video thumbnail

CIN@NYY: CC hurls seven innings of three-run ball

Ready to show the Yankees just what they've been missing, A's right-hander Bartolo Colon will take the hill on Saturday against his former club for the first time at the Coliseum.

A starter for New York all of last season, in which he went 8-10 with a 4.00 ERA, Colon is 4-4 with a 4.09 ERA in his first season with the A's.

While Colon won three of his first four starts to begin the year, it took the righty five more outings before picking up another victory on Sunday against the Giants. Colon tossed five innings, surrendering two runs and striking out seven thanks to a dominant two-seam fastball.

"The pitch acts a little bit like a boomerang at times," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "That's his go-to pitch and everybody knows it's coming and it's still difficult to deal with because it's on the corner and a lot of times starts off the corner."

Colon with be up against Yankees ace CC Sabathia, who is trying to snap a two-game losing streak after starting the season 5-0.

He took a tough-luck loss on Sunday against the Reds, giving up three runs on six hits in seven innings after holding Cincinnati hitless through the first 15 batters he faced.

Sabathia will also look to get the Yankees off to a 2-0 start on their current nine-game road trip after a 6-3 win on Friday.

"I think it's extremely important to get off to a good start because we are going to be on the road a long time," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We talk about winning series, and to win the first series, I think it'll be helpful."

Yankees: Girardi sticking with Martin
• Even with Russell Martin struggling at the plate, Girardi has elected to stay with the second-year Bombers backstop.

So far this season, Martin is batting just .177 with four home runs and 10 RBIs in 39 games. However, he does have a .326 on-base percentage, something encouraging to Girardi.

"Russell's run into some bad luck," Girardi said. "The one thing Russell has done is he's gotten on base. When you look at his average and then you look at how much he's been on, it's really pretty incredible.

"If he was hitting normal, he'd probably have an on-base percentage over .400, but I've seen some good signs from him. He's hit some balls harder, and we know he's capable of doing more."

A's: Inge expected to be back next week
• Manager Bob Melvin reiterated on Friday that third baseman Brandon Inge should be able to come off the disabled list the first day he is eligible to be activated on Monday.

Inge, who's been on the DL since May 13 with a right groin strain, was sent to Triple-A Sacramento for a two-day rehab assignment beginning Friday. The plan was for Inge to play six innings for the River Cats on Friday and a full nine innings on Saturday.

He went 7-for-23 with four home runs and 16 RBIs in his last six games before landing on the DL, including a walk-off grand slam against the Blue Jays on May 8.

Worth Noting
• Yankees right-hander David Robertson played catch on Thursday in Tampa, Fla., and felt "pretty decent," according to manager Joe Girardi. Robertson had said that he hoped to join the Yankees in Detroit on June 1, but Girardi indicated that he was not sure that was going to happen.

• A's right-hander Brandon McCarthy (right shoulder) played catch for the first time since hitting the disabled list Friday, and manager Bob Melvin said, "He felt good."

• The Yankees have won seven straight games at Oakland Coliseum dating back to July 5, 2010.

MLB.com Comments