February 11, 2009 10:17 PM
Yanks Destroy Tigers 12-3
The old Yankees and the new.
Yogi and Whitey. Chili and Coney.
They all came together on a soggy Friday for New York's home opener, to raise the World Series banner for a record 24th time and perhaps take another step toward No. 25.
And they celebrated with what else? a rout.
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"Like it was all last year," interim manager Don Zimmer said. "Today it's somebody; tomorrow it's somebody else."
David Cone took a no-hitter into the sixth, and the Yankees breezed like they did so often last year, when they compiled an astonishing 125-50 regular and postseason record and swept San Diego for their second Series title in three years.
Unlike last year, when they started 0-3 and 1-4, the Yankees have won three straight following an opening loss at Oakland.
"This is my first opener at Yankee Stadium. It was something special with Yogi back here and the world championship banner," Davis said. "The only thing missing here was Joe."
Zimmer, in his 51st year of professional baseball, wasn't comfortable with the attention, often saying he is looking forward to turning the team back to manager Joe Torre, now recuperating from prostate cancer surgery and expected back in May or June.
"I thought I managed real good today," Zimmer said with a laugh, pointing out how little he had to do.
Weather was the biggest problem. The game was played in a steady rain and the field became so lake-like that Davis had to slow to a walk at third base as he scored the final run. The game finally was halted with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, and umpires called it after a 66-minute wait.
"A one point in the last inning, I was standing on top of the rubber because there was a puddle in front of the rubber," Cone said. "It was like in Little League, before you learn how to pitch."
Despite steady rain, the ballpark was nearly full for the pregame hoopla the announced attendance of 56,583 was the fifth-largest for a regular-season game since the remodeled ballpark opened in 1976.
Yankees Hall of Famers Whitey Ford and Phil Rizzuto hoisted the banner up the flagpole in left, and Berra made the ceremonial first pitch in place of Joe DiMaggio, who died last month.
After Berra was fired as manager by George Steinbrenner 16 games into the 1985 season, he vowed never to return to Yankee Stadium as long as The Boss owned the team. But the pair ended their feud in January, with Berra accepting Steinbrenner's apology.
"I was a little nervous out there," Yogi said. "The first day, you're always a little nervous."
Beiker Graterol, the Tigers' starter and loser, didn't fare as well with his pitches and was rocked in his major league debut, leaving after four innings with Detroit down 7-0. The last pitcher to make his major league debut in a Yankees home opener had been Boston's Billy Rohr, who came within one strike of a no-hitter before Elston Howard singled on a 3-2 pitch on April 14, 1967.
"Starting today was unbelievable for me against the Yankees, the world champion," he said. "I know everybody can hit, and I made a few mistakes, so Chili, he got four hits."
Cone (1-0) struggled with his control but allowed just one hit in 5 1-3 innings a single to right by Dean Palmer with two on and no outs in the sixth. He walked seven, struck out six and gave up his only run by walking Gabe Kapler, his final batter, with the bases loaded.
Yankees starters have allowed just 13 hits in 26 innings, with Cone following Roger Clemens, Ramiro Mendoza and Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez in the rotation. Cone is 13-2 against Detroit.
"It tells you something, the club you're facing it's the fourth game of the season and their starting pitcher is David Cone," Tigers manager Larry Parrish said.
Jason Grimsley, making his first major league appearance in nearly 2 1/2 years, finished up the combined three-hitter. By the end, there were only 5,000 or so in the stands.
"It was running in quicksand out there," Davis said.
Martinez homered leading off the second, and Brosius hit a two-run shot later in the inning. Graterol walked his first two batters in the third, and one out later intentionally walked Martinez to pitch to Davis, who hit his eighth career slam for a 7-0 lead.
Chad Curtis added a two-run single off Masao Kida in the fifth, Shane Spencer hit a two-run double in the sixth and Joe Girardi hit an RBI double in the seventh.
Graterol gave up just four hits in four innings, but three were homers. Detroit, hich got a two-run homer from Bobby Higginson in the seventh, has lost three straight since winning its opener.
Notes: Because of the weather, fans with ticket stubs from the game can exchange them for free tickets for one of five games: April 15 against Baltimore, April 20-21 against Texas or May 12-13 against Anaheim. ... After the '67 Yankees homer opener, Rohr won just one more game for the Red Sox. ... Grimsley made his first appearance in the major leagues since Sept. 28, 1996, for the Angels against Texas. ... The Yankees have won seven of their last eight home openers. ... Detroit lost 12 of 14 after winning its opener last year. ... Kida lowered his ERA from 45.00 to 24.55.
©1999 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed
© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
