Return to Fundamentals Pays Off for the Yankees

They had no home runs, just timely singles and sacrifice flies. There was no eye-popping defensive wizardry, just crisp plays executed in key situations. There was no dominant pitching performance, just a gutsy one.

A. J. Burnett battled his way through six innings, allowing four runs and nine hits. He earned his fourth victory of the season.

Russell Martin beat a tag at home in the second inning to give the Yankees an early 3-1 lead.

And that was just what the Yankees needed.
A day after one of their sloppiest losses of the season, the Yankees bounced back Saturday afternoon and did all of the little things necessary to produce one of their most satisfying games of the season, a 5-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in front of 42,460 fans at Yankee Stadium.
“I love it when guys play hard and you don’t take anything for granted,” Manager Joe Girardi said. “We did a lot of nice little things today, and that’s why we won.”
The Yankees, who seemed to forget their fundamentals in a 5-3 loss Friday to the Blue Jays, could have run a clinic Saturday.
Setting the tone for the Yankees was their starter, A. J. Burnett, who persevered through six innings without his best stuff and earned his fourth win. He allowed four runs and nine hits, struck out four and walked none.
Burnett said that his curveball in particular was giving him trouble. In the past, he said, that would have frustrated him. But this season, he has tried to maintain a more positive outlook.
“I didn’t feel real good all day,” he said. “I just didn’t have a hook today, and my fastball was kind of flat.”
He added, “But you still got to figure out a way to go deep in games.”
Burnett was aided by a scrappy, small-ball performance from an offense best known for its base-clearing blasts. Seven Yankees had a hit, five had a run batted in, and five scored.
The Yankees’ only extra-base hit was Mark Teixeira’s double in the first inning.
“I don’t care whether we get them by homers or bunts or whatever, walks, either way, man, we feel good,” Nick Swisher said.
Blue Jays starter Kyle Drabek, a promising 23-year-old right-hander, could not control his fastball, and the Yankees allowed him to unravel, using a patient approach to chase him after two and a third innings.
“I’m sure he had some frustrations out there with his command and also the strike zone,” Blue Jays Manager John Farrell said. “But the difference in the game was all the walks.”
Drabek allowed five runs, seven hits and four walks. Of his 78 pitches, only 40 were strikes.
“Our guys were patient,” Girardi said. “We took our walks when he gave them to us, and we got some big hits when we needed them.”
The Yankees’ offense began to sputter against the Blue Jays’ bullpen; they did not have a hit or score a run after the third inning. But as the Blue Jays looked to mount a comeback, the Yankees’ defense and bullpen made sure the victory did not slip away.
The key defensive play came in the bottom of the sixth, after the Blue Jays had clawed to a run behind. As Juan Rivera tried to steal third, Burnett struck out Edwin Encarnacion and Russell Martin fired a throw to Eric Chavez. He tagged Rivera to complete the double play, end the inning and preserve the Yankees’ slim lead.
“That’s a big play,” Burnett said. “Russ is pretty quick back there, and I was actually able to make a pitch.”
Joba Chamberlain, Rafael Soriano, and Mariano Rivera pitched the final three innings and allowed just two hits among them — a sequence the Yankees hope will occur with more regularity.
Though the win lightened the mood in the clubhouse, a number of minor concerns about the Yankees’ aging lineup nevertheless seem to be bubbling to the surface.
Saturday’s game was the eighth in a period in which the Yankees will play 32 times in 33 days, a stretch that should test Girardi’s ability to tweak and tinker with his veteran roster.
Third baseman Alex Rodriguez was given the day off Saturday. Girardi said he wanted to give Rodriguez, who had played seven straight games, a chance to rest his legs. After a strong start to the season, Rodriguez is 5 for 32 with one home run since April 16.
Derek Jeter, who has had a lukewarm season, was 0 for 3 on Saturday and is now hitting .250.
And after taking Friday night off, Jorge Posada started as the designated hitter but showed few signs that he might emerge from his season-long slump. He went 0 for 3, and his average is now .125.
“I think his at-bats have been better, I do,” Girardi said. “Jor-ge’s a grinder, and he’s always been a grinder, and he’ll continue to grind out at-bats.”