Derek Jeter thinks the Yankees are going to learn a lot about themselves now. There hasn’t been much to like lately.
Daisuke Matsuzaka overcame control problems to defeat New York for the second time in six days, and Kevin Youkilis and Julio Lugo homered to lead the Boston Red Sox to an 11-4 win over the Yankees on Friday night.
Boston improved to 4-0 against its longtime rival this season and handed New York its seventh straight loss.
“This is when you find out how good a team is,” said Jeter, who had three of the Yankees’ seven hits. “Things are going your way, it’s easy to say: ‘Oh, this team is good. They just won 10 in a row.’ This is when you find out about teams. We’ll see how good we are.”
In other AL games, it was: Minnesota 5, Detroit 3; Cleveland 5, Baltimore 4; Chicago White Sox 7, Los Angeles Angels 3; Texas 5, Toronto 3; Seattle 7, Kansas City 4; and Tampa Bay 4, Oakland 1.
New York (8-13), whose April began to unravel with three straight losses at Fenway Park last weekend, has lost seven straight for the first time since the last week of the 2000 season. The Yankees are a $195 million last-place team, 6 1/2 games back of the division-leading Red Sox.
“Things can turn around at a moment’s notice,” said Youkilis, whose two-run homer started Boston’s outburst. “We can’t really worry about what they’re doing. We have to do what we do best and hope that we keep winning.”
Given a 4-2 lead after the Yankees scored four in the fourth, Andy Pettitte (1-1) immediately gave it back, forcing in the tying run with a bases-loaded walk and allowing the go-ahead run to score on a wild pitch.
Matsuzaka (3-2) beat New York 7-6 in Boston last Sunday to complete the sweep. Making his first appearance at Yankee Stadium, Dice-K wasn’t particularly sharp but he got the job done. He gave up four runs and five hits in six innings, striking out seven.
“After my teammates rallied back to score some runs, I just wanted to live up to my end,” he said through a translator.
Twins 5, Tigers 3
Pinch-hitter Joe Mauer hit a two-run single to cap a four-run eighth inning and help visiting Minnesota rally for the win.
With the bases loaded and two outs, Mauer lined a Joel Zumaya (0-1) pitch into shallow center to give the Twins their first lead of the game.
Jesse Crain (1-1) picked up the win after allowing one run in an inning of relief. Joe Nathan pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
The Tigers led 2-0 until Justin Morneau homered for the Twins on the first pitch of the seventh.
Indians 5, Orioles 4
Grady Sizemore hit an inside-the-park home run, Jake Westbrook got his first win in five starts and host Cleveland won its sixth straight game.
Westbrook (1-2) won for the first time since signing a three-year, $33 million contract extension April 13. He allowed three runs and six hits over 6 1-3 innings. Joe Borowski struck out the side in the ninth for his ninth save.
Steve Trachsel (1-2) allowed two runs and five hits in 5 2-3 innings for Baltimore, which lost its fifth straight.
Miguel Tejada, who hit a two-out RBI single in the first for the Orioles, has played in 1,103 consecutive game – tying Hall of Fame shortstop Joe Sewell for the sixth-longest streak in history.
White Sox 7, Angels 3
Jermaine Dye homered twice for host Chicago, and Darin Erstad hit a go-ahead double against his former team.
Jose Contreras (2-2) allowed three runs in 6 1-3 innings to pick up his 50th major league win. A.J. Pierzynski homered following Dye’s solo shot in the fourth. Chicago has won seven of nine.
Casey Kotchman hit a two-run homer for the Angels, who dropped to 1-8 on the road. Ervin Santana (2-3) allowed four runs in 5 2-3 innings.
Rangers 5, Blue Jays 3
Sammy Sosa hit his 595th career home run, and Mark Teixeira and Brad Wilkerson both had two-run shots for visiting Texas.
Sosa followed Teixeira’s two-run drive in the third with a shot to center against Blue Jays starter Josh Towers (1-3). It was the seventh home run of the season for Sosa and his first hit in 11 career at-bats against Towers.
Robinson Tejada (3-1) gave up three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings and Akinori Otsuka struck out the side in the ninth for his third save.
Mariners 7, Royals 4
Horacio Ramirez pitched into the seventh inning, Jose Lopez homered for the second straight day, and host Seattle picked up its season-high fourth straight victory.
Ramirez (2-1) allowed one run and seven hits in 6 1-3 innings.
Pinch-hitter Ross Gload hit a three-run homer off Seattle reliever Chris Reitsma in the eighth but Adrian Beltre and Lopez had two-out RBI singles in the bottom half to extend the Mariners’ lead to 7-4. J.J. Putz got five outs for the second straight day, picking up his third save.
Kansas City starter Jorge De La Rosa (2-2) gave up eight hits and a season-high five runs. Mark Grudzielanek’s run-scoring groundout in the seventh snapped the Royals’ scoreless innings streak at 21.
Devil Rays 4, Athletics 1
James Shields struck out nine in eight innings for visiting Tampa Bay.
Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton each hit an RBI double in the Devil Rays’ ninth win in 35 games at McAfee Coliseum – still the team’s worst record in any opposing stadium.
Shields (2-0) allowed four hits and one run, retiring 18 of the final 19 batters he faced, and Al Reyes finished for his eighth save.
Chad Gaudin (1-1) lasted only four innings in his shortest start of the year for Oakland.
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