MINNEAPOLIS — Jared Burton (1-6) once again failed to hold the lead as he gave up three runs in the eighth inning and the Yankees rallied to beat the Twins, 10-4 Monday night at Target Field.
Yankees All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano homered twice and scored the game-tying run in the eighth after leading off the inning with a double against Burton. He scored on a throwing error by Burton, who later gave up the go-ahead run on an RBI single by Zoilo Almonte.
Brian Duensing provided just as miserable of an encore by allowing four runs in the ninth. Burton has an ERA of 11.00 since June 6th.
After Cano’s first homer, a solo shot in the first inning, the Twins scored three runs in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a two-run single by Ryan Doumit, to give starter Scott Diamond a lead to work with.
Work with it he did, but not very well — at least not right away.
Second straight start the Twins have put up a 3-spot for Scott Diamond in the first and he has failed to hold the lead.
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) July 2, 2013
The Yankees tied the game at three when Cano got ahold of another Diamond pitch and belted it over the left field wall for a two-run homer in the third. But Diamond settled down and ended up pitching 6 2/3 innings with five strikeouts (season high) and one walk.
With the game tied at 3-all, Chris Parmelee chased Yankees great Andy Pettitte from the game with a solo home run in the sixth.
Pettitte didn’t factor in the decision. The left-hander is 10-0 in his last 12 starts against the Twins. New York has won 11 of the 12 games.
Josh Willingham was scratched from the lineup with discomfort in his knee.
Notes: Joe Mauer didn’t start the game due to an illness. He struck out in a pinch-hit appearance in the eighth inning.
