CC Sabathia (1-1, 7.50 ERA) gets his first start against the rival Red Sox this year taking on fellow lefty Jon Lester (0-2, 2.51 ERA). Sabathia bounced back from an Opening Day disaster with a better outing against the Jays. He limited them to four runs and seven hits over six innings to pick up the win. “I just thought he was down in the zone,” said Joe Girardi. “His ball was sinking like it was supposed to. I thought his changeup was good. I thought his slider was good. So I was encouraged.”
In his last two outings, Lester has gone 14 1/3 innings yielding four earned runs, striking out 14 and walking two, but has nothing to show for it taking loses in both. “Well, he’s pitched outstanding the first two starts for us,” said Red Sox manager John Farrell. “Unfortunately, he’s pitched on the wrong day, where the offense hasn’t been there to pick him up.”
Jacoby Ellsbury has left a huge hole in the lead off spot for Boston. This and inconsistent offense are the biggest reasons why they have lost six of their first 10 games. “We’ll take a closer look at the lineups and what’s best on Friday against CC,” Farrell said. “We’re looking to get some continuity and really be able to bunch some hits together, which really hasn’t been the case.”
Brian McCann was in an 0-14 hole before ripping an RBI single Thursday to help the Yankees win the series opener. The team hopes that hit will get him going. “It was weird, because I don’t feel bad at the plate,” McCann said. “You look up, and you’re just not getting the hits.”
Notes on the game
Derek Jeter hit his 527th career double Thursday, passing Dave Parker for 38th all time. He is 7 behind Lou Gehrig for the most in Yankees history.
Against Lester, Jeter is .333 with a homer and eight RBIs.
Sox back up catcher David Ross is 6-18 with a pair of homers in his career against Sabathia, look for him to get the start over A.J. Pierzynski
First pitch at 7:05 PM on Yes
