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Colon hurt, but Yankees top Indians on 3 HRs

Jun 11, 2011 - 8:57 PM Bronx, NY (Sports Network) - Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira each hit a solo home run as the New York Yankees topped Cleveland, 4-0, in the second edition of a four-game series at Yankee Stadium.

Brett Gardner added a double for the Yankees, who have taken the first two games in the series after suffering a home sweep at the hands of the rival Red Sox.

"I think we have. It starts with our starting pitchers and goes down to the rest of the staff," Teixeira said when asked if the Yankees have put the Boston series behind them. "We're doing the things we need to with the bat as well."

Bartolo Colon (5-3) pitched into the seventh inning but departed with a strained left hamstring. The right-hander held Cleveland to two hits and a walk with six strikeouts over 6 2/3 scoreless frames.

Mitch Talbot (2-3) was ejected for hitting Rodriguez in the sixth. He worked 5 2/3 innings and gave up two runs on four hits for the Indians, who have dropped eight of their last nine.

Granderson doubled the home edge to 2-0 when he reached the second deck in right with one down in the sixth. Teixeira flied out and Talbot was tossed from the game by home plate umpire Dan Iassogna after hitting Rodriguez on the left upper thigh.

"This guy was throwing a great game. It was 2-0. It was baffling to me that he made that decision," said Indians manager Manny Acta of the ejection.

Talbot told Iassogna that he slipped when delivering the pitch, but the arbiter didn't buy it.

"You slipped at the wrong time," Iassogna replied.

Acta issued an incredulous response: "He slipped at the wrong time? When is the right time to slip? With anybody else at the plate?"

The hasty reaction came about after some contentious times during Friday's 11-7 Yankees win. Teixeira got involved in a shouting match with Indians starter Fausto Carmona after he was hit squarely in the back by a pitch in the second, leading to both teams leaving their benches to join the scuffle. While there was no serious threat of an ensuing brawl, both managers got into a heated discussion.

"Well, our guys are going deep and pitchers are shaking two or three times to get the fastball the next time up, and we get drilled," said Rodriguez. "You just have to go out and play baseball."

Rafael Perez came in, and overthrew first on a pickoff move, allowing Rodriguez to advance, but Robinson Cano popped out to end the frame.

Colon exited in the next Indians at-bat, coming up limping while trying to cover first base on a grounder from Shin-Soo Choo. David Robertson entered and allowed a base hit to Matt LaPorta before fanning Cord Phelps.

"I don't think we'll really know until tomorrow," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi regarding Colon's status. "He pulled or stretched his lower hamstring. My guess is, he was trying to get over and push a little harder (because the grass was wet). I can't tell you exactly when he did it."

Nick Swisher led off the home seventh with a base hit, then scored when Jorge Posada roped a ball down the line in right that Choo misplayed along the wall.

Robertson escaped a second-and-third, one-out jam in the top of the eighth by fanning both Asdrubal Cabrera and Grady Sizemore.

Teixeira reached the seats in right with two outs in the home half to make it 4-0, and Boone Logan retired the side in order in the ninth.

Rodriguez cleared the wall in left-center with two outs in the fourth to put the Yankees on the board.

Game Notes

The Yankees have won seven of the last eight meetings with the Indians since last May...Yanks shortstop Derek Jeter finished 0-for-4 and remains stuck on 2,991 career hits...Posada saw his streak of four straight games with an extra-base hit come to an end...Cabrera went hitless in four at-bats and remains one shy of 2,000 for his career.