Extra BP pays off for Granderson

All it took was a little cage work to get Curtis Granderson back on track.

The centerfielder ended a 1-for-16 skid with a two-run homer in the fifth inning Sunday in a 7-5 win over the Athletics. He leads the Yankees with 27 homers and 74 RBIs and leads the major leagues with 88 runs scored and 11 home runs against lefthanders (in only 118 at-bats).

Asked if he made major mechanical adjustments to his swing, he said he hadn't. "I'm definitely not where I want to be," said Granderson, who is hitting .265 with 107 strikeouts and who struck out eight times in 11 at-bats in the three-game series. "A lot of things I definitely still need to work on just to get back to where I was, and that's putting the ball in play."

Defense wins ballgames

With two outs in the fifth and Eric Sogard on first, Hideki Matsui doubled to deep centerfield. Granderson threw to cutoff man Robinson Cano, whose relay to Russell Martin was high. The catcher leaped, caught it and tagged Sogard to end the inning.

Said Joe Girardi: "To have the presence of mind to know where he was at and come down and make the tag was a great play."

Velocity concerns?

Phil Hughes is sick of talking about his velocity, but questions remain. He acknowledged his fastball could be a tick faster than the 90-91 mph he had Friday, but he would rather not get caught up in radar gun readings.

"It can always be better," said Hughes, who allowed seven runs and nine hits in 41/3 innings. "When I'm at my best, I sit around 92-93 . . . It didn't have a lot of life on it."

Extra bases

Rafael Soriano gave up a homer and struck out one in an inning for Triple-A Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre. He has allowed five hits and four earned runs in 31/3 innings in three rehab outings . . . Twelve of Eduardo Nuñez's 22 RBIs have tied the score or put the Yankees ahead.