VOTE: Do the Yankees need to make a change at manager?
Asdrubal Cabrera hit a grand slam and an RBI single in Cleveland's 14-run second and the Indians set the bar for Yankee Stadium's new record book, coasting to a 22-4 victory.
"It was just one of those games for the entire team," said Mark DeRosa, who went 4-for-7 and tied a career high with six RBIs. "Just a lot of guys getting good swings."
DeRosa and Shin Soo-Choo hit three-run homers, Travis Hafner, Grady Sizemore and Victor Martinez had solo shots and manager Eric Wedge earned his 500th victory. Jhonny Peralta had three hits and two RBIs after missing Friday's 6-5 loss with a strained left elbow.
The Indians chased struggling starter Chien-Ming Wang and set several marks that could stand for a while at New York's $1.5 billion ballpark. The 14 runs were the most scored in the second inning of a major league game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The 13 hits in the inning were a franchise record for a Yankees opponent.
"We did a good job of not missing pitches and we squared a lot of balls up today," Wedge said.
Mark Teixeira and Melky Cabrera each hit a two-run homer for the Yankees, who were embarrassed in two of their first three regular-season games at their new field. New York lost 10-2 in its home opener Thursday when Cleveland scored nine runs in the seventh inning.
"I haven't seen this many big innings in a long while," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We expected pitching to be a strength and sometimes it has been. But at other times not."
It was the most runs for the Indians since they beat New York 22-0 on Aug. 31, 2004, at the old Yankee Stadium. The 22 runs also tied the Yankees' record for most allowed in a home game.
Choo delivered the first big blow in the second, hitting a three-run drive off Wang to give Cleveland a 3-2 lead. Asdrubal Cabrera singled in a run, DeRosa had a two-run double and Martinez had an RBI single before Wang was replaced by Anthony Claggett, who was making his major league debut after being recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before the game.
Wang (0-3) was charged with eight runs and eight hits in 1 1-3 innings, giving him a 34.50 ERA in three starts this year. He went 5-0 with a 3.23 ERA in six April starts last season.
"Actually, I thought he threw more good sinkerballs today but that inning got out of hand and we need to fix that," Girardi said. "We have some time. We have a day off I think Thursday and we're going to have to decide what's best for Chien-Ming Wang and the team."
The Yankees could skip Wang's next turn in the rotation but Girardi said the team hasn't made a decision yet.
Peralta doubled in two more runs after Wang left and Asdrubal Cabrera hit a drive to right on a 3-1 pitch for his first homer of the year. Sizemore followed Cabrera's shot with his fourth homer to make it 14-2 as the crowd booed loudly.
By then, the party was on in the Indians' dugout.
"There's some funny stuff that's said," DeRosa said. "Obviously Garko made the first out and didn't want to make another out in the same inning."
The fans started chanting "We want Swisher!" for the second time in the series as Claggett struck out DeRosa for the final out. Yankees outfielder Nick Swisher pitched a scoreless inning during a blowout loss at Tampa Bay on Monday.
Wang and Claggett combined to throw 69 pitches during the half-inning, which lasted 37 minutes.
"We knew it was long," Francisco said. "I think I was talking to Grady, I'm like, 'It would suck to be on defense right now, just sitting out there."' The "We want Swisher!" chant returned when Hafner hit his fourth homer of the season in the eighth.
Fausto Carmona (1-2) was the beneficiary of the Indians' big day at the plate, working six innings in his first victory of the season. He allowed four runs and six hits.
Carmona surrendered Teixeira's third homer in the first as the crowd of 45,167 filed in on a picturesque day in New York. Even with the beautiful, 75-degree weather, the 1,800 Legends Suite seats in the first nine rows ringing the plate, which cost between $500 and $2,625 each, had long strings of empty chairs.
Sizemore and Hafner each had three hits and scored three times. Cabrera tied a career mark with four hits and five RBIs.
Notes: Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez (right hip surgery) took 75 swings and hit several long homers during his third consecutive day of batting practice in Florida. Rodriguez, expected to rejoin the team by May 15, also took grounders on the infield dirt for the first time and increased the intensity of his running program. ... Yankees RF Xavier Nady (right elbow) had a non-dye MRI and team physician Christopher Ahmad wants to consult with Dr. Lewis Yocum before deciding what to do next. Yocum performed Tommy John surgery on Nady's elbow in September 2001. ... Indians OF David Dellucci (strained left calf) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Columbus on Monday. ... Plate umpire Ed Hickox was struck on his helmet by a foul ball off the bat of Cleveland's Ben Francisco in the sixth inning. He left the field for a moment and returned with a Yankees catcher's mask on. But second base umpire Tom Hallion replaced him behind the plate in the eighth. A spokesman for the Yankees said he was taken to a hospital for observation.
NEW YORK SPORTS AND MORE
USEFUL LINKS:
SEND TIP OR PHOTO || REPORT TYPO || GET WIDGET
EYEWITNESS TWITTER || FIND US ON FACEBOOK
