Starter Jon Lester took a screaming line drive off his leg and left the game in the third inning. but the Sox hurler was able to walk off the field on his own power.
Lester has been listed as day-to-day with a contusion of his right quad, but that would be the only good news of the night for the Red Sox as this game belonged to Joba Chamberlain, Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees.
Yankees 9, Red Sox 5
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
September 25, 2009
Live Blog | Box Score
Headliner: Alex Rodriguez had an impressive night to say the least, as Yankees’ slugger finished with a single, double, homer, four RBIs, three stolen bases and three runs scored. A-Rod drove in the game’s first run with an RBI single in the first before mashing a two-run bomb to left to make things 3-0 in the third. He later doubled in Johnny Damon with the Yankees' seventh run and reached base in all five plate appearances.
Yankees starter Joba Chamberlain baffled Red Sox hitters through the first three-plus frames as he retired the first 11 straight batters he faced. The righty ended up allowing three runs on five hits over six innings but he struck out five and walked one en route to his first win since Aug. 6.
Dirt dog: Victor Martinez not only snapped Chamberlain’s no-hitter with a solo homer to right-center in the fourth, the Sox slugger extended his career-high hitting streak to 24 games. The first baseman would later add a single in the eighth and scored a pair of runs.
Designated hitter David Ortiz launched his 27th homer of the season and third in as many games in the sixth inning. In addition to the opposite-field, two-run blast, Papi drive in three runs and now has 10 RBIs in his last three games.
Better luck next time: Before he was taken out of the game with a leg injury, Jon Lester went 2 1/3 innings and gave up five runs on eight hits in the loss — his first against the Yankees in eight career starts. The lefty also uncharacteristically allowed four stolen bases in the defeat and walked three batters to just three strikeouts.
Second baseman Dustin Pedroia went hitless, snapping his 16-game hitting streak.
Key moment: With no outs in the fifth, the Sox had a pair of runners in scoring position and appeared to be on their way to cutting the Yankee lead in half, but Chamberlain got Jason Varitek to pop out, Alex Gonzalez to strikeout and Jacoby Ellsbury to ground out to end the big threat.
On deck: Daisuke Matsuzaka and CC Sabathia square off in Game 2 of the three-game set at the Bronx on Saturday afternoon.
Dice-K will be looking to go 3-0 since returning from the disabled list on Sept. 15. The righty has allowed just three earned runs in 11 1/3 innings since his return and has struck out 10 batters to four walks. In those two starts, he has lowered his ERA from 8.23 to 6.80. In six career starts against the Bronx Bombers, Matsuzaka is 3-2 with a 6.35 ERA.
Sabathia is hoping to gain more Cy Young votes on Saturday and improve his already stellar record of 18-7. The big lefty, who is 6-2 at home this year, owns a 3.31 ERA and hasn’t lost a game since July 28, winning eight straight decisions. In 10 career starts against the BoSox, Sabathia is 4-5 with a 3.62 ERA.
