Angels Pound Yankees in Their Own Backyard
After jumping all over Angels starter Sean O'Sullivan at the start of Tuesday night’s game, the Yankees bats cooled down and were unable to carry that momentum for the duration of the game.
The Angels pounded the Yankees, 10-2, at Yankee Stadium and made them pay for not delivering the knockout blow.
"We had him on the ropes in the first, and he battled his way back," Swisher said. "We've got to give credit where credit is due. He went mainly changeup-slider after that, and he had our number tonight. That's the first time we've seen him, and we'll remember that for next time."
O'Sullivan, who had made four relief appearances for the Angels while spending most of the season at Salt Lake, was back in the line up - much to his surprise.
"I didn't know I was starting until I got here today," O'Sullivan said. "Butch [pitching coach Mike Butcher] said he gave me a call yesterday, but I didn't get it."
This might explain his shaky first inning, yielding two earned runs.
"He doesn't get rattled," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said of O'Sullivan. "That's a tough line up. I thought Sean made some good adjustments as the game went on."
O'Sullivan did get his game under control settling in for five scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while walking three (one intentionally) and striking out four.
The 22-year old rookie starter spoke with his parents before the game and said his 11th Major League start had a different feel at the outset.
"As a kid, the Yankees are the biggest team," O'Sullivan said. "To get to pitch here, on their mound -- the loneliest place on earth, they say -- it's big.
"After the first inning, it was like any other game. I focused on getting ahead and letting the defense make plays. My changeup was really good. I threw it early in counts, whenever Matty called for it."
The youngster’s recovery was critical after the first inning which saw New York’s Alex Rodriguez double and Jorge Posada drove in Mark Teixeira on a fielder's choice. By then the Yankees were probably thinking that this was going to be an easy night.
With the game in the balance, O'Sullivan got a lot of help from his friends. Maicer Izturis, having missed 27 games with a strained left forearm, showed no signs of rust blasting a two-run homer and an RBI single against Yankees’ Phil Hughes. Hideki Matsui also chipped and delivered a two-run shot against reliever Chan Ho Park in the seventh.
After being praised for his calm demeanor and terrifically efficient start to open the season, Hughes is 6-3 with a 5.51 ERA in 11 starts. Yankees catcher Jorge Posada attributes the right-hander’s struggles to his desire to be too good too fast.
"He's trying to do too much at times and not trusting [his stuff] a little bit," said Yankees catcher Jorge Posada. "It is frustrating. He feels good and everything is healthy, so you just move forward."
But as of lately, Hughes has not been as sharp. He got off to a good start on Tuesday’s game, but showed signs of rust from not having pitched since the All-Star Game one week ago in Anaheim.
By the end of it, he had lasted only five innings, allowing nine hits and six runs. Hughes walked three and struck out just two batters.
"It was strange, I felt like my command was good in the bullpen," Hughes admitted afterwards. "Then I got out there and it was just kind of a struggle from the get-go. Even the few pitches that I did sort of make, ground balls, were going through. It just happens. But I have to make better pitches and find a way to keep us in the game and not give it away so early."
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