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Yankees-Red Sox Preview

May 8, 2010 - 5:56 AM By MIKE LIPKA STATS Writer

New York (19-8) at Boston (15-14), 3:10 p.m. EDT

The New York Yankees' injured list continues to grow, but so does the Boston Red Sox's deficit behind their rivals in the AL East.

It won't be easy for Boston to gain ground Saturday afternoon, as the Yankees send ace CC Sabathia to the Fenway Park mound in search of New York's sixth straight victory.

A flurry of injuries has not managed to slow down the reigning World Series champions, who lost Robinson Cano (knee) and Nick Johnson (wrist) while cruising to a 10-3 victory over Josh Beckett and the Red Sox on Friday night.

The Yankees (20-8) were already playing without Jorge Posada and Curtis Granderson. Granderson is on the disabled list and Johnson returned to New York to be examined, and it's unclear if any of the others will be available Saturday.

"The card is a little short right now," New York manager Joe Girardi said. "It is frustrating, but no one is going to feel sorry for (you)."

The Red Sox (15-15) are certainly not getting any sympathy from their arch-rivals as their difficult start continues.

Boston had won four straight before Friday's game, but even their longest winning streak of the season didn't move them closer to the AL East's top teams. Each club ahead of the Red Sox in the division has won at least five in a row; Boston trails first-place Tampa Bay by 7 1/2 games, the Yankees by six and Toronto by 2 1/2.

Since beating New York 9-7 on opening day April 4, the Red Sox are a combined 0-7 at home against the Yankees and Rays. New York is already 3-1 in Boston after going 2-7 there last year.

Sabathia (4-1, 2.74 ERA) started Boston's lone win over the Yankees in 2010, opening his season by allowing five runs in 5 1-3 innings at Fenway.

But the subsequent five outings for the big left-hander have been much better, including Monday's dominating performance against Baltimore. Sabathia, aware of his injured teammates, held the Orioles to one run in eight innings of a 4-1 victory.

"We know that we've got to pick up the slack," Sabathia told the Yankees' official website. "We have a great team, and we have to try to hold down the fort until these guys get healthy."

Boston hopes Clay Buchholz (3-2, 2.97) can match up with Sabathia. The least-known and lowest-paid member of the Red Sox's star-studded rotation, Buchholz actually has the best ERA of the quintet and is tied for the team lead in wins.

The right-hander was the beneficiary of bountiful offensive support in Monday's 17-8 win over the Los Angeles Angels, earning a victory after allowing four runs in 5 2-3 innings.

He's 0-1 with a 5.74 ERA in three career outings against the Yankees, but two of the three have been quality starts.

Buchholz will face a somewhat depleted New York lineup, but the Yankees haven't been performing like they're short-handed. The club has totaled 37 runs during its five-game winning streak.

The bottom half of the Yankees' lineup had the biggest impact in Friday's game. Nick Swisher hit a three-run homer to open the scoring in the fourth inning, while backup catcher Francisco Cervelli (2 for 3) and fill-in outfielder Randy Winn (2 for 4) combined for three runs scored and two RBIs.