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Recap: Yankees 6, Braves 4
Yankees 6, Braves 4: Alex Rodriguez tied Lou Gehrig for the most career grand slams with 23 and Nick Swisher’s two-run homer capped New York’s six-run eighth inning as the visiting Yankees won their fifth straight.
Down 4-0 entering the eighth, New York loaded the bases with one out. Rodriguez lined a 3-2 pitch from Atlanta reliever Jonny Venters (3-3) into the left-field seats to tie the score. After Venters allowed a single to Robinson Cano, Swisher greeted Cory Gearrin with his 10th homer of the season to give the Yankees a 6-4 lead.
Atlanta’s Matt Diaz doubled home three runs in the first inning, but the Braves wasted Mike Minor’s best start in two months. Minor took a shutout in the eighth, allowing five hits and one run. He walked one and struck out four, and threw 68 of his 100 pitches for strikes.
Minor allowed a one-out single to Derek Jeter in the eighth. On came Venters, who surrendered a single to Curtis Granderson and walked Mark Teixeira to set the stage for Rodriguez.
Diaz, getting the start in part because he entered the game 5-for-9 lifetime against New York left-hander CC Sabathia (8-3), doubled to deep right in the first to give Atlanta a 3-0 advantage. The Braves added a fourth run on Jason Heyward’s groundout in the seventh.
Former Atlanta closer Rafael Soriano pitched the ninth for his 10th save.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Rodriguez’s slam was his 10th homer of the season. Six Yankees have 10 or more homers, and New York leads the majors with 95 homers. … Minor, who could end up in the minors when Kris Medlen is ready to join the Atlanta rotation next week, has only one victory since April 19. … Atlanta center fielder Michael Bourn extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a first-inning single … The Braves fell to 27-1 this season when leading after seven innings.
