Granderson, Gardner lead Yankees over Cubs 4-3
Curtis Granderson hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the sixth inning and Brett Gardner made a terrific play in the outfield to lead the New York Yankees to a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
Granderson, who was born in nearby Blue Island, also had two hits and a walk as the Yankees won for the seventh time in nine games, bouncing back from a 3-1 loss in the opener of their first series at Wrigley Field in eight years.
Granderson's fly ball to deep right put New York ahead 3-2, but the Yankees almost blew it with shoddy fielding behind A.J. Burnett (7-5), who struck out eight in 5 1-3 innings.
Errors on shortstop Eduardo Nunez and second baseman Robinson Cano helped Chicago load the bases with one out in the bottom of the sixth. Geovany Soto then hit a sinking liner to left off Cory Wade, but Gardner tracked it down and made a strong one-hop throw to catcher Russell Martin, who held on for the final out after Carlos Pena slammed into him.
Wade pumped his right arm behind the plate when the play was over and Gardner sprinted in from the outfield as the Yankees bounced off the field.
Hector Noesi and David Robertson each worked a perfect inning for New York before Nunez also atoned for his error with an RBI double in the ninth. Mariano Rivera allowed two hits, including Reed Johnson's leadoff homer, but still managed to close it out for his 17th save in 20 opportunities.
Pena hit a two-run homer and Starlin Castro added two more hits for the Cubs, who had won four of five. Castro has at least two hits in five of his last six games and is batting .415 (17 for 41) in his last 10 games overall.
A crowd of 42,236 filled Wrigley Field for the middle game of this rare weekend series between two of baseball's most popular teams, setting a season high for the second straight day. But this one had a much stronger Yankees presence than Friday's opener.
Alex Rodriguez was welcomed with a ''roll call'' greeting from a group of New York fans sitting in the bleachers. There were several ''Let's go Yankees!'' chants, and Rivera and Jorge Posada each received a loud ovation when they entered the game.
Cubs starter Ryan Dempster (5-6) was in trouble throughout the game, setting season highs with six walks and 119 pitches. The right-hander allowed three runs and eight hits in 5 1-3 innings.
Dempster wriggled out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the first, striking out Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher to end the inning. But he got into trouble again in the third.
With one out and runners on the corners, Cano hit a smash down the right-field line to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. Rodriguez moved to third on Cano's RBI double and scored his 1,800th run on Swisher's sacrifice fly, snapping a tie with Ted Williams for 16th on the career list.
Martin then walked and stole second before Dempster struck out Nunez to end the inning, leaving runners on second and third.
Pena got the runs back for Chicago in the fourth, hitting a tying drive to right with one out. The big first baseman, who spent four seasons with Tampa Bay before signing with the Cubs over the winter, was just 5 for 36 with 14 strikeouts against Burnett before connecting for his 11th homer of the season.
Burnett allowed four hits and walked three in his first win since June 1 at Oakland. He also had a sacrifice that landed in foul territory before spinning across the first-base line and back into the field to help set up Granderson's tiebreaking fly ball.
Notes: Yankees RHP Phil Hughes (shoulder inflammation) threw in the outfield at the team's spring training complex in Florida and is scheduled to throw around 65 pitches Sunday in a rehab appearance for Class-A Staten Island. ... 3B Dante Bichette Jr. has agreed to a deal with the Yankees, and New York's top draft pick will begin his professional career with the club's rookie-level team in Florida. Yankees manager Joe Girardi played with his father, Dante, who hit .299 with 274 homers in 14 seasons in the majors. ... Actors Vince Vaughn and Joel McHale each threw out a ceremonial first pitch. Vaughn, a big Cubs fan, also led the singing of ''Take Me Out To The Ball Game'' during the seventh-inning stretch. ... Cano's one-out double into left-center in the eighth inning scattered a flock of seagulls that covered part of the outfield.
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Jay Cohen can be reached at http://twitter.com/jcohenap