For two days in their post All-Star Game, playoffs-hopeful world, the Yankees began talking about injuries and how 80 percent of their starting rotation at the beginning of the season was now on a first-name basis with assorted surgeons and physical therapists.
But after each game, they ended up talking about team-driven victories. Like on Saturday, when the Yankees made it 2-0 post-break, using all the necessary components: good pitching, timely situational hitting and lousy defense by their opponent.
And one guy, starting righty Brandon McCarthy, who was as responsible as anyone for the 7-1 thumping of the Reds at Yankee Stadium, especially savored the victory. He finds himself talking about a playoff race in The Bronx, instead of languishing on a losing team in Arizona. He has made two starts for the Yankees, winning Saturday after a no-decision in a Yankees win at Cleveland.
“I’m happy that we’ve won both games, and when I was in Arizona that was not the case,” said McCarthy, who worked six terrific innings, striking out nine, walking none and reaping the benefits of the diverse Yankees offense and the challenged Cincinnati defense.
“You’re at least starting with a new page where you get the chance to prove yourself and everything that happened early in the season is gone,” said McCarthy, acquired from the Diamondbacks for Vidal Nuno. “I really want to be in a pennant race. I want to be close to or in the playoffs.”
And McCarthy, whose surrendered a solo homer to Chris Heisey in the fifth Saturday, can help the Yankees get there. Against Cincinnati, he utilized the cut fastball he had been discouraged from using in Arizona, mixing it with a sinker and curve. He changed eye levels. He hit the corners. He had the Reds looking anemic.
“He was doing whatever he wanted to on the mound today,” said catcher Brian McCann, who rated McCarthy as a front-end-of-the-rotation guy, not just a stop-gap for the laundry list of injured starters. “That’s the stuff he’s got. He’s got the ability to do what he did [Saturday] every fifth day.”
Though manager Joe Girardi was equally enthused about the affable McCarthy’s performances — “Both his starts have been very good” — he was just as pumped about the Yankees’ opportunistic offense.
The bats were loud throughout the lineup. Carlos Beltran slugged a solo homer in his second game back from injury. Brett Gardner had three RBIs from the leadoff spot. Derek Jeter reached twice with a walk and RBI single. And the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters, Brian Roberts and Kelly Johnson, combined for four hits and four runs.
Throw in a couple costly Cincinnati mistakes and three innings of shutout ball by a trio of relievers, and there wasn’t much else required by the crowd of 47,606.
“We took advantage of some miscues on their part and had some just really good at-bats, guys moving runners over, getting some big hits when we needed to,” Girardi said. “It was just good at-bats. We faced a tough pitcher [All-Star Alfredo Simon] and put some good at-bats on him.”
Beltran blasted an 0-2 hanger in the second for a 1-0 lead. Roberts led off the third inning and reached second when Jay Bruce dropped his fly in right. After Johnson advanced Roberts, Gardner singled for his first RBI — he later delivered sacrifice fly drives in the fifth and sixth innings. The Yankees’ two-run fifth was aided considerably through a passed ball by All-Star catcher Devin Mesoraco.
The Yankees blew it open against reliever J.J. Hoover with a three-run sixth that featured Johnson rolling a two-run single over first base with the bases loaded.
“We’re not thinking about anything but winning,” Beltran said. “Right now our job is to play consistent baseball.”