Photograph of Mets relief pitcher Duaner Sanchez, center, surrounded by infielders, from left, Raul Casanova, David Wright, Jose Reyes, Damion Easley and Carlos Delgado as manager Willie Randolph, lower right, comes out to the mound to take out Sanchez after the Arizona Diamondbacks scored five runs in the eighth inning by Paul Connors/AP Yankees 6, Mariners 1: Johnny Damon had two doubles and a home run and Mike Mussina pitched six innings of one-run......

Yankees 9 White Sox 5: Bobby Abreu had a huge grand slam in the seventh to put the Yankees up 6-3 and Johnny Damon added a 3-run shot in the 8th to put the game safely out of reach. Chien-Ming Wang was shaky, but fought through six innings and got the win. It is the 50th win of his career and Wang becomes the fastest pitcher to win 50 games since Dwight Gooden did it......

After days of waiting for their bats to step up, the Yankees’ offense came around on Monday and that combined with great pitching propelled them to an easy 6-1 win. Bobby Abreu got things started in the first with a screaming liner over the wall in right for a home run that put New York up 2-0. It was part of a 3-for-3 night for Abreu that ended with him only a double short of......

Rangers 3, Islanders 0: They don't know where they'll be seeded, but the Rangers are going back to the playoffs. Jaromir Jagr scored the first two goals in the first period, and the team never looked back. Even though many fans saw this as a foregone conclusion for the last several weeks, the Rangers weren't taking any chances. “It’s never been like that before,” Jagr said. “You don’t realize when the coach is telling......

Photo of Hideki Matsui holding up a drawing of his wife by the AP Hideki Matsui is sneakier than he looks. First, he disappears Wednesday to get married. On Thursday, it transpired that earlier this year, Matsui, while already engaged, had joined a bet with Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu, two other Yankees bachelors. The three would award the prize to the one that got married first. Matsui won, tying the knot with his......

Cleveland 6 Yankees 4: The 2007 Yankees’ season ended as it began, in disarray. Chien-Ming Wang didn’t make it out of the second inning and while Mike Mussina was reasonably effective, he left with a 6-1 deficit. Meanwhile, Paul Byrd managed to shut down the Yankees’ offense. Somehow, Byrd pitched around 10 base runners in five innings and the Yankees squandered numerous opportunities to score. In a way, that was the story of this......

Yankees 8 Indians 4: It looked bleak in the third inning. Already down 2-0, the Yankees watched Roger Clemens hobble off the mound with a hamstring injury. But, Phil Hughes came in and stabilized things and Johnny Damon hit a huge three-run home run to put New York ahead. After Trot Nixon misplayed a Robinson Cano single into a three-run event, the Yankees had seized control of the game and reversed the momentum in......

Yankees 8, Red Sox 7: Everything looked good for the Red Sox as they were playing last night's game. They were up 5.5 games on the Yankees and about to make it 6.5 when the top of the 8th came around and everything went south. Down by 5 runs, the Yankees scored 6 runs in the inning before making a single out. They started the scoring with back-to-back solo home runs by Jason Giambi......

Red Bulls 5, Galaxy 4: Giants Stadium fills up for plenty of events, but Red Bulls games don't usually rank among those. Saturday's did, if only because David Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy was in town. Those fans, who were there for Beckham and not the Galaxy, found another rare treat: goals in a Major League Soccer game. Soccer doesn't need frequent scores to be exciting, but the rare 5-4 game never hurt anyone. Not......

Yankees 6 Tigers 1: In desperate need of starting pitching the Yankees turned to a reliable source. Andy Pettitte threw eight innings of five-hit ball shutting down the Tigers’ offense and giving his team a chance to win. And, the offense responded with Bobby Abreu, Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi and Andy Phillips providing big hits. With Boston splitting a doubleheader, the Yankees gained a ½-game in the standings. But, they will have to keep their......

Yankees 7 Orioles 6: This game is an example of how good things are going for the Yankees right now. Ace gets slapped around for three runs in the first, no problem. All-time great closer blows it in the ninth, no problem either. New York stormed back from a 3-0 deficit and overcame a blown save by Mariano as well. As has been usual recently, home runs played a part in the show. Bobby Abreu......

Alex Rodriguez settled anticipations of his 500th career home run early in the Yankees game against the Kansas City Royals this afternoon. With Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu on second and first base, A-Rod swung at the first pitch Kyle Davies served him and knocked it over the left field fence. It was Rodriguez's 36th homer of the season with 108 RBIs, and the magic number 500 has the third basemen on the verge......

Mets 5, Nationals 0 (5 innings): John Maine lasted five innings. Normally that wouldn't that be that good, but then the rains came, the game was called 90 minutes later and Maine had a complete-game one-hitter. Don't look past Maine's battery-mate, Ramon Castro, who went 2-for-2 with a home run and has looked great when he's seen the time. Would the Mets be a better team with him as the regular catcher and Paul......

Mets 2, Reds 1: On a night when the Mets honored one member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, a future member inched closer to the 300 win milestone. It was Ralph Kiner Night at Shea Stadium and the Mets announced that their broadcast booth at Citi Field will bear the broadcaster's name. The TV booth at Shea is already named after Kiner, who played in the Majors for 13 seasons, mostly with the Pittsburgh......

Yankees 5 Minnesota 1: It should have been a great night at the ballpark. Roger Clemens became only the 8th pitcher to win 350 games and Bobby Abreu hit a monster home run, into the middle of the upper-deck in right, but it was all overshadowed by A-Rod. This wasn’t about his wife’s t-shirt or a dramatic play on the field, but the sight of A-Rod grabbing his right leg after running to first in......

Rockies 4 Yankees 3: It’s funny how the longer you watch baseball, the more you tend to see things repeat themselves. In 2005, the Yankees used a big winning streak to get out of a deep hole and climb above .500, only to fall back to .500 and below when they got swept by the Royals in a series where they made way too many mental errors and only scored six runs in three games.......

Yankees 4, Diamondbacks 1: The Yankees are rolling, winning seven games in a row and now stand at .500 for the first time since May 9th. The fact that they're only .500 after their win streak shows how awful their record was before. Bobby Abreu extended his hitting streak in the 1st inning with a three-run homer off Brandon Webb, last year's Cy Young winner in the NL. That was all the team needed as......

Yankees 13 Pirates 6: It’s official, the Yankees are on fire. Sunday they completed their sweep of the Pirates, bludgeoning them behind two home runs from Alex Rodriguez and a 4-4 day from Bobby Abreu. The win was their sixth in a row and leaves them one game below .500 and 9 ½ back in the division. From the outset, the bats were cooking, jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the first, but the......

Yankees 10, White Sox 3: When Mike Mussina pitches well these days, he doesn't last too long. He cruised into the seventh inning in Chicago on Thursday before being derailed and helping give up a one-run lead. That didn't stop the Yankees, who used a Bobby Abreu double to take the lead for good in the eighth. Thinks got dicey with Kyle Farnsworth's appearance in the bottom of the inning, but an Alex Rodriguez......

Yankees 5 White Sox 1:If the Yankees are going to get off the deck and get back into playoff contention, they will need a lot more nights like this. Chien-Ming Wang was brilliant, going the distance while allowing only one run and six baserunners. Wang also struck out four as he cruised to an easy win, his fifth of the season. The Yankees scored the bulk of their runs in the fourth. Johnny Damon......

Boston 11 Yankees 6: It was a bunch of little things that proved the Yankees undoing in a disastrous seventh inning. Bobby Abreu showed once again that he is afraid of walls by completely botching a flyball to start the inning. After an intentional walk to Manny Ramirez, Scott Proctor, not wanting to come anywhere near Kevin Youkilis after last night, walked him to load the bases. Then Robinson Cano half-assed a throw to Jeter......

Mets 3 Yankees 2: Willie Randolph deserves the game ball in this one as he allowed Endy Chavez to swing away on a 1-0 count and Chavez hit the game-winning home run. No one in the stadium thought Chavez was going to do anything but bunt with a runner on first, and when Andy Pettitte grooved one, Chavez responded. Chavez’s home run wiped out a 2-1 Yankee lead, which they had taken on a......

Mets 9 Milwaukee 1: The Mets made their case for the being the NL favorites with a decisive victory over the Brewers and a series win. Oliver Perez was masterful, taking a shutout into the ninth and Damion Easley had 4 RBI’s to pace New York. The Mets had more subs than regulars in the lineup, but still managed 14 hits. Seattle 2 Yankees 1: Where do you start with the questions? How about why......

Mets 5, Brewers 4: Too bad the Mets couldn't hit like this off Jeff Suppan in last year's playoffs. They got three home runs -- from David Wright, Carlos Delgado and Damion Easley -- and beat the pitcher who shut them down while with the Cardinals last October. They have to feel happy that Wright and Delgado hit their third homers of the year, but who would have guessed that Easley, whose homer was......

Rangers 14 Yankees 2: In many ways you could see this one coming. How often can one team beat another team? The Yankees have feasted on Texas for the past two years. How long could the streak of great starting pitching last? Since last Friday, the Yankees had an ERA of 1.34 for their starters. All of these streaks came to an end when Texas bludgeoned New York for 14 runs Thursday afternoon. It was......

Yankees 10, Orioles 7: Yeah, you read the headline right. Alex Rodriguez came through in yesterday afternoon's game in the biggest way - with a two-out game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the 9th inning. It was his 2nd home run of the game. The bottom of the ninth inning went something like this: out, out, Robinson Cano single, Derek Jeter walk, Bobby Abreu hit-by-pitch, grand slam by Rodriguez into the black seats. Kei......

New York 99 Miami 93: Trying to figure out the Knicks will drive you insane. Off of a terrible loss against the Nets, the Knicks played a decent basketball game against a better team and won. They took care of the basketball, only 10 turnovers and had three scorers with 20 or more points. Eddy Curry had a very nice offensive game, going 9-17 from the field and adding 11 boards. He still doesn’t play......

In keeping with our lists of events from 2006, here are some of the sports stories that Gothamist found compelling in the past year. It ranges from the playoff disappointment from the Mets and the Yankees to the welcome performances of last season's Rangers, this season's Jets and Rutgers. Mickelson Chokes at Winged Foot: Everyone knew the Winged Foot course in Mamaroneck, N.Y., was a tough place to play, but no one found it crueler......

-Yankees 6, Blue Jays 3: Bobby Abreu's home run and Johnny Damon's run-saving catch helped the Yankees down -- and elminate -- the Blue Jays in Tuesday's win. The Yankees reduced their magic number for clinching the American League East to one. That's one Yankees win or Red Sox loss. Home-field advantage is still at stake for the Yanks -- they lead Detroit by two games -- but Joe Torre will use an early clinch......

-Yankees 12, Devil Rays 4: For eight innings, the margin of victory would have been more than the Yanks' magic number, which dropped to nine with the win. Hideki Matsui returned, went 4-for-4 with a walk and Mike Mussina pitched effectively. Both develepments should make Yankees fans smile. Some might have tuned out though, since Bobby Abreu knocked in six runs during a nine-run Yankees first inning. -Mets 6, Marlins 4: The Mets staged a......