Hughes dominates as Yanks earn split of doubleheader

DETROIT - With each start, Phil Hughes continues to show why general manager Brian Cashman all but hung up the phone the last several years when the righthander's name came up in trade talks.

Still very much looking like an ace rather than a back-of-the-rotation starter, the 23-year-old Hughes flummoxed the Tigers for seven innings in the Yankees' 8-0 win at Comerica Park last night that allowed them to split the day-night doubleheader.

"We saw him grow up a lot last year and it's carried over to this year," manager Joe Girardi said. "As I've said all along, none of our pitchers are going to be perfect but this kid has made some huge strides for us and we envisioned him being a very good starter coming out of spring training and he's definitely probably went beyond that."

The victory halted the Yankees' longest losing streak of the season at three.

Hughes, who came in 4-0 - the youngest Yankees starting pitcher to win his first four decisions of a season since Whitey Ford started 9-0 in 1950 - allowed just five hits, striking out eight and walking one. He lowered his ERA to 1.38, tops in the American League.

All numbers that the always quietly confident Hughes (5-0), who emerged from the five-man competition to win the fifth starter's spot in spring training, didn't quite expect coming into the season, but ones he didn't seem overly surprised by, either.

"Maybe not these exact numbers but I felt good coming into the year," Hughes said. "I knew if I just tried to make the best pitches I could I'd have some success."

Joba Chamberlain allowed a one-out single in the eighth before handing it over to Mariano Rivera, unused since April 30 who joked he needed "a little map" to find the mound in the ninth. He pitched an easy 1-2-3 inning in a non-save situation after the Yankees (22-11) blew it open with a six-run ninth.

From a pitching standpoint the day couldn't have unfolded much better from Girardi's view, getting seven strong innings from each of his starters and needing to use just five pitchers overall. In Game 1, Javier Vazquez pitched what was by far his best game, giving up two runs in seven innings, but received no help from his offense against Rick Porcello as the Yankees stranded seven in a 2-0 loss.

Though the bullpen came away from the day unscathed, Nick Swisher did not as he left the second game in the bottom of the bottom of the eighth after experiencing tightness in his left biceps. Girardi said the rightfielder would be "day to day."

Swisher, who said he experienced the sensation, which he called a "little tug," for the first time a couple weeks ago and not again until before batting practice prior to the second game, was still hopeful of playing Thursday. "I don't think it's that big a deal," Swisher said.

Until erupting for six runs in the ninth, with four of them coming off former Yankee Phil Coke, the Yankees had a rough day offensively. In Game 2 Jeremy Bonderman (two runs and five hits in seven innings) held them mostly in check, making Hughes' performance that much more important.

Using an exceptional curveball and moving fastball, Hughes was able to pitch out of the few times he got into trouble, striking out eight and walking just one. In his last three starts combined, he has walked three batters, striking out 21.

"It's too early for that, we have a lot of season left," Hughes said when asked if some of his numbers were starting to impress him. "I'm not really looking at what I've done so far, it's all about how we finish, especially here. There's still a lot of games ahead of us and that's the focus right now."