The Oakland A’s send out fifth starter Vin Mazzaro to battle the Yankees emerging young starter Phil Hughes tonight at Yankee Stadium. The A’s were beaten down pretty badly last night as the Yankees roughed up Trevor Cahill in an 11-5 victory. Although the Yankees lost Alex Rodriguez to the DL, they received a variety of contributions throughout their lineup, including 3-hit nights form Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, and Nick Swisher. When your 3-4-5 hitters go a combined 9-for-11 with 7 RBIs and 7 runs, you’re doing something right.
The loss, coupled with the Rangers win, dropped the A’s 8.5 back of the first place Rangers heading into the final day of September. Time is ticking and the A’s need Mazzaro to pitch beyond his age tonight if they’re going to get the win.