Dan Haren was the better pitcher Saturday night when his Los Angeles Angels stomped the New York Yankees by a score of 6-0 in Anaheim, bringing the Halos to within 1 1/2 games of the American League West-leading Texas Rangers.
Haren tossed an impressive four-hitter for his fifth career shutout, retiring 18 straight batters at one point. The three-time All-Star righty struck out seven and walked none for the 13th time in his 31 starts the season, marking the fifteenth time in his career he'd lasted nine whole innings.
Meanwhile, the generally run-stingy Sabathia, who is 19-8 on the year, tossed 119 pitches over six innings, allowing just one run on eight hits. He struck out five and walked four, but he'll have to wait until next time to become the first Yankees pitcher in over three decades to enjoy back-to-back 20 win seasons. The chubby lefty fanned Torii Hunter in the third to record his 2,000th career strikeout, which is pretty neat.
Although their Bronx Bombers dropped the game, Yankees fans were super pumped to see Jorge Posada catch for the first time all year, an accommodation New Yorkers had taken for granted over the last 17 seasons. In fact, he was probably more excited than the fans were:
"I got a chance to get back behind the plate...I have my equipment with me. I’m an emergency catcher, like I was today. Joe said, ‘What do you think?’ So I said, ‘Well if you need me, I’m there.’ He said, ‘Go ahead. It’s like riding a bike.’ I was excited. It was fun. I’ll be sore tomorrow, but I’ll sleep well tonight.”
[Sydney Hotels]
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