Abreu suddenly is RBI guy - Yankees Win

Team Infidel

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http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/story/452022p-380436c.html
As the Yankees welcomed back Hideki Matsui, the Bombers' newest outfielder tried to steal the show.
Bobby Abreu did his best to upstage Matsui by knocking in a career best seven runs last night, including six in the first inning, then came within a couple of feet of tying the Yankee club record of 11 RBI in a game in the Bombers' bludgeoning of the Devil Rays.
"I didn't know I was going to have a good night but it ended up a good night," Abreu said. "Seven RBI in a game. Sometimes you don't get seven RBI in a week."
Abreu's night began with a bang, literally. After Johnny Damon singled and Derek Jeter walked to open the first inning, Abreu jumped on Tim Corcoran's first pitch and rocked it off the facing of the upper deck in right field for a quick 3-0 lead.
But Abreu was just getting warmed up.
In his second at-bat, which also came during the Yankees' nine-run first inning, Abreu took a 3-2 pitch from reliever Brian Stokes and hit a bases-loaded double over the head of Tampa Bay left fielder Carl Crawford to score Matsui, Melky Cabrera and Jeter to give Yankees a 9-0 bulge. With the hit, Abreu became the first Yankee since Gil McDougald to drive in six runs in an inning. McDougald did it at St.Louis on May 3, 1951.
It was a breakout game for Abreu, who had struggled on the Yankees' recent road trip, going just 4-for-21, including a stretch during which he was hitless in 13 straight at-bats. Joe Torre said it was nice to see his right fielder snap out of it in a big way.
"The home run was one thing," Torre said. "But he hit the ball over Crawford's head (and) I thought that was a great at-bat he had."
Abreu continued his personal best-setting night in the third inning when he picked up his seventh RBI with a sacrifice fly to center that scored Matsui with the Yankees' 10th run. But it was Abreu's fourth at-bat, in the fourth inning, that nearly put him in the Yankees' record books.
Abreu came up with the bases loaded for the second time in the game and had a chance to tie Tony Lazzeri's long-standing team record of 11 RBI in a game with one swing. And when Abreu turned on a pitch from Rays reliever Juan Salas, it looked at first like he might have done just that.
"I hit it good," Abreu said. "I thought it had a chance."
But the ball died in the cool autumn-like air, and when Delmon Young hauled it in right in front of the right-field wall, Lazzeri's record, set on May 24, 1936, was safe for another day. "That would have been pretty good to be in that category," Abreu said.
 
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