APNewsBreak: Yankees hit with $13.9M luxury tax

By RONALD BLUM

AP Sports Writer

(AP) — The New York Yankees were hit with a $13.9 million luxury tax bill Thursday, their lowest since 2003.

The fee, assessed by Major League Baseball under its labor contract, is down from $18 million last year and $25.7 million in 2009, when the Yankees won the World Series.

Boston, which missed the playoffs for the second straight season, is the only other team that will have to pay a tax. The Red Sox received a bill for $3.4 million, up from last year’s $1.5 million.

Season-ending payroll information and the tax was sent to teams and obtained by The Associated Press.

According to the collective bargaining agreement, checks to pay the tax must be sent to the commissioner’s office by Jan. 31.

New York has paid the tax in all nine years since it began, $206 million of the $227 million raised under the penalty for high payrolls. The only other teams to pay have been the Red Sox (a total of $18.8 million), Detroit ($1.3 million) and the Los Angeles Angels ($927,000).

The Yankees pay at a 40 percent rate on the amount of their payroll over $178 million, a figure that includes the average annual values of contracts plus benefits. Boston, which exceeded the threshold for the second straight year, pays at a 30 percent rate. For purposes of the tax, New York’s final payroll was $212.7 million and Boston’s was $189.4 million.

Under the new labor contract, the Yankees’ rate would increase to 42.5 percent next year and 50 percent in 2013 if they continue to exceed the threshold, and Boston’s rate would go up to 40 percent next season.

But if in any year a team goes under the threshold, its rate decreases to 17.5 percent the next time it pays the tax.

As an added incentive for the high-spenders to decrease payroll, if they get under the threshold they will become eligible to get back some of the money they contribute in revenue sharing. The tax threshold stays at $178 million through 2013, then goes to $189 million in each of the following three years.

New York’s payroll under the conventional method of calculation – salaries and prorated shares of signing bonuses – increased from $215 million to $216 million, still below its high of $222.5 million in 2008.

Boston remained second and finished at $174 million, an increase of $3 million. Philadelphia stayed third at $165 million, a rise of nearly $20 million.

Even before adding Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, the Angels were fourth at $143 million, followed by the financially troubled New York Mets at $142 million, an increase of $14 million and a figure that likely will drop by $30 million or more next season. They were followed by the Chicago teams, who both missed the playoffs, with the Cubs at $141 million and the White Sox at $126 million.

World Series champion St. Louis was 11th at $113 million, and AL champion Texas was 13th at $104 million. Milwaukee (16th at $93 million), Arizona (24th at $66 million) and Tampa Bay (29th at $45 million) made the playoffs from the bottom half of payrolls, while the 2010 champion San Francisco Giants ($125 million) and Minnesota ($115 million) were among the high-spending teams to miss the postseason.

The Marlins, who have added free agents Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell as they prepare to open their new ballpark, were 25th at $62 million. The Los Angeles Dodgers kept their payroll steady at $110 million as owners Frank and Jamie McCourt argued in divorce proceedings that helped cause the team to file for bankruptcy. The Dodgers’ payroll had been $132 million in 2009.

Kansas City dropped from $77 million to last at $45 million. Houston, sold during the season, fell to $81 million from $90 million last year and $108 million in 2009.

Overall payroll was $43,000 shy of the $3 billion mark, up from $2.91 billion last year.

Payroll figures are for 40-man rosters and include salaries and prorated shares of signing bonuses, earned incentive bonuses, non-cash compensation, buyouts of unexercised options and cash transactions, such as money included in trades. In some cases, parts of salaries that are deferred are discounted to reflect present-day values.

The commissioner’s office computed the average salary at a record $3,039,161, up 3.6 percent from last year’s $2,932,162. The players’ association, which uses a slightly different method, pegged the average at $3,095,183 earlier this month, up 2.7 percent from $3,014,572.

Updated December 23, 2011

Subscribe to our feed!.

The Boston Red Sox are planning to try out setup man Daniel Bard in the starting rotation next season. And they have already lost super-closer Jonathan Papelbon to the Philadelphia Phillies via free agency.

So that leaves a pretty big gaping hole at the back end of the Sox bullpen, doesn’t it? CBS Sports reports that the Red Sox are “still eyeing” former Phillies closer Ryan Madson to help fill that gap.

The 31-year-old Madson has spent his nine-year career with the Phils as a setup man until last season when he took over the closing duties. In 34 opportunities, Madson saved 32 games last season, striking out 62 in 60.2 innings pitched. His ERA in 2011 was 2.37, significantly down from his career average of 3.59, though his ERA hasn’t come close to being that high in years.

Let the rumors come to you. Follow Scoop du Jour on Twitter or Facebook.

Related: Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies

Thanks for reading! .

The Boston Red Sox re-signed reliever Matt
Albers to a one-year contract on Monday.

Albers, 28, went 4-4 with a 4.73 earned-run average over 56 relief appearances
last season, his first in Boston.

The right-hander is 19-29 with a 5.04 ERA in 237 career appearances — 23
starts — with the Astros (2006-07), Orioles (2008-10) and Red Sox (2011).

Boston also announced it will not tender a contract to left-handed reliever
Rich Hill, who underwent Tommy John surgery in June. Hill is now a free agent.

©2011 Sports Network. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Comment Below!.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

Just in case you need a few more turkeys on this holiday, Sports Illustrated has posted a slide show of its “2011 Turkeys of the Year.”

If you’re a member of Red Sox Nation, you don’t have to wonder who tops the list.

From the website:

Our parade of fowl bumblers starts with the Boston Red Sox, who staged one of the greatest collapses in baseball history by blowing a nine-game lead in the season’s final month. Among the culprits: Carl Crawford, who batted .255 following his $142 million free-agent signing, and starting pitchers Josh Beckett, John Lackey and Jon Lester, who were accused of eating fried chicken and drinking beer in the clubhouse during games.

The only question, I suppose, is why they did not simply post a team photo? No, the entry was not sponsored by Bud Light or Popeye’s Chicken. By the way, here’s the team’s unofficial season highlight video:

And who can forget former Fenway Park left fielder Manny Ramirez, who comes in at No. 13:?

Another case of Manny being Manny? After testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs — his second violation of MLB policy — the 39-year-old slugger opted to retire rather than serve a 100-game suspension. He hit 555 home runs during his prolific career, but may be better remembered for his wacky — and often inexplicable — behavior.

For Celtics and other basketball fans, SI honors both sides in the ongoing labor disptue at No. 30:

Taking a page from the NHL circa 2004, NBA owners and players squared off over a new collective bargaining agreement and ended up jeopardizing the entire 2011-12 season with an angry stalemate. While the owners dug in on their hard line and Commissioner David Stern issued ultimatums, the players union led by Executive Director Billy Hunter rejected a 50/50 revenue sharing deal that would have meant a seven percent cut, split into factions, and filed two antitrust lawsuits. Meanwhile a Poll Position telephone survey found that 76 percent Americans say they don’t miss the NBA.

The Bruins did not make the list – at least not directly. But they were involved for the No. 31 and 35 entries, both from the Stanley Cup Finals:

Falling one win shy of the first Stanley Cup in the franchise’s 41-year history did not sit well with the Canucks faithful, thousands of whom rioted in the streets of Vancouver after their team lost Game 7 of the Cup final, 4-0, at home to the Boston Bruins. Windows were smashed, stores looted, and cars set afire amid $1 million-plus in damage. At least 140 people were injured. Some “revelers” were later publicly identified after photos of them running amok were posted on the web. One, a 17-year-old water polo player at the University of Calgary, was suspended by his team.

During a scrum at the end of the first period of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, Canucks winger Alex Burrows appeared to put the bite on the finger of Bruins center Patrice Bergeron. The NHL later declined to suspend Burrows after reviewing the incident and finding “no conclusive evidence” of the chomp although Bergeron was seen wearing a bandage on his digit after the game.

And finally, the Patriots are represented with the final entry, No. 36 on the list and formerly No. 92 in your football program, Albert Haynesworth:

The former all-pro defensive tackle, a notorious $100 million free agent bust with the Washington Redskins, was given another chance by the New England Patriots, who acquired him for a fifth-round 2013 draft pick in July. But not even Bill Belichick’s vaunted redemption factory could wreak the desired effect. In six games, Haynesworth had two tackles and no sacks and was served with his release on Nov. 8. Now the Tampa Bay Bucs, who claimed him on waivers, will see if they can squeeze anything out of him. “The thing that I would think about Albert, the way his last three years have played out, is that he hates football,” Chris Cooley, his former Redskins teammate told CBS Washington.

I can hardly wait to see the magazine’s “naughty and nice list” for Christmas.

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

The Boston Red Sox offered salary arbitration to
designated hitter David Ortiz and right-handed reliever Dan Wheeler.

They announced the moves before Wednesday’s deadline, also declining to offer
arbitration to catcher Jason Varitek, right-handed knuckleballer Tim
Wakefield, left-handed pitchers Erik Bedard and Trever Miller and outfielders
J.D. Drew and Conor Jackson.

Ortiz, 36, has played for the Red Sox since 2003 while Wheeler finished his
first season with the team.

The Sox are eligible to receive compensation for Ortiz, a Type A free agent,
and Wheeler, a Type B free agent. The players have until December 7 to accept
or decline that offer.

Varitek and Wakefield were cornerstones of the team that started a new winning
tradition for the Red Sox, but both are on the downside of their careers.

Varitek, 39, has played all 15 of his major league seasons in Boston and
Wakefield has pitched there since 1995, winning his 200th career game this
past season.

Former Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who signed with Philadelphia earlier
this month, was a Type A free agent and will yield Boston compensation.

©2011 Sports Network. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top.

If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top.

What do you guys think about this.

Posted: November 2
Updated: Today at 9:37 PM

BY JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer

The Boston Red Sox are looking for a strong voice in a clubhouse that disintegrated in September amid reports of players drinking beer and eating fried chicken during games.

Pete Mackanin thinks he might be able to provide it.

“I feel like I have leadership qualities and I feel like I can help this franchise get back to where it once was,” he told reporters Monday night after interviewing to be the Red Sox manager to rebuild from the worst September collapse in baseball history. “Not that it was ever gone from anything, but I guess there was a little hiccup here last year. We’re going to put it behind us and move on.”

The Red Sox opened their managerial search by interviewing Mackanin, the Philadelphia Phillies bench coach. Former Boston third base coach Dale Sveum is scheduled for an interview today, and general manager Ben Cherington says there could be five or six candidates in the first round of interviews in all.

“It could be more. We’re still working on the rest of that list,” Cherington said.

The Red Sox parted ways with Terry Francona, who won two World Series in Boston, after he admitted losing the clubhouse during a 7-20 September that left the ballclub one game short of the playoffs. Asked if he was more of a players’ manager or a disciplinarian, Mackanin said he was able to be both.

“I think you have to have an element of both sides of that in order to be a good motivator,” he said. “I think there’s a juggling act that’s involved in that, where you have to have enough discipline but at the same time let the players play easy. You don’t want them tense.”

Mackanin declined to evaluate the team’s collapse, saying he was more worried about the Phillies at the time. He wouldn’t say whether he would allow beer in the clubhouse if he gets the job.

“You know what, I don’t want to go there,” he said. “I’m not at that point yet. I’d rather not discuss that. We can talk about that later.”

A second baseman who spent 548 games over nine seasons with the Rangers, Expos, Phillies and Twins, Mackanin brings a well-rounded resume with him, including work as a minor- and major-league player, a scout and advance scout, a third base coach, infield and outfield instructor, minor league coordinator, “and just about everything except manager.”

He later remembered that he had in fact managed in the big leagues: on an interim basis for the Reds in 2007 and Pirates in 2005. He has also worked in the Expos, Pirates and Yankees systems, as well as in the Caribbean, South America and Australia.

“So I’d like to think it’s time for me to manage at this level,” he said. “I don’t ask (why). My wife asks me all the time. Of course I’ve wondered and I don’t know. Whatever happens happens. I’m good with it. I’m happy to have an opportunity just to have somebody listen to me.”

Also Monday, the Red Sox declined contract options on relievers Dan Wheeler and Scott Atchison. The Red Sox retain control over Atchison, but can sign him for a lower salary; Wheeler also remains an option, Cherington said.

“We didn’t feel like we could commit to that money for him this early in the offseason,” he said. “We’ll keep the door open.”

Cherington said he has also talked to the agents for David Ortiz and Jonathan Papelbon, who are both free agents, but that it is unlikely an agreement would be reached before the exclusive negotiating window closes on Thursday.

Cherington also said that no agreement has been reached with the Chicago Cubs for compensation for former GM Theo Epstein. Commissioner Bud Selig had set a Tuesday deadline, saying he would step in and settle it if an agreement hadn’t been reached; more conversations were planned, Cherington said.

“We’ve always felt like that was a possibility,” Cherington said. “It’s a difficult deal to work out because its hard to quantify the value of Theo Epstein. I have an idea of it and Theo doesn’t think he’s worth as much. So we haven’t been able to bridge that gap yet. I think both sides are comfortable with that outcome of it happens that way.”

Gotta run!.

Red Sox reliever Dan Wheeler. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

The epic collapse of the Red Sox seems to have all the makings of your favorite prime-time soap opera.

According to an extensive report in a midweek edition of the Boston Globe, the Sox were victimized by a discordant clubhouse, poor conditioning, lousy pitching, lack of leadership and a pill-popping manager who had lost control of the team.

Boston fans no doubt remember the bad old days when the Sox were known as a team which was so dysfunctional it needed “25 cabs for 25 players.” The Fenway Faithful probably thought those days were gone forever after their beloved “Idiots” won the franchise’s first World Series in 86 years in 2004, and then repeated the feat three years later, all the time segueing from a laughingstock into a model franchise.

This season apparently was a return to the past.

According to the Globe, the players complained loudly when, with Hurricane Irene about to hit Boston on the last weekend of August and with the Oakland A’s in town, the Red Sox juggled the schedule to play a day-night doubleheader on a Saturday so as not to have to re-schedule with a team on the opposite coast. Although the Sox swept the twinbill, the resentment continued. Management attempted to alleviate the problem by presenting each of the players $300 headphones and an invitation to a night on owner John Henry’s yacht, but it didn’t help. Not even a team meeting a week later by manager Terry Francona could stop the storm from spinning out of control.

The story also noted that pitchers Josh Beckett, John Lackey and Jon Lester routinely spent days in which they weren’t pitching ensconced in the clubhouse away from their teammates, drinking beer, ordering out for fried chicken and playing video games. According to a source, this was a regular practice that began the season before.

The lack of solidarity with their teammates was one thing, but the lack of focus also filtered into the pitchers’ conditioning program as they cut back on their training regimen despite the pleas of strength-and-conditioning coach Dave Page.

“It’s hard for a guy making $80,000 to tell a $15-million pitcher he needs to get off his butt and do some work,” the source told the Globe.

Coincidence or not, in the last 17 combined starts from the aforementioned trio, the Red Sox went 5-12 with a 6.34 ERA. In the month of September, Boston’s starters as a whole had an ERA of 7.08, the worst in baseball by nearly a full run.

The Globe also indicated that veterans such as David Ortiz, Jason Varitek and Kevin Youkilis were lax about exerting the leadership that had always carried the Red Sox in the past. Ortiz, however, disputed that, saying this season was just business as normal in the clubhouse.

“We had that when we won the World Series in 2004,” he said. “We had that when we won the World Series in 2007. Beer in the clubhouse, it’s always been there. Video games, that’s always been there. Guys eating fried chicken, that’s always been there.”

No one, however, comes off looking worse than Francona, whom team sources said was distracted by a failure to receive a contract extension, marital problems, medication and concern over the fact that both his son and son-in-law were serving the military in Afghanistan. Since he was the manager, he is ultimately responsible for everything that goes on, and whatever “team sources” the Globe consulted certainly didn’t have any problems pointing the finger at Francona. Current star Dustin Pedroia and former Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra have accused the team of conducting a “smear campaign” against Francona, a charge owner Henry denied on a Boston radio station Friday afternoon.

Francona admitted in the Globe story that he and Jacque, his wife of nearly 30 years, separated during the season and that after close to 20 surgeries on his knees that he has used painkillers for many years. But he consulted with the team’s internist, Dr. Larry Ronan, “and it was not an issue. It never became an issue, and anybody who knew what was going on knows that.”

Francona also knows, for better or worse, the glare that forever focuses on the Sox becomes even more intense when things go bad.

“You never heard any of these complaints when we were going 80-41 because there was nothing there,” he said. “But we absolutely stunk in the last month, so now we have to deal with a lot of this stuff because expectations were so high.”

Francona resigned as manager two days after the season ended, but according to some, his reasoning didn’t sit well with management as he said he didn’t feel he had the necessary support to remain with the team. Hence, the “smear campaign,” which Garciaparra says is par for the course.

“I think people are starting to recognize there’s a pattern here,” Garciaparra said on ESPN’s SportsCenter after the Globe printed its report, citing the bitter departures of, among others, himself, Johnny Damon, Pedro Martinez, Manny Ramirez, Derek Lowe, and now Francona. “… So the list is pretty good, pretty prestigious, but it seems to happen. So there’s a pattern. Is it all these guys that are bad or is there something more here?”

As for Pedroia, he has no problem with where his loyalties lie.

“(Francona has) protected every single guy in that clubhouse, and that’s why I respect him like you can’t believe,” said the 2007 American League MVP. “Whatever job he gets, if he needs me for a couple of games or whatever, just let me know. I’ll go play for free. That’s how I care about this guy. This guy is my family.

“For him to have to deal with this … He’s the best manager in the history of the Red Sox organization. He won two World Series. Look at the run that he had there, it’s pretty remarkable. That’s the part that hurts and whoever the person it is that’s saying this, I think they need to take a step back and kind of look in the mirror and understand what they’re saying about a guy. A lot of guys in this organization have his back and I’m one of them.”

NOT DANCIN’ WITH WHO BRUNG YA: In Friday’s Game 5 of the NLCS, St. Louis manager Tony La Russa made two moves he hadn’t all season, and they helped the Cardinals move within one game of the World Series.

In the bottom of the fourth with St. Louis up 3-0, the Cardinals had runners at first and second with no outs and the No. 8 hitter, Nick Punto, at the plate. Punto moved the runners up with a sacrifice bunt, which brought pitcher Jaime Garcia to bat. Garcia drove the run in with a groundout to short, giving the Cardinals a four-run lead.

The Cardinals had attempted 15 sacrifices during the regular season with their No. 8 hitter – five came when the pitcher was hitting eighth and the others late in games when La Russa would either hit for the pitcher or had already made a double-switch. In other words, this was the first time all season the manager bunted in that situation.

In the top of the fifth, after Milwaukee cut the lead to 4-1 and had runners on first and second with two outs, La Russa relieved Garcia and brought in right-handed reliever Octavio Dotel to face Ryan Braun. It was the first time all season the manager yanked a starter who hadn’t pitched five innings and allowed one run or less. La Russa obviously felt this was the key moment of the game and went to his best weapon. Dotel held right-handed hitters to a .154 average this season and he came through again, getting a strikeout although Braun swung through a hanging slider on strike three.

Nevertheless, the Cardinals enter today’s game with a chance to win the National League pennant.

Contact Rick Freeman at rfreeman@njtimes.com.

Follow the Times of Trenton on Twitter.

Thanks for visiting our blog =).

That’s all for today.

What do you guys think about this.

(Sports Network) – The Boston Red Sox try to get themselves back on track this
evening when they open a three-game set against the Texas Rangers at Fenway
Park.

Boston saw its lead atop the American League East standings dwindled to a
half-game on Thursday when it dropped a 4-2 decision to the New York Yankees,
who took two of three in the series and pulled even in the loss column with
the Red Sox.

Dustin Pedroia’s two-run homer was the lone offense for the Red Sox, who had
won three of four coming in. Alfredo Aceves (9-2) suffered the loss, charged
with two runs in 1 1/3 relief innings.

David Ortiz went 1-for-3 in the loss to extend his hitting streak to 15 games.
He is batting .500 with seven doubles, seven homers, 16 RBI and nine walks
during the run, which is his longest with the Red Sox. He had a 19-gamer with
the Twins in 2002.

“They played better than us,” said Pedroia. “Long games — we’re all tired.
Tonight, we just didn’t swing the bats that well. We move on and try to win
tomorrow.”

That starts with left-hander Andrew Miller, who had perhaps his finest outing
with Boston his last time out on August 25 against the Rangers. Miller
scattered three hits in 6 1/3 scoreless innings of that one and improved to
6-1 to go along with a 4.42 ERA.

“We’ve always seen glimpses, and he just kept going out and repeating,” Boston
manager Terry Francona said after that start. “Man, he threw fastball,
breaking ball, changeup. Again, against a lineup that is pretty dangerous and
he really did a good job.”

This will be his second-ever start against Texas.

The Rangers, meanwhile, have played well since losing three of four to Boston
last week. Texas won for the fourth time in six tries since that series on
Thursday, as Ian Kinsler hit a pair of solo home runs to back C.J. Wilson’s
quality outing, helping the Rangers defeat the Tampa Bay Rays, 7-2, in the
rubber match of a three-game series in Arlington.

Wilson (14-6) retired the first 15 hitters he faced and struck out eight over
six-plus frames. He allowed two runs on two hits and a walk to bounce back
from a forgettable five-inning, six-run effort against the Angels on Saturday.

Michael Young also went deep for AL West-leading Texas, which welcomed back
Adrian Beltre from the disabled list

Beltre, who was 1-for-4 with a run scored, will be back in Boston tonight for
the first time since leaving for the Rangers as a free agent this past winter.
He hit .314 with 13 homers in 75 games last season for the Red Sox, but left
for a five-year $80 million deal with Texas.

Getting the call on the hill will be lefty Derek Holland, who is 12-5 with a
4.30 ERA. Holland beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim last Friday, as he
allowed just a run and eight hits in 6 2/3 innings.

He is 1-1 in two starts versus the Red Sox with a 4.76 ERA.

Texas has won four of its seven matchups with Boston this season. Tonight,
though, will be its first trip to Beantown since it went 4-3 there last year.

The Sports Network

Thanks for reading! .

BOSTON (Sports Network) — The Boston Red Sox try to widen their lead atop the American League East standings this evening when they start a key three-game series against the New York Yankees at Fenway Park.

Boston enters this set with a 1 1/2-game lead on New York in the standings. The Red Sox are in that position primarily because of how well they have fared against the Yankees, as they are 10-2 against their hated rivals this season.

“When we play them, we’re 0-0,” catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia said. “You can’t look too much into that. We’ve got to play the best game we can possibly play. It’s a division rival.”

If they are to move even further in front, though, the Red Sox will have to get past CC Sabathia, a task that hasn’t been all that hard for them lately. Sabathia has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season, but that hasn’t been the case when facing the Red Sox, as he is 0-4 in four starts against them with a 7.20 ERA.

Against the rest of the league he is 17-3 with a 2.40 ERA.

Sabathia, who is 1-2 in his last four starts, did not get a decision on Wednesday against Oakland, despite a solid outing that saw him surrender three runs and seven hits in 7 1/3 innings of a 6-4 loss.

“You have to make pitches,” Sabathia said. “I didn’t, and it cost me.”

Sabathia should be facing a well-rested Red Sox squad that thanks to Hurricane Irene hasn’t played since sweeping a day/night doubleheader from the Oakland Athletics on Saturday.

The Red Sox pulled out a 9-3 win in game one before shutting the A’s out, 4-0, in the second game.

“Well I mean, we’ll use it to our advantage. That’s what we always try to do,” manager Terry Francona said of his team’s mini-break. “We were really fortunate the way it worked out. We won, we used every pitcher once but [Franklin] Morales, and he threw a little bullpen and he had been used a lot. Now we can let the guys regroup, because they’re going to need to. This has been a long haul here.”

Getting the call for the Red Sox this evening will be right-hander John Lackey, who has won seven of his last eight decisions. Lackey hasn’t pitched since last Tuesday when he beat the Texas Rangers, holding them to four runs and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings.

“This place is pretty tough, for a lot of reasons,” said Lackey, who is 12-9 with a 5.98 ERA. “The ballpark, they’ve always had a good lineup here. But with the offense we’re bringing in with us, you feel a little more confident than I have a few times in the past.”

Lackey beat the Yankees the last time he faced them and is 8-8 lifetime against them with a 4.67 ERA in 21 starts.

The Yankees gained a half-game on idle Boston on Monday, as Freddy Garcia returned from the disabled list and pitched six strong innings, and Nick Swisher clubbed a two-run homer, helping New York get past Baltimore, 3-2 in the finale of a four-game series.

Garcia (11-7), who hadn’t pitched since August 7 due to a lacerated right index finger, allowed just two hits, including a solo homer to Mark Reynolds, and had four strikeouts. Garcia won his fourth straight decision.

“First-pitch strikes are very important for me,” Garcia said. “I made my pitch when I needed. I got those guys in 0-2, 1-2 (counts). I executed my pitch.”

Mariano Rivera retired the side in order in the ninth for his 34th save of the year.

The Yankees won despite playing without shortstop Derek Jeter and third baseman Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez was sent back to New York on Monday for an MRI on his jammed left thumb, while Jeter sat out due to a bruised right knee.

Both players are questionable for tonight’s affair.

The Sports Network

Not much else going on in the MLB planet today.