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Yanks, Garcia open up set with Blue Jays

Apr 29, 2011 - 3:00 PM (Sports Network) - Freddy Garcia tries to continue his incredible start to the season this evening when the New York Yankees open a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium.

Garcia was signed to a minor league deal by the Yankees this offseason and pitched well enough this spring to land the team's fifth starter spot. But, Garcia has exceeded expectations through his first two starts, as he has gone 1-0 and has yet to allow a run in 12 innings.

The veteran right-hander did not get a decision on Sunday in Baltimore, despite another terrific outing that saw him scatter two hits over six scoreless innings. He also struck out seven in his team's 6-3 extra-inning win.

Garcia has faced the Blue Jays 14 times and is 6-5 against them with a 6.10 ERA.

The Yankee offense exploded on Thursday, as Nick Swisher went 3-for-4 with a home run, four RBI and three runs scored to help New York earn a split in its four-game series with the Chicago White Sox with a 12-3 win.

Brett Gardner went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and three runs scored while Curtis Granderson knocked in two runs for the Yankees, who took the final two games of the series.

CC Sabathia (2-1) gave up three unearned runs on seven hits with a walk and six strikeouts over seven innings to get the win.

Toronto won in thrilling fashion on Thursday, as Corey Patterson's RBI bunt single in the ninth inning helped lead the Blue Jays over the Texas Rangers, 5-2, in the finale of a four-game series.

"It definitely worked out for us," Patterson said. "Really, I just wanted to put the bunt in the right location. I happened to end up getting a hit out of it, too. If they had picked it up and thrown it to first base, that would have been fine, because the main objective was to score the run and go ahead."

Frank Francisco (1-0) earned the win in 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief for Toronto, which added two insurance runs after Patterson's bunt and won three of four in the series.

Hoping to keep the momentum going for Toronto tonight will be left-hander Ricky Romero, who has lost his last three starts and is 1-3 on the year with a 3.00 ERA. Romero's latest setback came on Sunday against Tampa Bay, which reached him for two runs -- both coming on a first inning home run -- and five hits in seven frames.

"I felt great. After you give up the two runs and you put up zeroes after that, I think you leave the game feeling pretty good," Romero said. "When you're going good, you can throw any pitch for a strike and you know they're going to swing and miss, or make an out. That's how I felt."

Run support has been a problem for the 26-year-old hurler, as the Jays have managed just four runs in his last four starts.

Romero is 2-2 lifetime against the Yankees with a 5.70 ERA in six starts.

The Yankees split a two game-set with the Blue Jays last week after Toronto took 10 of 18 in the series a year ago. The Jays were 4-5 in the Bronx in 2010.