Yankees 8, Twins 4
By Larry Fleisher, The Sports Xchange
NEW YORK -- Designated hitter Alex Rodriguez hit a grand slam with one out in the seventh inning as the New York Yankees rallied for an 8-4 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday.
Mired in a 1-for-27 slump, Rodriguez drove a 1-0 fastball from rookie right-hander J.R. Graham (0-1) into the Yankees bullpen beyond the center-field fence. It was his 25th home run and also his 25th career grand slam.
Rodriguez's first grand slam since Sept. 20, 2013 off San Francisco's George Kontos earned him a curtain call from the crowd of 38,007 who were standing in anticipation of a big hit.
The Yankees won their second straight over Minnesota in the late innings, doing so a night after leaving the bases loaded against Casey Fien in the seventh.
The decisive inning began when pinch hitter Chase Headley singled ahead of walks by third baseman Brendan Ryan and left fielder Brett Gardner against Ryan O'Rourke.
After Rodriguez's home run, the Yankees added three pair of insurance runs with nobody out in the eighth on a two-run double by Headley and a run-scoring single by center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury.
Nick Rumbelow (1-0) was credited with his first career win after getting the final out of the seventh in a 4-1 game. He came on after left-hander CC Sabathia allowed a two-run home run to rookie designated hitter Miguel Sano with nobody out in the inning.
Justin Wilson recorded the first two outs of the eighth and Andrew Miller posted a four-out save. Miller struck out Sano for the final out of the eighth during a one-run game and pitched a scoreless ninth for his 27th save in 28 opportunities.
Before the teams combined for seven runs in the seventh, the game was in a 1-1 deadlock. New York took a 1-0 lead on rookie first baseman Greg Bird's RBI single in the fourth and Minnesota tied it on a double by catcher Kurt Suzuki with two outs in the fifth.
Suzuki's hit came after Sabathia retired the first 13 hitters. His no-hit bid ended when shortstop Eduardo Escobar blooped a single to right field.
Minnesota right-hander Mike Pelfrey allowed one run and five hits in 5 1/3 innings. He exited with two on in the sixth and O'Rourke kept the game tied before faltering in the seventh.
Sabathia retired the first 13 hitters before issuing a walk to third baseman Trevor Plouffe on a full count. He struck out right fielder Torii Hunter on a high fastball but lost his no-hit bid when shortstop Eduardo Escobar blooped a single into right field.
Sabathia then lost his shutout bid when Suzuki doubled to left field. The Twins attempted to score a second run on the play but Escobar was thrown out at the plate on the relay throw by shortstop Didi Gregorius.
The Yankees took a 1-0 lead with one out in the fourth when Bird slapped a single to right field just under the diving attempt of second baseman Brian Dozier. Bird's third career hit scored right fielder Carlos Beltran, who had a ground-rule double to left.
NOTES: The Yankees made four transactions involving their pitchers Tuesday. They placed RHP Bryan Mitchell on the seven-day concussion list, and optioned RHP Caleb Cotham to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. To replace Mitchell and Cotham, the Yankees recalled LHP Chris Capuano and RHP Nick Rumbelow from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. ... Monday marked the first time since July 2, 2011 that Minnesota was caught stealing three times. Manager Paul Molitor said the causes were a pitchout, a miscommunication on a sign and a poor jump. ... Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira (bruised lower right leg) had a CT scan and it revealed a bone bruise. ... Minnesota began the night with LHP Glen Perkins and RHPs Casey Fien and Kevin Jepsen having pitched three straight days. ... RHP Michael Pineda (forearm) will throw a side session Wednesday, and the Yankees will decide what his next step is after he throws.