Fans Protest: K.C. Slams Yanks
No wonder Don Zimmer wanted to go home Friday and turn the New York Yankees over to Joe Torre.
"I read in the papers where they can run and they played little ball. Today they played little ball and they played big ball," the Yankees' interim manager said Friday night after the Kansas City Royals routed New York 13-6.
Carlos Beltran and Tim Spehr hit two-run homers off Andy Pettitte and the Royals hit five home runs in all as they stopped a 12-game losing streak to the Yankees that dated to Aug. 12, 1997.
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"After all the trouble we had with them last year, this was fun,"
Dye said. "We needed this one."
Torre, who joined the team Friday for his first road game of the regular season, said before the game he's probably two weeks away from feeling strong enough to take over from manager from Zimmer, who plans to take off and let his knees get better as soon as Torre comes back.
"That's not the way to break in when the real manager shows up," said Zimmer, whose ailing knees are giving him so much trouble he's using a bat as a cane. "We've just got to wipe it out and come back tomorrow."
About 3,000 fans walked out of Kauffman Stadium during the fourth inning, protesting baseball economics. The Yankees began the season with baseball's top payroll at $85.05 million, and the Royals were 25th at $23.8 million.
"A little noise and excitement in this stadium for a change was a real plus," Dye said.
Yankees center fielder Bernie Williams was a particular target of the fans. Williams, whose $9.5 million salary is nearly double the $5,465,000 paid the Royals' starting nine fielders, was booed as New York's team bus arrived.
The game ended tensely. fter Naulty hit two Royals in the late innings, Jeff Montgomery hit Chuck Knoblauch in the ninth. Knoblauch was furious after the game, implying he'd been hit on purpose.
"Veteran pitchers who have been around have a tendency to protect their hitters," Kansas City manager Tony Muser said. "I hope it doesn't lead to anything tomorrow. But I think it's a part of baseball."
Zimmer couldn't be blamed for fleeing after the Yankees' performance. The World Series champions wasted a 2-0 lead, made two errors, stranded 14 runners and allowed five homers for the first time since last June 21. The Royals had not hit five in one game since Aug. 30, 1997, against St. Louis.
Last year, en route to winning an AL-record 114 games and their second World Series title in three seasons, the Yankees went 10-0 against Kansas City, the first time in a non-strike year they had swept a team in a season series.
That won't happen this season.
Pettitte (0-1) allowed seven runs and seven hits in 3 1-3 innings and has lost three consecutive times for the first time in 103 career decision.
"I think the main thing was with runners on, I was getting the ball up. I was real inconsistent," Pettitte said.
In addition to the homers, he allowed a two-run triple to Rey Sanchez, who also had a pair of RBI singles for the third four-RBI game of his eight-year career.
New York left fielder Chad Curtis crashed into the wall leaping for Febles' homer, then collapsed to the warning track. Febles mistakenly thought the umpires had ruled it a catch and began trotting toward the dugout. But after a few steps, he was told to continue around the bases.
Johnny Damon and Scott Leius also drove in runs in the sixth, making it 13-3.
Royals starter Jay Witasick came within one out of getting his third career win. But he was lifted with two on and two outs in the fifth, holding the Yankees to three runs and eight hits in 4 2-3 innings. Alvin Morman (1-0) pitched 1 2-3 innings for the victory.
The Yankees, looking for their eighth win in nine games, went ahead in the second on RBI singles by Scott Brosius and Chuck Knoblauch, who also had a two-run triple in the seventh and scored on Paul O'Neill's sacrifice fly.
Notes: Several thousand fans wearing T-shirts that said, "Share the wealth" filled up the left field general admission and turned their backs when the Yankees batted before leaving. ... The Royals' 15 hits were three fewer than Baltimore had against the Yankees on April 15. ... The Royals had lost eight straight to the Yankees at home since May 3, 1997. ... When Davis scored in the second inning, it marked the 20th time in 21 games the Yankees have held a lead. ... The Yankees stranded seven runners the first three innings. They had the bases loaded with two outs in the third but Witasick got Brosius to ground out to first. ... Sanchez also drove in four runs against Chicago on Aril 10.
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