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Yankees shush 'quit' talk, then romp

BY KAT O'BRIEN | kat.obrien@newsday.com

12:57 AM EDT, September 10, 2008

Derek Jeter runs to first base after a base hit in the seventh inning. Jeter singled earlier in the game to pass Babe Ruth and move into second place on the Yankees' all-time hit list. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian / September 10, 2008)

ANAHEIM, Calif. - On Monday, hours before the Yankees lost a lopsided 12-1 game, one longtime Yankee questioned the effort of some players.

The veteran wondered if players were still turning in top effort, or if perhaps some had thrown in the towel and were merely going through the motions. If the latter were the case, he would be furious. When asked about that possibility Tuesday, some veteran players vehemently disagreed. They then went out and showed some spark in a 7-1 win over the Angels.

The game would not have appeared to be a perfect setup for a Yankees victory. The Angels could have clinched the AL West and they were surely eager to pop some champagne.

Also, the Yankees had Alfredo Aceves making his first major-league start while Angels starter Ervin Santana was 15-5 with a 3.23 ERA. Yet Aceves was outstanding and a three-run homer by by Alex Rod.riguez and two by Johnny Damon, accounting for three runs, chased Santana.

The Yankees are 8½ games out in the wild-card chase.

Before the game, captain Derek Jeter, in particular, took exception to the idea that any players had given up: "If somebody said that, they should identify themselves."

Jeter, who had two hits and passed Babe Ruth for second on the Yankees' all-time hit list with 2,520, said he believes everyone is playing at top effort. He seemed bothered that someone would make an assertion to the contrary without attaching their name to the sentiment, saying: "You've got to give me someone to disagree with. Like I said, if somebody said that, they should identify themselves. That's the way I look at it."

In Jeter's eyes, if you're going to accuse members of your own team of not trying as hard as they are capable, it should be a public accusation.

Said Damon: "I don't know who would say that. We're going out, playing hard. We're trying as hard as we can. It just seems like nothing is going our way right now."

Damon in particular responded with fervor. He hit two homers (his second multi-home run game this year) Tuesday night and knocked in three runs, snapping out of a 1-for-20 skid.

One reason a person might question the effort level or at least the approach is the Yankees seemed to be spinning into losses in short order.

Bobby Abreu, who is among the top five in the majors in pitches per plate appearance, said the short games were not because of a lack of effort: "We're still playing hard, giving 100 percent. Those were just situations with the pitcher where people have to just go up there and hack."

Tuesday night's game was a different story. Aceves kept the Angels off-balance, and the Yankees had at least one hit in six of the first seven innings. Aceves was outstanding. A spring signee out of the Mexican League, he shot up through the minor leagues this year and is off to an impressive start.

Aceves (1-0) gave up just one run and five hits in seven innings and no walks. The 25-year-old righthander earned his first major-league win and made it look easy. He retired nine of the first 10 batters he faced, and did not give up a run until the sixth.

Brian Bruney and Damaso Marte each pitched a scoreless inning for the Yankees.

The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on Xavier Nady's RBI double. They stretched that to 4-1 in the top of the sixth, as Rodriguez hit a three-run homer to right-centerfield to score Jeter and Abreu. Damon hit a two-run homer in the seventh to knock Santana out, and added a solo home run off Justin Speier in the ninth.

The veteran who worried that some people had quit had no cause for concern Tuesday night. Before the game, Mariano Rivera said players should never quit, but he did not want to add to anyone else's comments by chiming in, so he said: "I prefer not to have any comment about that. I see the guys trying as hard as they've been trying all year."

That looked true Tuesday night.