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Yankees-Blue Jays Preview

Aug 3, 2009 - 6:25 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

New York (63-42) at Toronto (51-54), 7:07 p.m. EDT

Before the New York Yankees can worry about a showdown with their closest pursuers in the AL East, they will have to face a pitcher who has dominated them recently.

The Yankees will try again to solve Roy Halladay, who makes his first start since the trade deadline when the Toronto Blue Jays open a two-game home set Tuesday night.

New York (63-42) is a half-game ahead of Boston in the division, and the archrivals meet in the Bronx for a four-game set beginning Thursday. The Yankees are 0-8 against the Red Sox this year.

They are 5-2 against Toronto (51-54), but one of the losses predictably came against Halladay (11-4, 2.68 ERA) on May 12 when the Blue Jays ace pitched a five-hitter in a 5-1 victory.

That was Halladay's sixth win in as many starts against New York, posting a 1.90 ERA in that span. The Yankees fared better July 4, hitting three homers and scoring five runs in seven innings against him as they went on to win 6-5 in 12 innings.

Halladay is 16-5 with a 2.90 ERA in 34 games - 32 starts - versus the Yankees. He has gone 8-0 with a 2.10 ERA in his last 10 home outings against them.

There was a chance New York wasn't going to face Halladay as a member of the Blue Jays anymore, as Toronto listened to offers for the right-hander but didn't move him before the trade deadline passed Friday.

"As a whole, obviously, everybody would rather him be here," center fielder Vernon Wells told the Blue Jays' official Web site. "Whenever you see him on the mound and know that he's going to be on the mound every five days, there's a comfort to that with everyone else around. As a group, we're happy that he's still here."

Left fielder Johnny Damon is 15 for 41 (.366) against Halladay since joining New York for the 2006 season, but Derek Jeter is 8 for 42 (.190) in the same span. Second baseman Robinson Cano has two hits in his last 25 at-bats versus Halladay.

The Blue Jays lost six of Halladay's last seven starts, although he went 1-3 with a 3.00 ERA in that stretch. He yielded three runs over seven innings Wednesday in a 3-2 loss at Seattle.

New York avoided a four-game sweep by the Chicago White Sox with an 8-5 victory Sunday. Melky Cabrera hit for the cycle - the 15th time in Yankees history that was achieved - and drove in four runs.

Cabrera is 15 for 35 (.429) over his last 11 games.

"We have lots of confidence in Melky," Damon said. "He plays the game right. He's capable of being a five-tool presence. He's real close. If he adds a little more power in his game, we can put him in that category."

Scheduled Yankees starter Andy Pettitte (8-6, 4.51) has struggled of late, going 0-3 with a 5.34 ERA in his last five outings. He pitched better Thursday against the White Sox, not receiving a decision after giving up two runs over 6 1-3 innings of a 3-2 loss.

The veteran left-hander is 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA in two starts versus the Blue Jays this year. He's 13-5 with a 3.92 ERA at Toronto after an 8-2 win May 13 in which he yielded two runs over six innings.

Blue Jays second baseman Aaron Hill, among the AL leaders with 132 hits, is 3 for 17 (.176) against Pettitte. Hill is batting .353 (18 for 51) with six homers and 16 RBIs during a 12-game hitting streak.