings and ended well after 1 a.m. Sunday morning.

Boston snapped a four-game losing streak with its victory. Eric Patterson singled home Bill Hall with the game-winning run off Nova.

New York won the opener in odd fashion as Derek Jeter’s check-swing roller eluded both Jonathan Papelbon and second baseman Hall, allowing Brett Gardner to score all the way from second base with what proved to be the game-winning run in the 10th inning.

But things went far from smoothly for the Yankees.

Andy Pettitte started the first game and was shaky again. He lasted just four-plus innings, allowing nine hits and two walks. He struck out eight and surrendered three runs. And A.J. Burnett was not sharp in the second game.

New York also played sloppy ball for much of the day against Boston’s makeshift lineups. New York made four errors in the second game and Boston scored two runs on wild pitches in the opener.

The Red Sox seemed ripe for the picking in the second game as they had just one regular in Saturday night’s lineup, that being right fielder J.D. Drew. The rest of the lineup was comprised of minor league call-ups and late-season acquisitions.

Robinson Cano was a bright spot for New York. The second baseman and ALMVP candidate had six hits on the day and was on base nine times.

The Red Sox honored Mike Lowell before Saturday’s first game. Lowell, who will be retiring at the end of the season, had two hits, including a two-run double in the first inning.

He was removed after a wall-ball single in the fifth and talked to the media at length after the first game. Lowell indicated that he wanted to end his career on a high note. He did not play in the second game and is not expected to play today.

Boston will also be without third baseman Adrian Beltre who left the team to be with his expectant wife.