Yankees wrap up East with sweep of Red Sox, 100th win of season
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| Regular Season Series |
| Series tied 9-9 (as of Sun 9/27) |
| Fri 4/24 |
@BOS 5, NYY 4 |
Recap |
| Sat 4/25 |
@BOS 16, NYY 11 |
Recap |
| Sun 4/26 |
@BOS 4, NYY 1 |
Recap |
| Mon 5/4 |
BOS 6, @NYY 4 |
Recap |
| Tue 5/5 |
BOS 7, @NYY 3 |
Recap |
| Tue 6/9 |
@BOS 7, NYY 0 |
Recap |
| Wed 6/10 |
@BOS 6, NYY 5 |
Recap |
| Thu 6/11 |
@BOS 4, NYY 3 |
Recap |
| Thu 8/6 |
@NYY 13, BOS 6 |
Recap |
| Fri 8/7 |
@NYY 2, BOS 0 |
Recap |
| Sat 8/8 |
@NYY 5, BOS 0 |
Recap |
| Sun 8/9 |
@NYY 5, BOS 2 |
Recap |
| Fri 8/21 |
NYY 20, @BOS 11 |
Recap |
| Sat 8/22 |
@BOS 14, NYY 1 |
Recap |
| Sun 8/23 |
NYY 8, @BOS 4 |
Recap |
| Fri 9/25 |
@NYY 9, BOS 5 |
Recap |
| Sat 9/26 |
@NYY 3, BOS 0 |
Recap |
| >Sun 9/27 |
@NYY 4, BOS 2 |
Box Score |
| · Complete Schedule: Yankees | Red Sox |
| Scoring Summary |
| BOS | NYY |
 | 1st | M Lowell reached on infield single to third, J Bay scored, K Youkilis to third, D Ortiz to second. | 1 | 0 |
 | 3rd | M Lowell grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, J Bay scored, D Ortiz out at second, K Youkilis to third. | 2 | 0 |
 | 3rd | M Cabrera homered to right. | 2 | 1 |
 | 6th | H Matsui singled to right, M Teixeira and A Rodriguez scored. | 2 | 3 |
 | 8th | M Teixeira homered to right. | 2 | 4 |
| · View complete Play-By-Play |
| Game Information |
| Stadium | Yankee Stadium, New York, NY |
| Attendance | 47,576 (91.1% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 2:56 |
| Weather | 66 degrees, drizzle |
| Wind | 6 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Chad Fairchild, First Base - Bill Welke, Second Base - Tim Welke, Third Base - Jeff Kellogg |
| Notes, Stats, and Trends |
Over the last 30 years, the Yankees have recorded six 100-win seasons (including this year). Of the previous five occurances, only once (1998) have the Yankees gone on to win the World Series (lost in the World Series in 2003; the ALCS in 1980 and 2004; and in the Division Series in 2002). ESPN Stats and Information |
Associated Press
NEW YORK -- Soaked to the skin with champagne, Mark Teixeira stood on the giant "NY" logo in the Yankees clubhouse and shouted like crazy.
East Beasts
The Yankees continued their dominance of the American League East on Sunday, clinching their 16th division crown since 1969.
Most AL East Titles
Divisional Era
|
Titles |
| Yankees |
16 |
| Orioles |
8 |
| Red Sox |
6 |
| Blue Jays |
5 |
*Excludes 1981, 1994 strike season
|
"Tastes good!" he hollered.
Favored to win the World Series since Opening Day, the
New York Yankees celebrated like playoff newcomers after beating Boston 4-2 Sunday to clinch the AL East title and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
Absent from the playoffs last season, the Yankees put a bow on this title with their major league-leading 100th win.
Fast Facts
• The Yankees clinched their 11th AL East crown since 1995, tying for the the most division titles in the wild card era along the way.
• New York has now won nine of its last 10 games vs. Boston after losing the first eight games in the season series.
• This was the Yankees' 49th comeback win, which is the most in MLB. This was also their 35th come-from-behind victory at home, which is the most in team history.
• The Red Sox have now lost three straight and five of their last seven games.
-- ESPN Stats & Information
"Everything is clicking right now," winning pitcher
Andy Pettitte said. "When you miss out, it makes you a little more hungry to get back there."
Maybe that's why
Derek Jeter,
Mariano Rivera and a roomful of All-Star multimillionaires went wild, chanting and jumping and spraying each other with bubbly. Teixeira and many others wore goggles to stave off the sting -- of victory, that is.
Hunt For October
Want an in-depth look at the MLB playoff picture? Find out where your team stands here:
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MLB playoff race
"I think the way last year ended left a bad taste in all our mouths," manager
Joe Girardi said. "There's a lot of excitement. This has been a fun group, and they enjoy it."
Hideki Matsui's go-ahead single in the sixth inning energized the damp fans and put them on notice that a party was coming. The first real bash at the new Yankee Stadium began with a most familiar scene -- Rivera on the mound, closing out another clincher.
Catcher
Jose Molina leaped up from behind the plate even before Rivera had fielded
Jacoby Ellsbury's soft comebacker for the final out. The Yankees swarmed Rivera on the first-base side of the mound while players in the bullpen streamed in.
Nick Swisher wasted no time putting on an AL East Champions hat. The crowd responded with a standing ovation as the Yankees began walking off the field, with Jeter at the front and several teammates pulling on gray championship T-shirts.
"Winning a championship is what I came here for," pitcher
CC Sabathia said. "It definitely feels good -- first one in pinstripes, first one in the new stadium, first celebration."
The three-game sweep extended the Yankees' winning streak to five. They finished 9-9 against Boston this year, surprising since New York lost the first eight matchups.
"We're going to see them again down the road, we have a feeling," slugger
Alex Rodriguez said.
Despite the defeat, the Red Sox remain in firm control of the wild-card race. Their magic number is two to beat out Texas for the final playoff spot.
"Hope we win tomorrow," Boston manager Terry Francona said. "That's normally what we do. Play. If you win, move on. If you lose, learn and move on. That's what our next chore will be."
Still to be determined is who New York will meet in the best-of-five opening round, and when. The Yankees will most likely face the AL Central winner, either Detroit or Minnesota.
Once all the playoff teams are determined, the Yankees will get 1 hour to decide which playoff schedule they prefer. They can choose to start on either Oct. 7 or Oct. 8; the earlier start date includes a day off between the first two games.
Boosted by newcomers such as Teixeira, Sabathia and Swisher, the Yankees won their first division title since 2006. They drenched the high-tech clubhouse, with plastic sheets preventing the computer screens at every stall from getting doused.
All alone in first place since July 21, the Yankees can now spend the final week resting players and setting up the playoff rotation.
"I like this team here," Jeter said.
Pettitte (14-7) outpitched
Paul Byrd (1-3), and Rivera finished for his 44th save in 46 chances.
Boston put two runners on base in the ninth. Pinch-hitter
Victor Martinez's 25-game hitting streak ended when his grounder was ruled an error on second baseman
Robinson Cano.
"Hard work, determination and a bunch of great attitudes, when you put that all together you accomplish a lot of things," Rivera said.
After a 63-minute rain delay at the outset, the Yankees beat Boston for the seventh straight time at home.
Matsui met Red Sox reliever
Takashi Saito with a two-out, two-run single in the sixth barely in front of right fielder
J.D. Drew's dive. Teixeira's solo homer in the eighth provided insurance.
"This team is so talented, this team has so many weapons," Teixeira said. "Hopefully, there are a few more celebrations."
Cautioned catcher
Jorge Posada: "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Right now we're very happy with what we've done. Maybe we can do a little more later."
Game notes Cano singled for his 200th hit this year. He joined Jeter as the only second base-shortstop teammate tandem to reach the mark in the same season, the Elias Sports Bureau said. ... The Yankees won their 16th division title since 1969, matching Atlanta's mark. ... Posada sat out again because of muscle spasms near his neck. He's feeling better. ... Boston LHP
Jon Lester, hit near the right knee by a line drive Friday night, continued to improve. He might skip a throwing session this week, but remains on schedule for his next start.