It had to end sooner or later.
Sidney Ponson was off (really, really off), the offense couldn't deliver the big hit and David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell combined to drive in seven runs as the
Red Sox buried the Yanks 9-2 in Beantown. The loss snaps the Bombers winning streak at eight and keeps them three back of the Rays in the AL East and two games behind the BoSox for the wild card.
The Good:Dan Giese. With LaTroy Hawkins cut loose, Giese becomes the mop-up, spot start, garbage man for the Yanks. He played the garbage man role Sunday night. Giese came into the game in the fifth inning with the Bombers trailing 7-2 and finished things out. Sure, he gave up two runs during his four innings of relief, but he allowed Joe Girardi to save the bullpen some wear and tear. The Yanks weren't coming back in this one and it would have been borderline criminal if they had to use three or four relievers to get through the rest of the ballgame. Giese's performance will most likely go unnoticed, but he did his job. What more could you ask for? Giese's night: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K.
The Bad:Sidney Ponson. So much for being a good luck charm. The Yanks had won all four of Ponson's starts in pinstripes, but it was a different story Sunday night. Things looked bad right off the bat as the Red Sox touched up the Arubian Knight for three first-inning runs. It wouldn't get any better. Ponson allowed at least one run in all four of his innings and left with the Yanks down 7-0. And in the "in case you're wondering department": Jarrod Washburn went eight innings on Sunday, giving up one run on four hits to help the Mariners beat the Blue Jays 5-1. Ponson fell to 6-2 on the year with this mess: 4 IP, 10 H, 7 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HR.
The Ugly:Wasted opportunities. Jon Lester pitched a great game Sunday night, but the Yankees had their chances early on. The Bombers had at least one runner on in the first five innings, but couldn't push a run across until the fifth -- and even that was disappointing. The Yanks loaded the bases with nobody out in the frame and came away with just two runs. That may not seem like a big deal, but it could/should have been much more. And the Yanks didn't exactly tear the cover off the ball during their two-run outburst: the runs came in on a Derek Jeter dribbler up the third-base line and a walk to Bobby Abreu. Still, the Yanks cut the Boston lead to 7-2 and had Alex Rodriguez, Xavier Nady and Robinson Cano coming up with the bases still loaded and nobody out. The three didn't come through. A-Rod lined out hard to third. Nady lifted a shallow pop to center and Cano bounced back to the box. The Yanks managed just one more hit the rest of the way.
The Yanks head back to the Bronx and will host the Baltimore Orioles for a three-game set beginning Monday night. Jeremy Guthrie (6-8, 3.58 ERA) will go against Mike Mussina (13-6, 3.26 ERA) in the opener. Guthrie may have a losing record, but he's probably been the O's best starter this season. The Yanks handed Guthrie his sixth loss of the season on May 28, but he's 4-2 in 10 starts since then. The Moose is coming off his most dominant start of the season against the Twins (8 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K) and is 3-0 with a 1.04 ERA in his four July starts. But Mussina had his worst outing of the year against the Orioles on May 20 at The Stadium. The Moose lasted just 2/3 of an inning, giving up seven runs on five hits (only one run was earned, but Mussina was roughed up) in a 12-2 Oriole victory.
But a lot has changed since then.
And a new winning streak awaits.
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