Hughes Flops Again, Yanks Lose 9-3

NEW YORK -- The Detroit Tigers are one of the best teams in the American League and the New York Yankees are not, and that statement held true Saturday as the Tigers' offense burst out for nine runs off Phil Hughes and company, keeping the Yanks from winning consecutive game for the first time in almost a month.

Hughes didn't get off to a good start, giving up a triple to Austin Jackson to open the game. He would come in to score as the next batter, Torii Hunter, brought him in on a sac-fly to center.

A couple innings later, Miguel Cabrera continued to do what he does best, launching his 35th homerun of the season off Hughes in the 3rd inning, his second homerun in three at-bats -- his two-run homerun off Mariano Rivera tied the game in the 9th last night.

After a quiet 4th inning, the Tigers struck for most of their damage in the 5th. Jackson took Hughes deep for a solo blast, then Hunter singled to knock Hughes out of the game, allowing four runs on seven hits, while striking out six in only 4 1/3 innings. It was the sixth straight outing in which Hughes failed to pitch at least five innings.

The usually solid Preston Claiborne took over for Hughes but things didn't go over much smoother for him. Claiborne was welcomed to the game by giving up a single to Cabrera, then followed up with striking out Prince Fielder. Victor Martinez then lashed out with an RBI double to left field, then Don Kelley made it a 6-0 game with a two-run single to center.

The Yankees scored their only runs in the game on a long two-run homerun off the bat of Lyle Overbay in the 5th inning, putting the Yankees on the board against Anibal Sanchez, who had retired the first nine Yankees hitters to open the game.

Sanchez gave the Tigers a great effort and a good outing, giving up just the two runs on four hits, walking only one and striking out eight on 107 pitches in seven innings of work.

Claiborne induced a groundout to open the 6th, but then permitted a single to Jose Iglesias and walked Jackson. Yankees manager Joe Girardi had seen enough, making the move to bring in Joba Chamberlain to clean things up. That didn't work out too well as Joba gave up a three-run homerun to Hunter, extending the lead to 9-2.

Following Overbay's homerun in the 5th, only two more Yankees even reached base, with Overbay drawing a walk in the 7th and Ichiro songling in the 8th, putting him just seven hits shy of 4,000 career hits in the Majors and in Japan.

Adam Warren came into the game for the first time since blowing the lead in the 12th inning of the Yankees loss to the White Sox on Wednesday. He gave up just three hits in two shutout innings for the Yanks.

Though it didn't matter much, Overbay put another run on the board with a two-out RBI single, he drove in all three of the Yanks runs on the day, as the Yanks went on the lose 9-3.

Tonight: I'll be in Daytona Beach, Florida, checking out the Single-A Tampa Yankees as they take on the Daytona Cubs (Chicago Cubs Single-A team). Check be here as I'll have posts and update on anything I see from the Baby Bombers.

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