Live Blog: Yankees over Rays 8-6

The Yankees take the first of the crucial four-game series from the Rays. Rivera had some anxious moments, but he would close things out to earn the save.

W- Gaudin (1-4, 5.25)

L- Garza (14-9, 4.01)

S- Rivera (32)

Top 9th: Zobrist doubles down the right field line on a ball that just nipped the line. One out, and Rivera gets Crawford to bounce out to A-Rod for out number two. Longoria bloops one into right field to score Zobrist. The score is 8-6, and the Rays bring the tying run to the plate in the form of Dan Johnson.  Johnson walks, bringing up Joyce as the potential go-ahead run. Joyce grounds out to first to end matters.

Yankees 8, Rays 6

Bottom 8th: Crawford reaches into the left field crowd to retire Teixeira with nobody out. And every Yankee fan just envisioned him doing that in a Yankee uniform next season. 

A-Rod grounds to short for out number two... Mariano is warming up.

Cano grounds out to end the inning, and the Rays will send up Jaso, Zobrist and Crawford against Rivera in the 9th.

Yankees 8, Rays 5.

Top 8th: Wood opens the innings by striking out Pena.  Upton follows by lining out to Jeter. Bartlett pops out, and Wood has himself a 1-2-3 innings. it is safe to assume that his night is over, and if that's so, he had himself a heck of an evening: 1 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball. A nice outing by wood, bridging the gap to the ninth inning after some dodgy relief pitching.

Yankees 8, Rays 5

Bottom 7th: Lance Cormier relives Balfour.  After allowing consecutive singles, he makes a diving catch off a Gardner bunt, doubling off Swisher at second.

Cervelli (now 3-for-4)  hits a two-out single, moving Berkman to third with two outs. 

Jeter grounds out to end the inning.

A quick-moving game in the early innings, this has turned into a plodding affair resembling a Yankees-Sox tilt.

Yankees 8, Rays 5

Top 7th: Robertson starts the inning, allows two singles, a fielder's choice and a sacrifice fly before being relieved by Kerry Wood. Wood walks Johnson on a 3-2 pitch that was right down the pipe; umpire Tim McClelland just missed one.

Wood, however, would recover to get Joyce to fly out to the track.

Yankees 8, Rays 5

Bottom 6th: Gardner and Cervelli lead off with singles, and Jeter's single plates Gardner for the go-ahead run. Garza exits the game  and is replaced by Grant Balfour.

Granderson welcomes Balfour with a three-run shot off the foul pole. Yankees grab an 8-4 lead. What started out as a pitcher's duel has turned into a classic AL slugfest, circa 1999. 

Yankees 8, Rays 4

Top 6th: Nova opens the inning with two singles and a walk.... you can sense the wheels coming  off the kid. Girardi leaves him in to face Crawford, who dribbles one in front of the plate. But it's catcher's interference on Cervelli, who nipped Crawford on his backswing. Crawford takes first, and the other runners advance. 4-1 Yankees, and Nova is still out there.

Longoria grounds into a 5-4-3 DP, and Jaso scores from third. That is the last batter for Nova. Lefty Boone Logan enters to face lefty Johnson, who bloops a single to center. The lead is one. Joyce walks, and then Pena's slow roller down the first base line is not handled by Teixeira. Logan exits, and Gaudin enters to face Upton with the bases loaded.

Gaudin walks Upton to bring home the tying run. Bartlett flies out to end the inning. 

The final line for Nova: 5 2/3 innings, three hits, three runs, two walks and four K's.

The final line on the inning: 10 batters, four runs, five hits, one error.

Yankees 4, Rays 4

Bottom 5th: Yankees load bases with nobody out; Teixeira strikes out, leaving it up to A-rod, who hits one to the warnings track... juuuuuussst missed a grand slam, as the pitch came in on the hands too much. Either way, Cervelli trots home from third. Joe Maddon intentionally walks Cano to load the bases for Swisher. Swisher or Cano.... pick your poison. 

Swisher walks on 3-1 pitch. It is now 4-0. Bases loaded for Berkman, who pops up at 3-1 pitch to end the innings. Garza walks three in the innings.... does Maddon send him out for the 6th?

Yankees 4, Rays 0

Top 5th: The Rays go down in order... a four-pitch inning for Nova, who has allowed one hit through five. 

Yankees 2, Rays 0

Bottom 4th: A-Rod dribbles one in front of the plate, does not run to first and is tagged out my Jaso. Maybe he wants to protect his tender calf? Or is thinking about Cameron Diaz? My money is on Cameron. Cano flies out to center, and Swisher follows with a walk. Berkman singles, moving Swisher to second. Station to station baseball. Gardner hits one in front of the plate and is thrown out by Jaso. Swisher and Berkman are stranded. Four innings down, five (or more) to go.

Yankees 2, Rays 0

Top 4th: Crawford, Longoria and Johnson go down in order. It is starting to look like Nova's night. But these Rays can score in a hurry, so buyer beware. A-Rod and Cano lead of the last of the fourth.

Yankees 2, Rays 0

Bottom 3rd:  Granderson hits a two-out, two-run homer, his 20th of the season. He drove home Cervelli, who  reached on a single and was moved to second on Jeter's fielder's choice. The Yankees strike first, and given how Nova looks, it might be enough. 

Yankees 2, Rays 0

Top 3rd: Upton strikes out on a nasty Nova curveball, down and away. Jason Bartlett walks and is moved over on Jaso's fielder's choice. Zobrist strikes out, leaving Bartlett stranded at second. Still scoreless.... we have the makings of a pitchers duel. The question remains: Can Nova continue to stifle the Rays in the middle innings?

Bottom 2nd: A-Rod grounds out to Longoria and Cano flies out to Crawford, leaving none on and two out for Nick Swisher. Swisher lines up the middle, and Garza fruitlessly attempts to make a backhanded stab at the ball. Lance Berkman grounds out, leaving Swisher stranded at first. We are scoreless after two innings.

Top 2nd: Dan Johnson leads off the second by grounding to Teixeira, who flips it to Nova covering first. Matt Joyce grounds out to A-Rod, leaving it to Carlos Pena, who is hovering around the Mendoza Line. Pena goes down swinging on a 3-2 hook. Nova looks tremendously sharp early on, throwing his heater, curve and changeup for strikes.

Bottom 1st: Jeter leads off by flying out to B.J. Upton just shy of the warning track.  Granderson flies out meekly to Upton, and Teixeria grounds out to Zobrist. The Yankees go down in order. Garza and Nova look good out of the gate. 

Top 1st: Catcher John Jaso led off by grounding out to Jeter.  Ben Zobrist went down on an 0-2 hook from Nova, then Carl Crawford laced a single up the middle. Only 25 more outs, and Nova would have weaved a perfecto. Nova just missed on an 0-2 curveball to Evan Longoira, but on the very next pitch, my namesake flies out to left to end the inning. Scoreless game headed to the last of the first.