Yankees 3 - 2 Twins
Final
  for this game

Sabathia aims to keep Yankees streaking against Twins

Jul 3, 2013 - 2:44 PM (Sports Network) - CC Sabathia tries to pitch the New York Yankees to a third straight win on Wednesday when they continue their four-game set with the Minnesota Twins at Target Field.

Sabathia failed to pick up career win No. 200 on Friday in Baltimore. The big left-hander was cruising through five innings, but the wheels came off in the sixth, as he allowed three runs. He ended up with the loss and gave up four runs and five hits in seven innings to fall to 8-6 on the year to go along with a 4.15 ERA.

Nobody is happier to see the calendar turn than Sabathia, who surrendered four or more runs in four of his five June starts, while compiling a 5.11 ERA.

"I feel like I'm wasting starts," Sabathia said. "I'm feeling great and throwing the ball good. I've just not been able to put together a whole start. It's just frustrating."

Sabathia is 16-8 lifetime versus the Twins with a 2.97 ERA in 32 starts.

Minnesota, meanwhile, will counter with righty P.J. Walters, who is 2-4 with a 6.03 ERA. Walters lost his third straight start and fourth consecutive decision on Friday against Kansas City and was pounded to the tune of six runs in just three innings.

"That's two in a row where I hadn't done my job," said Walters, who has never faced the Yankees. "Falling behind, obviously, last week it was walking guys, today it was falling behind and giving up hits. Either way it was two bad ones in a row. I've got to come back and straighten some things out."

On Tuesday, Phil Hughes turned in a second straight strong outing and received some much-needed offensive support in New York's 7-3 win.

Hughes (4-7) stopped a three-start losing skid, during which the Yankees totaled a combined two runs, by yielding just one run on six hits over seven sharp innings. The effort came five days after the right-hander tossed eight frames of two-run ball in a hard-luck 2-0 defeat to Texas.

"I just tried to stay aggressive, it seemed like they were as well and that played to my advantage," said Hughes. "Got a lot of quick outs, I made a couple mistakes but got away with most of them."

He got plenty of help on Tuesday, with Robinson Cano homering for a third consecutive game as part of a 2-for-4, three-RBI night and Alberto Gonzalez also collected two hits and drove in three runs.

Brian Dozier had a two-run double in the ninth inning for Minnesota and Joe Mauer delivered an RBI single in the loss, the Twins' sixth in eight tilts.

Samuel Deduno (4-3) worked six innings for Minnesota and was reached for three runs on five hits.

New York won four of its seven matchups with the Twins last season.






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