Indians Hand Yankees Worst Loss in Team History

With the largest loss in their history, the Yankees’ AL East lead was cut to 3 1 /2 games, their August slump beginning to resemble a free-fall.Omar Vizquel went 6-for-7 to tie the American League record for hits, and the Cleveland Indians routed the Yankees 22-0 last night.Javier Vazquez was knocked out in the second inning, Cleveland took a 15-0 lead in the fifth, and Jody Gerut and Victor Martinez hit three-run homers off Esteban Loaiza in the ninth. To make it worse for the Yankees, owner George Steinbrenner was on hand to watch.New York had never lost by more than 18 runs, falling 24-6 at Cleveland on July 29, 1928, and 19-1 at home against Detroit on June 17, 1925. Previously, the Yankees’ biggest shutout loss was 15-0 at home against the White Sox on May 4, 1950.Jake Westbrook (12-6) allowed five hits in seven innings.Cleveland, which had season highs for runs and hits (22), set a team record for largest shutout win, topping its 19-0 rout of Boston on May 18, 1955.Vazquez, his faced bowed and wiping sweat off his face, walked off the field to boos after 1 1 /3 innings, matching the shortest start of his career.Vazquez (13-8) gave up six runs, and the Indians then scored seven off Tanyon Sturtze and three against C.J. Nitkowski.Cleveland, which moved back over .500 at 67-66, scored three runs in each of the first three innings, then added six more in the fifth. Every Indians bat ter had scored by the fifth and the top eight batters in the order all had RBI.Travis Hafner hit a three-run triple in the first inning, Coco Crisp homered and drove in three runs. Vizquel and Martinez had four RBI each.It was bad from the start for the Yankees, who were booed early and often by the crowd of 51,777.New York’s AL East lead, which stood at 10 1 /2 games on the morning of August 16, was cut again by Boston, which beat Anaheim 10-7 for its 19th win in 23 games.Vazquez has struggled in his first season with the Yankees, going 2-4 in eight starts following New York losses.

Indians Hand Yankees Worst Loss in Team History

Indians Hand Yankees Worst Loss in Team History

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