Yankees 5, Royals 1
NEW YORK -- Right-hander Adam Warren pitched effectively into the seventh inning, combining with three relievers on a four-hitter as the New York Yankees defeated the Kansas City Royals 5-1 on Tuesday.
Warren (3-3) made it to the seventh for the third straight start and allowed one run and two hits in 6 1/3 innings. He struck out five without a walk and threw 62 of 88 pitches for strikes.
Warren's best outing of his 12 career starts was backed by a productive showing from first baseman Mark Teixeira, who was the only Yankees starter that went hitless in Monday's 14-1 rout.
Teixeira drove in four runs, hitting a two-run home run in the first inning off left-hander Jason Vargas (3-2) and a two-run double off Joe Blanton in the fifth.
Third baseman Chase Headley added a sacrifice fly for the Yankees, who have outscored the Royals by a 19-2 margin after losing 10 of their previous 11 games.
Vargas was activated from the disabled list after missing three weeks with a left flexor strain and allowed two runs and four hits in four innings. He was limited to 75 pitches and threw 76 in his first start since May 5.
Rookie right fielder Paulo Orlando hit his first career home run for the Royals, who dropped their third straight and had a season-low four hits.
Justin Wilson recorded the final two outs of the seventh, and Dellin Betances struck out the side in the eighth. Andrew Miller put two on in the ninth in a non-save situation but retired first baseman Eric Hosmer and designated hitter Kendrys Morales to end it.
New York took a 2-0 lead in a sequence of two pitches with two outs in the first. After designated hitter Alex Rodriguez walked on a full count, Teixeira drove a 0-1 fastball over the left-center field wall for his 14th home run.
Warren retired the first 10 hitters on 42 pitches before third baseman Mike Moustakas reached on an infield single that was fielded by second baseman Stephen Drew in short right field on a defensive shift.
The Yankees took a 4-0 lead with one out in the fifth on Teixeira's two-run double to right-center field. Teixeira advanced to third when center fielder Lorenzo Cain bobbled the ball at the warning track for an error and scored the fifth run on a sacrifice fly to left field by Headley.
New York nearly took a 6-0 lead but Cain made a leaping catch in front of the center-field wall on a drive by right fielder Carlos Beltran for the final out of the fifth.
NOTES: Major League Baseball released the first voting figures for the All-Star game and Kansas City C Salvador Perez leads the American League with 1,447,753 votes and Lorenzo Cain leads all American League outfielders with 1,376,217 votes. ... In the wake of the eight-game suspensions to Milwaukee LHP Will Smith and Baltimore LHP Brian Matusz for using foreign substances on their arms, New York manager Joe Girardi and Kansas City Royals manager Ned Yost said pitchers should be allowed to use a universal substance to help them grip the ball. ... New York RF Carlos Beltran returned after missing two games with flu-like symptoms. ... Yost said that if he needed to use a position player pitch in Monday's 14-1 loss, he would gone with INF Christian Colon.