Bomber oldies still goodies
TORONTO — Who says veterans can’t thrive in the dog days of August?
Carlos Beltran and Mark Teixeira played an integral role in the Yankees’ 4-1 win over the Blue Jays on Saturday, helping the Bombers clinch the three-game series at Rogers Centre and putting them in position for a sweep.
“We needed to (win the series),” Teixeira said. “We hadn’t been swinging the bats the last week or 10 days, so it’s just good to put some runs up against a really good team.”
Teixeira certainly fit that description, having hit .143 (4-for28) with one solo homer and no other RBI during the previous seven games.
But the first baseman — who had a day off Thursday in Cleveland and served as the designated hitter on Saturday — snapped a 1-1 tie with a sixth-inning solo home run against Marco Estrada, then added another RBI single in the eighth against LaTroy Hawkins to help the Yankees to their third straight win.
“I feel fine,” Teixeira said. “Sometimes your timing gets off a little bit and you miss a few pitches. I’ve been missing my pitch a little too much. Today I got a couple good pitches to hit and put some good swings on them.”
Unlike Teixeira, Beltran had been swinging a hot bat of late, hitting .371/.463/.743 over his past 11 games. His pinch-hit, three-run blast Friday night lifted the Yankees to a signature win, thrusting them back into
first place.
“That home run last night was one of the biggest home runs of the year for us,” Teixeira said. “It really got us going again.”
Beltran opened Saturday’s game with a first-inning solo homer, giving Masahiro Tanaka a quick lead. He finished 2-for-3, adding a double in the eighth before being replaced by pinch-runner Chris Young, who came around to score the Yankees’ fourth run.
“I feel good at the plate; I’m seeing the ball good, I feel calm, laying off bad pitches, swinging at good pitches,” Beltran said. “For the past couple of days I’ve been getting some good pitches in the strike zone and I’m being able to put a good swing on it.”
Joe Girardi will continue to pick his spots when it comes to resting his aging veterans — Beltran, Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez, specifically — but as long as the results continue to be good, nobody will complain about the occasional day off.
“I think Joe has done a real good job with everyone here, being able to find some days to give us a break, keep everyone fresh,” Beltran said.
“We are in a good position, I know this division is hard, so we have to find a way to grind as a team.”