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Yankees blank Mets again to split Subway Series

May 16, 2014 - 6:45 AM Flushing, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Despite impressive Major League debuts from starters Chase Whitley and Jacob deGrom, it was a veteran outfielder who played the biggest role in the finale of the annual Subway Series.

Alfonso Soriano doubled in the game's only run in the seventh, while Dellin Betances struck out six of the seven hitters he faced in relief of Whitley to help the New York Yankees secure a 1-0 win over the New York Mets on Thursday at Citi Field.

Whitley, who got the call in place of an injured CC Sabathia, held the Mets to two hits and two walks before being pulled in the fifth with two outs and runners on second and third.

Betances (2-0) entered and grounded out Eric Young, Jr. before striking out the side in the sixth, and then again in the seventh after Soriano had broken the scoreless deadlock in the top of the frame.

"I'm just trying to make pitches," Betances said. "At that point, the game is still close. I'm just like, 'Let's get ahead.' If I can get ahead, I know I can put some guys away. Today was one of those days I was able to do that, and I'm just glad I got the win."

The 25-year-old deGrom, meanwhile, got the nod for the Mets after Dillon Gee was placed on the disabled list Wednesday due to a strained right lat muscle. The right-hander struck out six over six scoreless frames before yielding the game's only run in the seventh.

"I was very, very impressed," Mets manager Terry Collins said of deGrom's first big league start. "As the game went along he got better. I'm anxious to see him when he gets back out there next time."

Mark Teixeira worked a one-out walk, but was quickly retired when Brian McCann followed with a grounder to second baseman Daniel Murphy. Murphy fired to second to start a potential inning-ending double play, but David Wright's relay through skipped past Lucas Duda at first, allowing McCann to reach safely to extend the inning.

Two pitches later, Soriano stroked a double into the gap in left-center field and McCann hustled around from first for a 1-0 lead.

Scott Rice replaced deGrom to start the eighth and issued back-to-back one-out walks to spell the end of his outing.

Jeurys Familia took over on the mound and uncorked a wild pitch to move both runners into scoring position, but the Mets right-hander got Derek Jeter to smack a chopper to shortstop Ruben Tejada, who fired home to nab Kelly Johnson at the plate. Josh Edgin then flied out Jacoby Ellsbury to end the inning.

The Mets put runners on the corners with two outs in the eighth against Adam Warren following Murphy's two-out single to left, but closer David Robertson got Wright to ground out weakly to short to maintain the Yankees' slim margin.

Robertson retired the Mets in order in the ninth to nail down his seventh save of the season and complete the three-hit shutout.

Game Notes

The Mets won the first two games of the series in the Bronx to extend their win streak to six games over the Yankees before dropping the last two games at home ... Whitley and deGrom both notched their first career hits. The hit for deGrom snapped an 0-for-64 slide for Mets pitchers this season ... The Yankees placed outfielder Carlos Beltran on the 15-day disabled list Thursday with right elbow inflammation ... Jeter, who played in his final regular-season game of the Subway Series, went 4-for-15 during the four-game set ... According to Elias Sports Bureau, the last time the Yankees were involved in a game in which both starters were making their MLB debuts was Oct. 6, 1908 at Boston when the Highlanders' Andy O'Connor faced off against the Red Sox's Doc McMahon at the Huntingon Avenue Baseball Grounds.