Excuse the exclamation point, but the way things were going Gothamist wasn’t sure if the Yankees would ever win again. Win they did, shutting out the Pirates 9-0 in their first meeting since the 1960 World Series. Mike Mussina gave the Yankees the dominant start they needed. Moose was perfect until Daryl Ward singled with two outs in the fifth inning. Mussina pitched a complete game giving up five hits and having the shutout preserved by a nice relay from Bernie Williams to Robinson Cano to Jorge Posada to nail Matt Lawton at home.
Offensively, every Yankee except for Tony Womack and A Rod got a hit. Hideki Matsui, who almost missed the game due to an ankle injury, homered in the second inning to get the Yankees started and added another hit before being lifted for a pinch hitter. Jason Giambi just missed a three-run homer in the fifth, settling for a double off the 408 sign in center.
This was the type of game the Yankees needed to start their thirteen game homestand. With two more games against the Pirates before the Cubs, Devil Rays and Mets come to the stadium, the Yankees need to run off a winning streak and get back into the pennant race. The question is, can this team accomplish that?
Photo by Kathy Willens/AP via Yankees.com
