Johnson Steps It Up; Yankees Win Again

Randy Johnson couldn’t stay awake long enough to watch the New York Yankees sweep the rival Red Sox in a doubleheader to open a rare five-game series Friday.

It wasn’t until he woke up on Saturday morning that he realized his team needed something extra from him.

“He sucked it up,” Manager Joe Torre said after Johnson overcame midgame wildness to beat Boston, 13-5, lasting seven innings to rescue the Yankees bullpen after a successful, but exhausting, sweep.

“It was enormously important. Especially considering how dry we were in the bullpen.”

In a replay of the 1978 “Boston Massacre,” the Yankees scored at least 12 runs in winning each of the first three of the five-game series and extending their lead in the AL East to a season-high 4 1/2 games. Twenty-eight years ago, New York swept four at Fenway in September to erase the rest of what had been a 14-game deficit; the Yankees won the division that year on Bucky Dent’s home run in a one-game tiebreaker.

“We’ll find a way to regroup,” Red Sox Manager Terry Francona said. “We dug ourselves a pretty big hole and we’ll find a way to dig out of it.”

Johnson (14-9) went to bed Friday night with the Yankees losing, 10-7, in the second game of a day-night doubleheader. New York came back to win, 14-11, and complete the sweep in a 4-hour, 45-minute game that was the longest nine-inning game in major league history.

Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon again punished his former team, hitting three doubles and sparking a five-run, tiebreaking rally in the sixth.

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ROUNDUP

Chicago 4, at Minnesota 1: Jon Garland pitched 7 2/3 strong innings, retiring 14 straight at one point, to help the White Sox win at Minneapolis. Rob Mackowiak homered for Chicago, which won for the seventh time in 10 games. Bobby Jenks got the final three outs for his 35th save in 37 chances.

Texas 3, at Detroit 1: Mark Teixeira homered and Robinson Tejeda returned from triple A to combine with four relievers on a five-hitter. The Rangers have won eight of their last 11.

Oakland 7, at Kansas City 2: Barry Zito pitched eight strong innings and the Athletics bounced back from a doubleheader sweep Friday. They have won 13 of their last 16.

at Baltimore 15, Toronto 0: Daniel Cabrera pitched a five-hitter for his second career shutout and Kevin Millar drove in five runs.

Cleveland 5, at Tampa Bay 3: Jeremy Sowers won his fourth consecutive decision and Jhonny Peralta had a two-run triple during a three-run fourth at St. Petersburg, Fla.