Sabathia, A-Rod give Yankees 3-1 edge
ANAHEIM, Calif. — None of the New York Yankees' 26 world championships include Alex Rodriguez or CC Sabathia. The splendid slugger and the workhorse starter both acknowledge that until they win a title, they're still not a big part of their club's hallowed history.
The way Rodriguez is hitting and Sabathia is pitching in the AL championship series, it's clear they're determined to put rings on their hired hands.
And after their two-man demolition of the Angels on Tuesday night, they're both one win away from playing in their first World Series.
Rodriguez connected on his fifth homer of the postseason while getting three hits, Sabathia pitched eight resilient innings on three days' rest, and the Yankees beat Los Angeles 10-1 to take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven ALCS.
"I've been feeling good," said Sabathia, who has won three of New York's seven playoff games. "Hopefully I'll just keep it going, keep it rolling, and we win the whole thing."
With superstars earning every last zero in their paychecks, New York earned the chance to advance in Game 5 on Thursday night, when A.J. Burnett goes against Los Angeles ace John Lackey.
Rodriguez homered in the third straight game of his outstanding postseason, driving in a run in his record eighth consecutive playoff game with a two-run shot in the fifth inning. Sabathia pitched five-hit ball on three days' rest, holding the Angels' formerly fearsome lineup to nothing more than Kendry Morales' homer.
"He's a horse. He's a monster," Rodriguez said of Sabathia. "We're so glad to have him on our team."
The October abilities of Rodriguez and Sabathia have long been questioned. A-Rod has been consistently miserable in previous postseasons to the point of derision from his own fans, while Sabathia had never matched his regular-season prowess in the playoffs with his previous two teams.
Those reputations are now as dated as the old Yankee Stadium that sits across the street from the opulent new park where the Yankees' first World Series in six years will start next Wednesday if New York can get one more win.
The Yankees also built a big lead in their last trip to the ALCS in 2004 — and anybody in Boston can tell you how poorly that turned out for New York. The Yankees blew four chances to finish off the Red Sox. They've got three chances to put away the Angels.
While Sabathia needs a few days' rest between starts, Rodriguez has been amazing in every outing. He's batting .407 (11 for 27) with five homers, 11 RBIs and 9 runs scored in just seven playoff games.
"I don't remember a player on our club, when we were playing in the playoffs, having back-to-back series so far like this," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi, who won three championships as New York's catcher. "He's been unbelievable. I know Bernie (Williams) had some big series, and Paul O'Neill had some big series. But Alex is — wow."
Johnny Damon added a late two-run homer and Melky Cabrera drove in four runs for the Yankees, who built a commanding cushion in this once-wild series by draining the drama from it.
One day after the Angels handed New York its first playoff loss in an extra-inning thriller, the Yankees put together two early rallies before piling on five runs late — all backing Sabathia's steady work in his second win of the series.
"This team's good. We have great players, Hall of Fame players," Sabathia said. "We've got all the confidence in the world."
With a two-run homer to left field that silenced an excited Anaheim crowd in the fifth, Rodriguez drove in a run in his eighth straight postseason game, tying the ML record.
