Yankees Scratch Out a Victory Over Angels

For seven innings Sunday night, it appeared the New York Yankees would beat the Angels by a nose--the prickly proboscis of Angel pitcher Ramon Ortiz, to be precise.

The right-hander was called for a balk when he scratched his nose with his glove while standing on the rubber before a full-count, two-out delivery to Jose Vizcaino in the fourth inning.

That gave New York its second run and was the difference until the eighth, when the Yankees scored twice to pull away for a three-length victory, defeating the Angels, 4-1, before a sellout crowd of 43,411 at Edison Field.

Ortiz’s balk did not cost the Angels the game, but it was another costly lesson for the youngster, a reminder that when five-time Cy Young Award-winner Roger Clemens is pitching for the other team, there is no margin for error.

Clemens, who has not lost since June 13, gave up one run and four hits in 6 2/3 innings, walking three and striking out two to improve to 10-6.

“Instead of being so focused on the hitter when there’s a man on third, I’ve got to remember there’s a runner on base,” Ortiz said. “Bengie [Molina, Angel catcher] was telling me something, sweat was coming down my face, and I just wiped it off. I didn’t even realize I did it.”

That wasn’t Ortiz’s only mistake. He also walked six, including Scott Brosius with the bases loaded in the second inning, and he often fell behind in counts.

But Ortiz, who was masterful in a complete-game, two-hit, 2-1 victory over Boston on Tuesday, gave up only three hits and struck out five in seven innings before turning the game over to the bullpen down 2-1 in the eighth.

“Ramon didn’t have the same mound presence as he did Tuesday--he was a little hyper, a little too anxious, a little fidgety,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “That worked against him early, but he really calmed down and pitched well the last few innings. . . . If this is the worst we’re going to get from Ramon, he’s going to be fine.”

The Angels pulled to within 2-1 in the fifth when Adam Kennedy reached on a fielder’s choice, took second on Kevin Stocker’s walk and scored on Darin Erstad’s single to center.

Tim Salmon’s pinch-hit single with two out in the seventh chased Clemens, but Yankee left-hander Mike Stanton, before he even delivered a pitch to Erstad, picked off pinch-runner Benji Gil, an inexcusable mistake considering Gil had no intention of stealing second.

“Benji was a little flat-footed out there,” said Yankee Manager Joe Torre, who called for the pickoff. “And when you’re not familiar with Stanton’s move, he’s quick and can surprise you.”

Most of the Angels are familiar with Clemens, but that didn’t make things any easier Sunday. The right-hander relied almost exclusively on his fastball for the first three innings and leaned heavily on his forkball for the next three, the lunging swings of the Angels producing five lazy fly balls to left field off the bats of left-handed hitters.

“Roger studies hitters and knows what they’re trying to do,” said first baseman Mo Vaughn, a former Red Sox teammate of Clemens who flied out three times to left against him Sunday. “He has a book on hitters that he’s compiled over the years, and he knows how to make adjustments.”

The Yankees scored two insurance runs in the eighth when Bernie Williams walked and David Justice and Tino Martinez singled off reliever Mike Holtz, the latter hit scoring Williams.

Mark Petkovsek came on to walk Jose Canseco to load the bases and Jorge Posada to force in the fourth run, and Yankee closer Mariano Rivera retired the last five batters for his 26th save.

The Angels embark on a crucial nine-game trip to Toronto, New York and Boston having won four of six from the Red Sox and Yankees at home.

“It would have been great to sweep,” Erstad said, “but I’ll take winning two out of three from the Red Sox and Yankees any day.”