Red Sox 2 - 1 Yankees
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Aug 5, 2015 - 5:01 AM Luis Severino, one of the majors' most highly touted pitching prospects, figures to draw a lot of eyeballs when he makes his debut against the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.

Given the New York Yankees' offensive surge, he could draw a lot of run support, too.

Severino is a 21-year-old right-hander and the crown jewel of New York's farm system. He's 7-0 with a 1.91 ERA through 11 starts for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre, surrendering no home runs in 61 1-3 innings. He boasts a fastball that can reach the high-90s, along with a change-up and slider.

General manager Brian Cashman said Tuesday he'd remain in the rotation regardless of Wednesday's performance.

"If he performed up to his capabilities, we felt he would pitch for us from August on at some point," Cashman told MLB's official website. "And here we are. So now it's, let's see what we've got."

New York's offense is certainly capable of backing Severino up. The Yankees (60-45) won 13-3 Tuesday, getting three-run homers by Brian McCann and Chris Young during a nine-run seventh inning. They've won 11 of 15 and have 90 runs and 21 homers over their last 10 games.

They were 8 for 15 with runners in scoring position, and Chase Headley is batting .435 with 12 RBIs during a 12-game hitting streak after a 2-for-5 night.

"Honestly, the blunt way to say it is we have a lot of really good hitters," Young said. "Everybody's a threat right now."

The status of McCann, who has three home runs in his last five games, is uncertain after he tweaked his knee and moved to first base Tuesday. Joe Girardi said the team would learn more about the situation Wednesday.

New York has averaged 7.3 runs in taking seven of the last eight meetings

The Red Sox (47-60) have been limited to 16 runs during an eight-game road losing streak, and haven't lost nine in a row away from home since a 10-game slump Aug. 25-Sept. 29, 2001.

They'll counter Severino with Steven Wright (4-4, 4.53 ERA), a 30-year-old journeyman drafted in 2006 by Cleveland. Wright enjoyed his best outing of the season Thursday, striking out a career-high eight while limiting the Chicago White Sox to two runs over seven innings in an 8-2 victory.

Home runs remain a concern - both runs came on Jose Abreu's homer - the eighth allowed by Wright over 39 1-3 innings in seven starts.

Wright won his only appearance against New York this year, permitting two runs over five innings of relief in a 6-5, 19-inning road victory on April 10. Mark Teixeira homered against him.

Pablo Sandoval has hit safely in 12 straight against the Yankees after homering Tuesday.

New York placed outfielder Dustin Ackley on the disabled list prior to the series opener due to a strained lower back and is expected to miss a month or more. He was 0 for 3 through two appearances off the bench for the Yankees since being acquired from Seattle last week.






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