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Rangers-Yankees Preview

Apr 17, 2010 - 10:39 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Texas (5-5) at New York (7-3), 1:05 p.m. EDT

The New York Yankees have used strong starting pitching and a consistent stream of hits from Derek Jeter to dominate the first two games of this weekend home set with the Texas Rangers.

The Yankees go for the sweep Sunday when they send Andy Pettitte to the mound, while Jeter looks to notch his sixth straight multi-hit effort.

New York (8-3) is off to its best start since going 9-2 in 2003, riding CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett in wins to begin this series. Sabathia went the distance on a three-hitter in a rain-shortened, six-inning 5-1 victory Friday and Burnett yielded six hits over seven scoreless innings Saturday in a 7-3 win.

The constant in both victories was Jeter, who has hit safely in every game and is batting .380. He has five hits and three RBIs in this series and three of his 11 hits in the last five games have been homers.

The Yankees have won four straight series to start a season for the second time, previously doing it in 1922.

"I don't necessarily always remember how you start. You remember how you finish, and that's the important thing," Joe Girardi said after his 200th win as Yankees manager. "I'm just happy with the way we're playing right out of the gate, and obviously the more wins that you have in April, you know, the less that you maybe have to have in a later month."

Alex Rodriguez hit his first home run of the season Saturday after going without one in his first 41 at-bats. Rodriguez passed Mark McGwire for eighth place with his 584th homer.

"It feels good to keep moving up the line," Rodriguez said. "I think there'll be a time and a place for reflection, and that will be many years after I'm done playing."

New York last swept a home series from Texas when it won four games Aug. 11-14, 2006.

Pettitte (1-0, 0.75 ERA) will try to close out the homestand the way he did when he earned his first victory in Tuesday's Yankee Stadium opener. He yielded five hits over six scoreless innings in a 7-5 win over the Angels.

The veteran left-hander went 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA in two home starts against Texas last year. The Rangers slugger with the most success against him is Vladimir Guerrero, who is 9 for 23 (.391).

Texas (5-6) has lost three straight after a three-game win streak. Nelson Cruz's three run homer - his seventh of the year - was the Rangers' lone bright spot Saturday.

Rich Harden (0-0, 2.79) will make his third start for Texas. After pitching 3 2-3 innings in his Rangers debut against Toronto on April 7, Harden lasted six innings and allowed two runs Monday in a 4-2, 10-inning win at Cleveland.

The right-hander is 1-2 with a 4.75 ERA in six starts against the Yankees, who he last faced in 2007.

Jeter is 6 for 16 against Harden and Rodriguez 6 for 20 with a homer.