Raul Ibanez provided the Yankees with a powerful bat once again this afternoon, helping lift the team to a 6-2 victory over the Mariners for their third straight win. Ibanez went 2 for 3 in the game, with two RBIs, one coming from a home run in the fourth inning which he blasted over the center field wall. That was his seventh home run on the year, which ties him with Nick Swisher for second best on the team, despite having only 85 at-bats.
His production couldn’t come through at a better time for the Yanks either. Ibanez picked up the slack for a sluggish middle part of the batting order. The bombers two, three, and four hitters were silent and combined went 0 for 16 on the day.
The run support in today’s game, was a very welcome sign to the struggling Phil Hughes, who had maybe his best outing of the season so far. Hughes lasted 7.2 innings and gave up just one run on six hits in the process. The win was a much-needed one, as his fate in the starting rotation still remains in question with the return of Andy Pettitte tomorrow.
Win-Phil Hughes (3-4)
Loss-Hector Noesi (2-4)
Noteables:
Mariners
*Mike Carp-2 for 4, R, 2 RBI, Home Run
Yankees
*Raul Ibanez-2 for 3, 2 R, 2 RBI, Home Run
*Jayson Nix-1 for 3, R, 2 RBI
