OAKLAND, Calif. — On a rare night they didn’t have to bleed for runs the Yankees scored more than they had in a dozen games while David Phelps smothered the muscular Athletics.
Having lost his last four starts, Phelps dominated on the way to a 7-0 victory that was witnessed by a O.oc Coliseum crowd of 36,067.
Phelps (2-4) contributed 6²/₃ shutout innings in which he allowed two hits and won for the first time since May 17 against the Pirates.
“Phelps was as good as I have seen him pitch,’’ Mark Teixeira said. “This was a good team win.’’
The Yankees’ fourth straight victory, one short of their season-high, moved them past the Orioles into second place in the AL East and kept them 3 ½ games back of the first-place Blue Jays. It also ensured they will go home with a winning record for the nine-game road trip that was originally a 10-game deal before one in Kansas City got rained out. The Yankees are 5-2 on the trip with two against the A’s remaining.
Jacoby Ellsbury increased his hitting streak to 17 games, and Derek Jeter had two hits for his fourth straight multi-hit game.
Brett Gardner was hit by a pitch on the helmet and Brian McCann took a ball off his right hand. Brian Roberts fouled a ball off his right knee and Brendan Ryan was hit in the elbow by a pitch. All remained in the game. X-rays on Ryan’s elbow were negative.
“Right now every win is a big win,’’ said Teixeira, who drove in the second run of the first inning with a sacrifice fly. “We don’t have a margin for error.’’
In Phelps’ previous four starts he was 0-4 with a 6.57 ERA and had given up 30 hits and eight walks in 24²/₃ innings.
Though there was no strong candidate to take Phelps’ place in the rotation, the right-hander had to know the Yankees weren’t going to stick with him forever without showing improvement.
“It’s nice to have an outing like this after the last two,’’ Phelps said.
When Phelps gave up a two-out, bases empty double to Jed Lowrie in the seventh, manager Joe Girardi immediately called for Dellin Betances, and he ended the threat by getting Derek Norris to foul out to Mark Teixeira.
Betances worked the seventh with a 7-0 lead, thanks to a four-run top of the inning in which Ichiro Suzuki, Brian Roberts and Kelly Johnson drove in runs.
Phelps used his legs to help the Yankees turn a double play after Coco Crisp opened the sixth with a walk. Phelps fed John Jaso a ground ball to Teixeira, who threw to Jeter at second. Phelps beat Jaso to first base, and was in position to take Jeter’s throw and complete the double play.
Sonny Gray (6-3) gave up three runs and seven hits in six innings, but retired 14 of the final 15 batters he faced.
“We have played well the last four games,’’ Ellsbury said. “Hopefully, we keep it going. I like where we are.’’
Who wouldn’t like a team that scored seven runs and got shutout pitching from a starter who had been struggling?
“The last couple of starts, I was trying to be too fine,’’ Phelps said. “They did a great job of scoring runs early for me and that let me settle in.’’