American League Game Summary - New York at Oakland
Oakland, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Brett Lawrie hit a two-run homer, Billy Burns added a solo shot, and the Oakland Athletics rallied past the New York Yankees 5-4 on Thursday.
Alex Rodriguez tied Barry Bonds for the second most RBI in MLB history with a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning, but Burns' screamer in the bottom half and Lawrie's blast an inning later made it a 3-3 game.
CC Sabathia was pulled after putting the first two hitters on in the seventh, and David Carpenter walked in the go-ahead run when Ben Zobrist laid off a low payoff pitch with the bases loaded.
"Guys got to get it done," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "That's what we're asking them to do, and sometimes it's going to be like that.
Billy Butler tacked on a needed sacrifice fly, and Tyler Clippard survived a shaky ninth to secure the Athletics' first one-run victory at home (1-11) this year.
Brian McCann went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI, but the Yankees failed to build off a three-game sweep of the Royals.
Sabathia (2-7), who did not make it out of the third inning his previous time out, was charged with five runs on eight hits.
McCann took A's starter Kendall Graveman deep in the second inning for his third homer in as many games, and the blast ended a string of five straight A's starters having not allowed an earned run -- the club's longest streak since 1914.
Sabathia, a Bay-area native, worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the third by striking out Marcus Semien and Zobrist, and an overturned call led to another Yankees run in the fourth. Rodriguez tried scoring from second on a McCann base hit, and though the throw beat him to the plate, Josh Phegley missed a swipe-tag. Rodriguez was originally called out, but replay showed he got a piece of the plate with his hand and the call was reversed.
Rodriguez made some more history in the fifth when his flyout to right brought in Brett Gardner for RBI No. 1996. The embattled Rodriguez is 301 shy of matching Hank Aaron's long-standing mark.
Burns sent a line drive to left that barely cleared the wall in the bottom half, and Lawrie homered with Zobrist aboard in the sixth.
"He's starting to show some power," A's manager Bob Melvin said of Burns.
Evan Scribner (1-0) earned the win behind Graveman, and Clippard closed it out despite giving up a two-out, RBI double to Gardner in the ninth. Chase Headley flew out to the warning track in center to seal Clippard's fifth save.