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Pettitte, Yankees look to rebound in series opener vs. Red Sox

Aug 28, 2007 - 2:16 PM Boston (80-51) at NY Yankees (72-59) 7:05 pm EDT

BRONX, New York (Ticker) -- The New York Yankees brought in Andy Pettitte to stabilize their rotation. They will rely on the veteran southpaw more than ever when they square off with their bitter rivals.

Pettitte takes the mound Tuesday when the struggling Yankees host the Boston Red Sox in the opener of a three-game series between the American League East Division foes.

Signed to a one-year, $16 million contract this past winter, Pettitte (11-7, 3.69 ERA) has been outstanding since the All-Star break, going 7-1 with a 2.67 ERA in nine starts.

Pettitte won his fifth straight start last Wednesday, working seven innings and allowing only one run in an 8-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

The 35-year-old Pettitte has struggled in his five appearances - four starts - against the Red Sox this season, posting a 5.01 ERA while surrendering 30 hits and 10 walks in 23 1/3 innings.

New York desperately needs a strong outing from Pettitte following Monday's 16-0 loss to the Detroit Tigers.

Mike Mussina yielded six runs to drop his third straight outing for the Yankees, who concluded a 2-5 road trip. But despite their recent struggles, the Yankees still trail the Seattle Mariners (73-56) by just two games in the AL wild card race.

However, New York has a lot more ground to make up against Boston, which boasts the best record in the majors and owns a comfortable eight-game cushion atop the division standings.

The Red Sox have won six of their last seven contests and are riding high following their dominant four-game series sweep of the Chicago White Sox this past weekend.

David Ortiz and J.D. Drew homered in Sunday's 11-1 triumph for Boston, which outscored Chicago, 46-7, in the series.

Two days later, the Red Sox give the ball to Daisuke Matsuzaka (13-10, 3.76), who has dropped each of his last two decisions. The Japanese rookie worked six innings but suffered the loss last Wednesday in a 2-1 defeat to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Matsuzaka has struggled against the Yankees this season despite recording a win in each of his first two starts against them. The righthander last faced New York on April 27 and surrendered four runs over six innings of an 11-4 victory.

The Red Sox are 7-5 against the Yankees this season and have gone 3-3 here at Yankee Stadium.