The New York Yankees take aim at a third straight win on Tuesday when they start a three-game series with the Houston Astros at Yankee Stadium.
New York returns home after a disappointing 2-3 road trip that actually ended on a high note with consecutive wins over the Tampa Bay Rays. On Sunday, Brett Gardner's two-run single to helped the Yankees post a 4-2 win.
"You can't come into a game thinking that you've lost a few games in a row," New York shortstop Derek Jeter said. "I know you have to write that story, but for us, every day we come here you've got to be optimistic and you've got to take each game as it comes. ... When you're scuffling a little bit, that's when you find out a lot about teams."
Mark Teixeira hit a solo home run, while Jacoby Ellsbury also drove in a run for the Yankees, who had dropped five in a row before taking the final two in St. Petersburg. Hiroki Kuroda (8-8) allowed two runs on four hits and a walk over 6 2/3 innings.
"I thought his split was good and his sinker was outstanding," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi about Kuroda. "He had really good command on his fastball and was doing really well with all of his pitches."
Getting the call for the Yankees on Tuesday will be left-handed veteran Chris Capuano, who is 0-2 in four starts since being acquired from Boston. Capuano absorbed the loss last Monday in Baltimore, as he gave up four runs and six hits in six innings, dropping him to 1-3 overall on the year to go along with a 4.13 ERA.
Capuano, who turns 36 on Tuesday, has pitched at least six innings in all of four of his starts with the Yankees, recording a 3.60 ERA and notching 24 strikeouts in 25 innings.
He has faced the Astros 15 times 912 starts) and is 7-4 with a 3.15 ERA.
Houston, meanwhile, will counter with Brett Oberholtzer, who is 4-8 with a 3.87 ERA. Oberholtzer suffered a hard-luck loss his last time out on Wednesday against Minnesota, as he allowed just a run in seven innings of his team's 3-1 setback.
Oberholtzer has lost both of his starts to the Yanks and has pitched to a 4.09 ERA in doing so.
Houston comes into the Bronx on the heels of splitting a four-game series with the Boston Red Sox. The Astros managed the split on Sunday, as they hit three home runs, including Jose Altuve's first career grand slam, in an 8-1 win at Fenway Park.
"The big guy put a charge into that one," Astros manager Bo Porter said of Altuve. "He got the bases loaded today and he put a really good swing on it."
Collin McHugh (6-9) worked out of several jams while tossing six innings to get the win.
Houston took two of three from the Yanks earlier this season after losing 13 of 15 previous meetings.
.
[SportsNetwork.com]
