Andy Pettitte's performance is what will stand out after tonight. He provided the Yankees with 7.1 innings and allowed only 2 hits while striking out 10 batters. He no longer has his signature cut fastball but now uses that pitch as a slider with its decreased velocity. Pettitte has exceeded all expectations coming into his return. Aside from CC Sabathia, he has given the Yankees length and quality innings most of the time. Holding this scrappy Rays team to two hits in over seven innings of work is not an easy task but Pettitte rose to the occasion to give the Yankees their 30th win of the season, putting them in an basic tie for first place with the Tampa Bay Rays.
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| Martin hitting 4th inning grand slam |
The offense woke up tonight. For the entire duration of the season, the Yankees have had breakout games from their offense and every time we ask the age old question: "Is this the hit that will get them going?" If tonight's offensive breakout against Shields isn't the spark that will catapult the Yankees into the stretch run then I don't know if they will ever be a consistent offensive team this year. Russell Martin had a big day at the plate by going 3-4 with a game changing grand slam in the 4th inning off of James Shields. Martin is finally hitting over .200 and hopefully his recent surge in hits will guide him through the rest of the season, where he can surely do damage and help the Yankees win games with his offensive potential. He is a 3 time all star. Martin didn't get chosen into all-star games by being a slouch. His bat was a large part of what got him those appearances.
Tomorrow night, Alex Cobb will make his second start against the Yankees of his young career. He faced them last year and they ended up winning the game well after Cobb left the game. Nova will try to keep the Yankees dominant pitching going as he tries to limit his extra base hits surrendered.
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