MLB

Yankees wary of Rangers ace Lee

ARLINGTON, Texas — Numbers lie.

That’s the only way to look at Cliff Lee against the Yankees.

Tonight’s starter for the AL West-leading Rangers has haunted the Yankees in two of the last three times he faced them. However, players currently on the Yankees’ roster are batting .300 (70-for-233) against the talented lefty.

“He is a difference maker,” Alex Rodriguez said of Lee, who was acquired by the Rangers on July 9 after the Mariners backed out of a deal that would have sent Lee to the Yankees. “He is a handful. You have to be ready because he is coming at you.”

BOX SCORE

As a Mariner on June 29, Lee beat the Yankees 7-4 with a complete-game effort at Yankee Stadium. In Game 1 of last year’s World Series against the Phillies, Lee went the distance, allowing a run and six hits in a 6-1 win. The Yankees bruised him in Game 5 when they scored five runs in seven-plus innings, but lost 8-6.

It’s likely the Yankees will be without switch-hitter Mark Teixeira tonight (birth of a son) and his .370 (10-for-27) average against Lee will be missed.

Last night against lefty C.J. Wilson, manager Joe Girardi used Marcus Thames as the DH and hit him third.

Thames’ numbers against Lee are interesting. He is batting .200 (6-for-30), but three of those hits are homers. He also has fanned a dozen times.

“Try to get him early and out over the plate,” Thames said of Lee, perhaps the quickest worker in the game.

Curtis Granderson, who didn’t start against Wilson last night but will likely be in the lineup tonight since he is batting .300 (12-for-40) against Lee, believes Lee’s movement to the plate enhances a fastball that is routinely clocked in the 91-mph range.

“His 91 looks like 94,” Granderson said. “When you are 1.1 (seconds) to the plate it looks faster.”

Lee’s 2.44 ERA led all AL hurlers going into last night’s action.

“He uses all four quadrants of the strike zone and puts the ball wherever he wants it,” said Jorge Posada, a .292 (7-for-24) hitter versus Lee. “He is like (Tom) Glavine but with more speed.”