Yankees Win Over Orioles 5-4
NEW YORK (AP) -- Brian McCann hit an early two-run homer, Andrew Miller got his major league-leading 13th save and the New York Yankees held on to beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 Friday night after taking a quick five-run lead.
A night after hitting his 661st home run to move past Willie Mays into sole possession of fourth place, Alex Rodriguez hit a drive to the top of the wall in right-center for his first triple since July 2012. New York (19-11) survived yet another short start by Adam Warren to win for the 16th time in 21 games and move eight games over .500 for the first time since the final day of 2013 season.
Warren took a shutout into the fifth but was removed one out short of qualifying for a win. He gave up two runs, seven hits and three walks.
Dellin Betances (4-0) retired four straight batters for the win and Miller, New York's fifth pitcher, got three straight outs against the team he finished last year with to remain perfect in save opportunities.
New York's bullpen already has thrown 102 1-3 innings, among the most in the major leagues.
Miguel Gonzalez (3-2) allowed five runs and five hits in four innings, his shortest start since April 2014. Baltimore lost its fourth straight game and at 12-15 matched its season worst of three games under .500.
Manny Machado had three hits, a walk and a warning-track flyout, and all four Orioles runs scored from the bottom two spots in Baltimore's batting order.
Jacoby Ellsbury reached leading off the first on a high chop off the glove of a leaping Gonzalez, Brett Gardner doubled, Rodriguez hit a sacrifice fly and McCann -- given a green light with a 3-0 count -- homered for a 3-0 lead. Carlos Beltran's bases-loaded double made it 5-0 in the third, when right fielder Delmon Young made a relay to second baseman Ryan Flaherty, who threw out McCann at the plate.
Another comebacker hurt the Orioles in the second. With two outs and two on, Flaherty hit a chop that deflected off Warren's glove to shortstop Didi Gregorius, who threw to first for the out.
Machado's RBI single and Young's run-scoring groundout chased Warren, and Jimmy Paredes hit a two-run single in the sixth off Chris Martin.
Baltimore also had a runner thrown out at the plate when Gardner nabbed Machado trying to go home on Young's two-out single to left in the first.
Rodriguez hit a fifth-inning drive that deflected off the glove of center fielder Adam Jones, who tried for a leaping catch at the top of the wall. The ball deflected off the fence, perhaps glancing the outstretched glove of a fan, and Jones appeared to bang into the wall with a shoulder as the ball bounced away.
SHORT NIGHTS
Warren became just the ninth pitcher since 1914 who failed to pitch at least six innings in any of his first nine major league starts, according to STATS. He joined Jose Santiago (1964-66), Scott Ruffcorn (1993-97), Brian Boehringer (1995-99), Sean Lowe (1997-00), Joe Beimel (2001), Johan Santana (2000-02), Travis Blackley (2004-12) and Chris Rusin (2012-13).
TWO-SPORT ATHLETE
Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer, who led the Buckeyes to this year's national title, threw out the ceremonial first pitch, two days after an appendectomy. He was selected Atlanta in the 1982 amateur draft and hit .182 during two seasons as an infielder in the Braves minor league system.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Orioles: RHP Kevin Gausman was put on the 15-day DL with right shoulder tendinitis, a move retroactive to Thursday.
Yankees: RHP Masahiro Tanaka (wrist tendinitis and forearm strain) made 25 throws from 60 feet and 25 from 90 feet, his second day of activity since going on the DL on April 29.
UP NEXT
Orioles: Wei-Yin Chen (0-1) is 2-4 with a 5.18 ERA in 10 starts against the Yankees going into Saturday's outing.
Yankees: Chase Whitley (1-0) starts Saturday after allowing one run over 12 innings in his first two starts of the season for New York.
(Copyright 2015 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
