Hardy, Jones Homer In Big 7th, Orioles Bop Yankees 7-3
NEW YORK (AP) -- J.J. Hardy and Adam Jones hit three-run homers in the seventh inning as the Baltimore Orioles suddenly broke loose, jolting the New York Yankees 7-3 Sunday to avert a sweep in a matchup of wild-card contenders.
Shut out on three singles Saturday, the Orioles were blanked by Andy Pettitte for six innings before their seven-run rally against the 41-year-old lefty and a faltering bullpen.
Michael Morse lined a leadoff single against Pettitte to begin the comeback from a 3-0 deficit. Acquired from Seattle on Friday, he got two hits in his Baltimore debut.
Hardy's shot against Shawn Kelley (4-2) glanced off the glove of right fielder Curtis Granderson and put the Orioles ahead 4-3. After reliever Boone Logan gave up a bunt single and walk, Jones homered to dead center field came against Joba Chamberlain.
The seven runs matched the Orioles' biggest inning of the season. It also tied the most allowed by the Yankees in an inning this year.
The Orioles won for the second time in six games on a road trip that includes three more games at Cleveland. The Yankees had beaten Baltimore two in row while extending their home winning streak to six.
Rookie Kevin Gausman (2-3) pitched two scoreless innings after starter Wei-Yin Chen walked a career-high five on a sticky afternoon. Gausman's other win came against the Yankees on June 28 with 4 1/3 scoreless innings.
Four Baltimore relievers combined for five shutout innings.
Brett Gardner doubled twice and drew a bases-loaded walk for the Yankees. But Robinson Cano and Derek Jeter each struck out three times and Alfonso Soriano was thrown out at first on a sensational play by charging third baseman Manny Machado.
Pettitte has beaten Baltimore 29 times in the regular season and playoffs, and seemed to be cruising through six innings. He had walked none, worked around five singles and wasn't in trouble.
But Morse and Danny Valencia opened the seventh with sharp singles, and Yankees manager Joe Girardi made the first of his several trips to the mound.
Matt Wieters greeted Kelley with an RBI single. Hardy, who broke an 0-for-13 rut with an earlier single, hit the first pitch for his 24th home run. Granderson got his glove on the opposite-field drive as he ran back and reached above the wall.
Jones connected for his 28th homer.
Soriano hit an RBI single in the third. The Yankees scored two more in the fourth on Gardner's walk and a sacrifice fly by Jeter.
NOTES: Jeter moved past Bernie Williams for sixth on the Yankees' career RBIs list with 1,258. ... Baltimore is 8-7 against the Yankees this year. ... Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez returned after missing a day with flu-like symptoms. His sun shades fell off while he chased Valencia's early infield single ... Yankees RHP Phil Hughes (4-13, 4.91) pitches Monday at home against White Sox LHP Jose Quintana (7-4, 3.66). ... RHP Bud Norris (9-10, 4.13) starts for the Orioles on Monday at Cleveland against RHP Justin Masterson (14-9, 3.49). ... Former Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt was joined by Girardi behind home plate for a pregame ceremony to raise awareness during World Alzheimer's Month. The record-breaking coach stepped down in April 2012 because of early-onset dementia, Alzheimer's type.
(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
