Yankees 14
White Sox 3
Last week at the All-Star Game, Alex Rodriguez told The Post’s Kevin Kernan he was “100 percent” certain that the AL wild card wouldn’t come from the East.
After the Yankees stayed torrid yesterday afternoon with a 14-3 drubbing of the wild-card leading White Sox, Derek Jeter dismissively refuted the notion, while A-Rod stuck to his guns.
Jeter ripped an RBI double to center in the first and added a two-run double to left-center during a four-run fourth that iced his team’s sixth victory in seven games. Afterward, he emphatically stated that both the East division title and the wild card were still in play.
The Yanks (52-36) reached a season-best 16 games over .500 and only trail the White Sox by four games in the wild card. Asked about the sentiment the Bombers can’t win the wild card, he responded, “I don’t know who’s been saying it. I haven’t been saying it.
“I mean, we have 70-something games left. You can’t just punch a team’s ticket with 70-something games left. Why not (two playoff teams from the East)? Not saying that we’re worried about a wild card. We’re trying to win a division. “Four games with 70-something games left, I don’t think that’s that big of a lead – four games, three games, that’s a week, when you think about it.”
Rodriguez, who sparked a three-run third with an RBI single to left, wouldn’t allow that either the Red Sox or Yanks would be good enough to get in the playoffs through the back door. For what it’s worth, Johnny Damon (three runs scored) agreed with Rodriguez. “I’m a firm believer, I think the wild card is coming from the [Central] division,” A-Rod said. “I really do. I don’t think any of those teams is going to slow down.
“And I think it’s best for us to think about the East. I don’t think in mid-July we should be thinking about the wild card.
“The thing about the White Sox is, they could go and leave this place and win 18 out of 20.”
The Yanks bludgeoned the White Sox for 14 hits and scored in six of the eight innings they batted. They scored seven runs in the third and fourth with four bunts and shoddy Chicago defense.
Mike Mussina (11-3) looked outstanding until the fifth, when he allowed three runs, including a two-run, upper-deck missile by Jim Thome. Mike Myers, Scott Proctor and Ron Villone finished up. The Yanks won three of four in Detroit in late May and early June, and have a chance to sweep the reeling White Sox this afternoon.
“Our team has played two great games,” Rodriguez said. “It’s important to come out and drop the hammer on them, because they’re going to come out hungry to get a win out of us.”
In the third, Bernie Williams followed A-Rod with a two-run double deep into the right-center gap off lefty Mark Buehrle that gave his team a 4-0 lead. The next inning, Jason Giambi followed Jeter with the two-run single to right that gave the Yanks an 8-0 edge.
“Today was a good example of guys stepping up, from top to bottom,” said Andy Phillips, who ripped a two-run double in the sixth and a two-run homer in the eighth. “We certainly feel good about guys we’re running out there.”
Even without Hideki Matsui, Gary Sheffield and Robinson Cano, the Yanks have shown they can beat anyone in baseball. Right now, waiting for the cavalry isn’t the issue. It’s a question of whether both the wild card and division will be in their sights, something two Yankee All-Stars disagree on.
Derek Jeter, unlike teammate Alex Rodriguez,
sees no reason why the AL wild-card team can’t
come from the East. The numbers would seem to
back Jeter up, since the Yanks have sliced two
games off the White Sox’ wild-card lead in two
days.
AL wild card race
at All-Star break
W-L Pct. GB
White Sox 57-31 .648 –
Yankees 50-36 .581 6
Today
W-L Pct. GB
White Sox 57-33 .633 –
Yankees 52-36 .591 4
