MLB

Yankees tee off on Indians in 14-1 rout

CLEVELAND — Before Tuesday night’s game, Kevin Youkilis called Robinson Cano “the best left-handed hitter in the game.”

In the fourth inning, the third baseman paid the price for it in the Yankees 14-1 win over the Indians at Progressive Field, their third straight overall.

After Cano continued his domination of Cleveland pitching by homering off starter Carlos Carrasco, the right-hander plunked Youkilis on the shoulder, earning an ejection from home plate umpire Jordan Baker.

Cano was once again in the middle of the Yankees’ offense, which has scored 32 runs over their past three games.

After coming up with his first extra-base hits of the season on Monday, the second baseman reached on an error in the first, then doubled in two runs with a double in the second to make it 4-0. Cano finished 4-for-6 and has seven hits in two games this series.

His two-run shot in the fourth gave Andy Pettitte and the Yankees a 7-0 lead and Carrasco immediately answered by drilling Youkilis. Cano added an RBI double in the eighth.

The offensive explosion from Cano hardly surprised Youkilis.

“I already knew how good he was from playing against him in all those games over the years,” Youkilis said of Cano, who has knocked in seven runs over the past two games. “I didn’t need to come here to see that. So I laughed when people said he was off to a slow start. I knew he was going to get better and then so were we.”

Youkilis’ logic so far is sound.

Cano wasn’t the only bat that stayed alive last night, as the Yankees hit five home runs in all.

The Yankees started their four-run rally in the second with two outs at the bottom of the lineup.

Eduardo Nunez, Lyle Overbay and Francisco Cervelli all reached base to load the bases and then the slumping Brett Gardner sent a flare to center to score the game’s first two runs. Cano followed with a double to knock in two more.

Ichiro Suzuki hit a solo shot in the third for his first extra-base hit of the season. Overbay and Brennan Boesch got into the act as well, hitting their first homers for the Yankees.

With Pettitte rolling along for a second consecutive start, the Yankees hardly needed all the production from the offense.

After giving up just one run over eight innings in his season debut, he was nearly as impressive again last night.

He held the Indians scoreless until Asdrubal Cabrera led off the sixth with a home run before stranding two runners in the inning. He went seven innings before being replaced by Adam Warren.

With the Yankees’ bullpen off to a rough start to the season — and the shaky Ivan Nova going tonight — Pettitte going deep in games has helped.

The left-hander became the third starter in a row to win a start, after being the only Yankee to get a win in the season’s first five games.

As for Youkilis, he ended up getting some revenge of his own in the sixth, when he hit a two-run shot off Brett Myers, making it 9-0. The shot to left knocked in Gardner, who scored three runs in the leadoff spot.

“I’m not worried about my stats or anyone else’s,” Youkilis said before the game. “At this point, until we have a winning record, that’s the only place your focus can be.”

If Cano keeps up the surge he has been on the last two days, Youkilis might have to worry about more pitches being aimed at him.

dan.martin@nypost.com