New York Yankees 2012 regular season review – Part 23
Just like they ended the series against the Detroit Tigers, the New York Yankees started their next series against the Baltimore Orioles on a very aggressive note. Joe Girardi and his men dominated their American League East Division rivals in almost all
aspects of the game.
Orioles, on the other hand, had several scoring opportunities but they were unable to take advantage of them and ended up taking an embarrassing 2-1 defeat in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium in New York, NY.
Yankee’ pitching rotation, in particular, played a key role in deciding the outcome of the contest, creating all sorts of problems for the Orioles’ batting lineup. Starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda came back strongly from a forgettable loss on his previous
Major League Baseball appearances as he allowed just four hits and one run in seven innings. Relief pitchers David Robertson and Mariano Rivera also made their presence felt as they combined to pitch two shutout innings for the Yankees.
"We had our one opportunity there and couldn't push that run across," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "Nicky made a good aggressive play and they made a heck of a play to get him."
"They have to make a great play to get him out. I would be upset if he wasn't aggressive and trying to do something there in a close ballgame like that. Usually, the aggressor wins," he added.
"I was convinced I was going to get an out if I had a good throw from Russell," Kuroda said.
"So much for not getting any balls," Girardi kidded after the game.
Orioles’ starter Jason Hammel was outpitched by his counterpart from New York in a low scoring game as he allowed two runs in six innings to take his first loss of the season.
Chris Davis hit a sacrifice fly to left in the second inning to put Orioles on the board. However, the Yankees were determined to start the series on a winning note. Eric Chavez homered to right in the second inning to give New York a vital 2-1 series lead,,
which lasted till the end of the game.
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