Rivera, Yankees Let Sweep Slip Away Against Mets
With a Subway Series sweep in his hands, Mariano Rivera did something unusual.
He let it slip away.
Pinch-hitter Ronny Paulino came through with a tying single off Rivera in the ninth inning, Jason Bay drove home the winning run in the 10th and the New York Mets ended the Yankees' seven-game winning streak with a 3-2 victory Sunday.
"We know we could have easily won this game," Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira said. "Give them credit. They battled against Mo in the ninth and got it done later."
Playing without ailing shortstop Jose Reyes, the Mets were shut down by Freddy Garcia for seven innings before rallying against Rivera to avoid a three-game sweep at Citi Field.
With two outs and nobody on in the ninth, Bay walked on a full count. He went to third on Lucas Duda's single and scored the tying run when Paulino punched a 1-2 pitch through the right side.
Rivera, selected for his 12th All-Star team earlier in the day, dropped his head on the mound after his fourth blown save in 25 chances this season.
"I think Paulino did a tremendous job. He just went with the ball, went with the pitch and he got the groundball through the infield," Rivera said. "It was the pitch I wanted. You can do nothing against that. It's going to happen."
Ruben Tejada then hit a sharp grounder that scooted under the glove of fill-in shortstop Ramiro Pena for an error, and Duda tried to score from second. With fans of both teams in a frenzy, left fielder Brett Gardner came up throwing and cut down Duda at the plate to send the game to extra innings.
Pinch-hitter Scott Hairston drew a leadoff walk from Luis Ayala (1-2) in the 10th and the Mets loaded the bases when Pena booted Daniel Murphy's slow grounder with two outs.
Hector Noesi entered to face Bay, who lined an 0-1 pitch into right-center for a single. Hairston raised his fist as he crossed the plate and Bay, stuck in a two-year slump since signing a $66 million contract with the Mets, was mobbed by teammates on the infield.
"I've been through a lot of ups and downs — a lot more downs," Bay said after the Mets stopped a three-game skid. "It was nice, A, to be in that spot and, B, to come through. It was great."
Francisco Rodriguez (2-2) pitched two scoreless innings for the win.
Gardner tripled off Jason Isringhausen in the eighth and scored on a sacrifice fly by All-Star starter Curtis Granderson, giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead.
"It's a frustrating loss for us," manager Joe Girardi said.
The Yankees dropped to 14-4 since shortstop Derek Jeter went on the disabled list. He was scheduled to play his second rehab game Sunday night for Double-A Trenton, weather permitting, and is expected to rejoin the Yankees on Monday in Cleveland.
"It'll be good to have him back," catcher Russell Martin said.
Reyes sat out as the Mets anxiously awaited MRI results on his tight left hamstring. The test revealed a Grade 1 strain, the mildest kind, and he might be able to return to the lineup in a few days.
"It's a big relief," teammate Carlos Beltran said. "We depend so much on him."
The Mets were hit with another injury when knuckleballer R.A. Dickey was pulled after five innings because of tightness in his left buttocks. He slipped on the wet mound while making a pitch in the fourth.
Dickey, however, said he expects to make his next start.
Rain fell much of the morning and the start was pushed back by 89 minutes, though it hardly drizzled during the delay. Girardi intercepted the umpires as they walked out onto the field and engaged them in a discussion that lasted a few minutes.
By the time Dickey was ready to go, Garcia had just begun to walk in from the bullpen. So everyone waited while Garcia crossed the outfield and Dickey took some extra warmup tosses.
After the game, Girardi said there was miscommunication about the start time after the delay.
"Freddy just didn't have enough time," Girardi said.
Girardi also came out for a long argument after Martin was tagged out in a seventh-inning rundown.
Beltran doubled with two outs in the first and scored on Murphy's single.
The Yankees tied it in the fifth. Robinson Cano led off with a double for the first hit off Dickey, and Nick Swisher followed with an RBI single.
NOTES: The Yankees optioned rookie RHP Ivan Nova to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open a spot in the rotation for RHP Phil Hughes, who will come off the disabled list to pitch Wednesday in Cleveland. Nova is 8-4 with a 4.12 ERA in 17 games, 16 starts. He has won four straight decisions, including a 5-1 victory in the series opener Friday night. ... RHP Lance Pendleton was recalled from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to provide a fresh arm in the bullpen. ... Pena started in place of Eduardo Nunez, held out with a tight right hamstring. Nunez, subbing for Jeter, was 7 for 8 with a homer and three doubles in the first two games of the series. ... The Yankees finished 13-5 in interleague play.
