BOSTON – The more the Yankees win, the more they continue to lose.
This night was supposed to be about the emergence of Phil Hughes as an elite starting pitcher, mastering his first “big game” test against the Red Sox in Fenway Park.
It also should be about the Yankees offense, once again pounding Josh Beckett for the second time this season into submission with an unbelievable resourcefulness.
Instead, in victory, the Yankees continue to find themselves stricken with the injury bug, taking away most of the good feeling surrounding their 10-3 beating of the Red Sox in front of 37,898 at Fenway Park.
Lost in all of the winning was the loss during the game of Robinson Cano and Nick Johnson to injury.
Cano had to leave the game in the sixth inning after taking a powerful fastball from Beckett off the left knee, winced heavily at home plate and slowly walked to first base. Once there, attempting to loosen up, he continued to be in pain, forcing him to leave the game.
The second and most damaging came when Nick Johnson injured his hand in the fifth inning while at-bat. Johnson was pinch-hit for by Marcus Thames. Yankee personnel would say before the game was over that the often-injured new Yankee would be sent back to New York to see a hand specialist, so not only is a trip to the disabled list likely, but he may be out of action for several weeks.
These two losses put a damper on what was yet another great night for a team that has won its fifth in a row and third straight at Fenway going back to the start of the season.
Early on, it appeared Beckett was in rare form, blistering through the Yankee lineup, striking out five in the first three innings.
Yankees starter Phil Hughes was up for the challenge. The 23-year old, was making only his second start in Boston since 2008, making him zero-for-zero and not allowing a hit.
In the fourth, the Yankee offense finally broke through. Mark Teixeira worked a walk and Alex Rodriguez singled to right. After Robinson Cano struck out on a foul tip, Beckett was ahead of Nick Swisher 0-2 in the counter. Swisher worked the count even and then jumped on a breaking ball and homered over the camera well in center field for a three-run blast to put the Yankees ahead.
This appeared to stun and shake Beckett, who was not the same pitcher after that.
Hughes carried the lead on and the Red Sox would chip away in the bottom half as David Ortiz’s sacrifice fly gave Boston its first run. With a runner on third and two out, Hughes blew a high fastball past Adrian Beltre to end the inning.
Beckett would finally become unglued in the sixth. After Rodriguez doubled start, Cano was hit by a pitch and had to leave the game. Swisher struck out as the runners moved on a wild pitch.
The Red Sox would then elect to intentionally walk Brett Gardner to load the bases for Francisco Cervelli, who already had a hit earlier in the game. The Yankee catcher worked the count full before drawing a walk on a pitch inside, scoring Rodriguez to make it 4-1.
Randy Winn then lined a single to left to score Ramiro Pena (who pinch ran for Cano) to up the lead to four. Beckett would then drill Derek Jeter in the back to force in another run as the Yankee dugout screaming their displeasure toward the Boston right-hander.
An infield single by Marcus Thames scored another. And when Teixeira lined a single to right to increase the margin to 8-1, it was the end of Beckett’s night.
As he left the mound to a chorus of boos, the Red Sox co-ace was the victim of yet another pounding from the Yankees offense. In two starts this season, Beckett has pitched 10 innings, giving up 17 hits, 13 earned runs and a hefty ERA of 11.70.
With the score 9-1 after Rodriguez hit a sacrifice fly, Hughes could now take control of the game. He would give up a run in the bottom half when Ortiz singled to center to drive in a run.
In the seventh, Hughes would finish the night when he induced Marco Scutaro into an inning ending double play. It was night that marked his introduction to the rivalry in a starting role as a success.
Over seven innings, the young right-hander gave up two runs on seven hits, walking one and striking out seven to gain his fourth win of the season with an ERA of 1.69.
Saturday the Yankees will seek their ninth series victory of the season and their sixth in a row. CC Sabathia takes the ball against Clay Buchholz.
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