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Giambi powers Yankees past Red Sox

Aug 28, 2008 - 10:11 PM By Larry Fleisher PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

BRONX, New York (Ticker) -- The New York Yankees were seven outs away from answering questions about being swept by the Boston Red Sox. Two swings from Jason Giambi will not erase past performances, but they ensured a different line of questioning.

After blasting a pinch-hit two-run homer in the seventh inning, Giambi ripped a bases-loaded single in the ninth, plating Brett Gardner with the winning run and lifting the Yankees to a 3-2 victory over the Red Sox on Thursday afternoon.

Mariano Rivera (5-5) worked 1 1/3 innings for the win while Derek Jeter had three hits for the Yankees, who avoided a potentially devastating three-game series sweep at the hands of the rival Red Sox.

The Yankees (71-62) won for the seventh time in 11 contests but still trail the Red Sox (77-56) by six games in the wild card race.

While they have maintained their optimism, an eight-game deficit would have been nearly insurmountable, and that is exactly what the Yankees faced most of the afternoon.

"I'm glad we don't have to answer it," Yankees center fielder Johnny Damon said of a possible sweep by Boston.

"It's not impossible (to make the postseason)," Giambi said. "But it would have been really tough to fall that far behind."

New York was unable to do much of anything off Boston starter Jon Lester, who allowed one run and six hits in 6 2/3 sharp innings but had thrown 118 pitches after Cody Ransom doubled to left in the seventh.

Looking for a big hit after his team failed to come through with two on and nobody out in the sixth, manager Joe Girardi sent up Giambi to bat for Jose Molina against Hideki Okajima.

Giambi fouled off the first pitch but left no doubt with his next swing, sending the ball over wall in center field to tie the score at 2-2.

Xavier Nady led off the ninth with a single and was lifted for Gardner, who stole second with one out. Boston rookie Justin Masterson (4-4) issued an intentional walk to Hideki Matsui and also walked Ivan Rodriguez before being replaced by All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon.

That set the stage for Giambi, who took a pair of fastballs from the hard-throwing Papelbon to fall behind in the count, 0-2.

But Papelbon's third pitch was another fastball - this one right over the plate - that Giambi lined into center field to drive home Gardner.

"I know (Giambi) hasn't been doing exactly what he wants to do every time he's been up there," New York starter Mike Mussina said. "But today he stepped up, drove the ball to left-center field and then the last time, got down in the 0-2 count, didn't try and do too much and Papelbon threw one out over the plate."

Before Giambi's hit, the Yankees had been 2-for-21 with runners in scoring position in the series.

"We've been stale," Giambi said. "We haven't been able to get the big hit, to make the big pitch. Everything that could go wrong went wrong."

"It's a game that we felt we had to win," Girardi said. "It's a big win for us."

The Yankees had a shot for the late-inning dramatics by getting outstanding performances on the mound.

Mussina allowed an RBI single to Jason Varitek among six hits in seven innings. He also gave up a run-scoring groundout to Jacoby Ellsbury, as Boston scored both its runs in the fifth.

The Red Sox missed a chance to complete their first game three-sweep at Yankee Stadium since April 2004. They finished a nine-game road trip with a solid 6-3 mark but were disappointed in not being able to close this one out.

"I don't care about the first two games," Boston manager Terry Francona said. "This one hurt. We played our hearts out and lost a really tough game."