Yanks' Take Home Opener

The Yankees' won their home opener yesterday thanks to an absolute gem by Hiroki Kuroda and a bomb by Alex Rodriguez.

Hiroki Kuroda allowed 0 runs on 5 hits over 8.0 innings. He struck out 6 and walked 2. He evened his record at 1-1.

Nick Swisher provided some offense in the bottom half of the first with a bases clearing double to center field. This gave them a 3-0 lead early on.

"I thought that was real important; you start a rally there with two outs and are able to three runs off a really good pitcher," Joe Girardi said. "Our guys were patient, took their walks, i thought that was important."

Alex Rodriguez looked good after moving to the 3 hole. He hit a solo home run in the 3rd and he had 3 hits in 4 at bats.

Curtis Granderson also went deep in the 5th to give the Yankees' a 5-0 lead. That was his second bomb of the year. He hit 41 last year.

The Yankees' will face C.J. Wilson tomorrow afternoon for game 2 of 3 against the Angels.

The Associated Press Photo

A-Rod to Bat 3rd, Cano 4th

During a pre-game news conference with the media Friday morning, Joe Girardi had announced that he would flip Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez in the order against right handed pitchers. He said that it would help against the opponents lefties in the bullpen.

"We just feel with some of these clubs that have two left-handers, or even one left-hander, it makes it a little bit more difficult to navigate through," Girardi said. "We're going to go with this and just try to make it difficult when to bring the left-hander in. This is what we're gonna use."

Alex Rodriguez is off to a slow start here in 2012. He is batting .174 with 1 RBI and 0 HR's. Robinson Cano isn't doing much better than Alex. Cano is batting .250 with 0 RBI and 0 HR's. Hopefully this move will help them get their bats going.

Associated Press Photo

Game 7: Angels at Yankees | Home Opener

                                       April 13th, 2012, 1:05 ET, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York


The Yankees' are set to open their stadium today against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The Yankees' just came off a 6 game road trip against the Tampa Bay Rays and the Baltimore Orioles to start their season, where they went 3-3. 


Here are the lineups: 


Angels (2-4)
Erick Aybar, SS
Bobby Abreu, RF
Albert Pujols, 1B
Kendrys Morales, DH
Mark Trumbo, 3B
Vernon Wells, LF
Maicer Izturis, 2B
Chris Iannetta, C
Peter Bourjos, CF


Pitching: Ervin Santana RHP (0-1, 7.94 ERA this season)


Yankees (3-3)
Derek Jeter, SS
Curtis Granderson, CF
Alex Rodriguez, 3B
Robinson Cano, 2B
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Nick Swisher, RF
Raul Ibanez, DH
Russell Martin, C
Brett Gardner, LF


Pitching: Hiroki Kuroda RHP (0-1, 6.35 ERA this season)


Enjoy the Yankees' Home Opener! 

Swisher's Blast Leads Yanks' to Victory

After an extra inning win last night, the Yankees' were back at it tonight. They were hoping for a good start by their ace, CC Sabathia. Sabathia who was rattled by the Rays last Friday looked to rebound against the Orioles. CC is 16-2 with a 2.74 ERA lifetime against the Orioles.

Sabathia had early run support provided by Curtis Granderson, when he took the Orioles starter deep for a 2 run shot in the first. In the bottom half, Sabathia looked sharp coming out of the gate, retiring the Orioles 1-2-3 in the first.

In the second, Sabathia would run into some trouble. After striking out Adam Jones to begin the frame, Matt Wieters would single and Mark Reynolds would walk. Ronny Paulino was next and he singled after a deflection by Sabathia's hand. Robert Andino would get a chance to drive in the runners after Wilson Betemit struck out. Andino would come through to not the score at 2.

The Yankees' would take the lead in the 5th on a Derek Jeter ground ball out that scored Raul Ibanez. The Orioles would then retaliate with 2 of their own in the bottom half of the 5th. With the Orioles leading 4-3 going into the 7th, Curtis Granderson would drive in another run when he singled to left to plate Jeter. The score stayed the same until the 10th inning when Nick Swisher blasted a 2 run shot to right to give the Yankees' the 6-4 lead. Mariano Rivera would come in and shut the door to earn his 2nd save of the season.

CC's pitch count was elevated early on, forcing him to leave after 6.0 innings of work. He allowed 4 ER on 8 H. He threw 112 pitches.

Rafael Soriano was able to pitch one day after he tore his nail off of his right middle finger. He pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up 0 runs on 1 hit. He walked 2 and struck out 2. Soriano was able to work out of a bases loaded jam in the ninth to bring the game into extras. He would go on to pick up the win.

Mariano Rivera would relieve Rafael Soriano in the 10th to earn his 2nd save of the young season.

The Yankees' improved their record to 3-3 after sweeping the Orioles.

With an off day tomorrow, their bullpen will get a much needed rest after two extra inning games. They will come back out on Friday to face the Angels at the Yankees home opener at the stadium. Jorge Posada will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

Be sure to check back tomorrow or Friday for the latest Yankee news.

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Rafael Soriano Injury; Bullpen Thin

The Yankees might be without Soriano tonight after the nail on his right middle finger tore off. Soriano had catch today and Joe Girardi said that he is questionable for tonight.

"He's going to play catch, i sure hope (he is available). We can really use him, but we're going to have to find out as he goes through catch today," Girardi said during a news conference.

Girardi would also like to avoid using Cory Wade and David Phelps tonight. They both threw 2 1/3 innings last night. That would leave David Robertson, Boone Logan, Clay Rapada, and Mariano Rivera left in the bullpen tonight. Robertson and Rivera have pitched the last two games.

There has been some speculation that Phil Hughes could be in the pen' tonight. It would give the Yankees more flexibility if CC Sabathia gets pulled early. There has been no word on this, it is just an idea.

The Yankees also can make a roster move before tonight's game and call someone up fro Triple-A if they really need it. Girardi said that he didn't think that it would happen. He is hoping that Sabathia can give them quality innings tonight.

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