Bergman Stymies Yankees

Sean Bergman was quick to give credit to his defense. But Manager Tom Kelly thought Bergman deserved the accolades as the Minnesota Twins won for the seventh time in eight games.

“I walked too many people today, [but] the defense played great behind me,” Bergman said Tuesday night after the Twins defeated the New York Yankees, 6-1.

Bergman (2-0) gave up one run, four hits and six walks in 6 1/3 innings.

“Bergman pitched his best game of the year for us,” Kelly said. “He kept the ball down. He had a good breaking ball and a good sinker.”

Bergman walked Scott Brosius with one out in the seventh before giving up a single to Wilson Delgado. Travis Miller came in and gave up a pinch-hit single to Jim Leyritz to load the bases and a sacrifice fly to Derek Jeter.

But that was all the Yankees would get as they lost for the fourth time in five games.

The Yankees have scored only nine runs in the four losses.

“I sense a little frustration on the offensive part, but that doesn’t concern me,” Yankee Manager Joe Torre said. “I think everybody’s feeling a little extra pressure to do it themselves.”

Jacque Jones, who lost a fly ball in the sun Monday that almost cost the Twins the series opener, drove in two runs and Ron Coomer also had two runs batted in.

Todd Walker and Cristian Guzman gave the Twins a 2-0 lead in the third inning with consecutive home runs against Ramiro Mendoza (2-2).

“Something kept it fair,” Walker said of his homer.

Jones made the score 3-0 with an RBI single in the fourth, scoring Marcus Jensen, who had doubled with two out.

Minnesota added two more runs in the sixth on Jones’ RBI single, which chased Mendoza, and Torii Hunter’s RBI groundout.

Mendoza, making only his third start of the season, gave up five runs and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings.

“My sinker was working good. I thought I threw pretty well today,” he said.