Sun, Sep 13, 2009 page19

• Jeter belts single to surpass Gehrig

  ON THE BOOKS: Yankees slugger Derek Jeter smacked a third-inning single into right field for his 2,722nd career hit, passing a club record set by the ‘Iron Horse’ in 1939

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  AMERICAN LEAGUE

  AFP AND AP, NEW YORK AND ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA

  Derek Jeter broke the New York Yankees record for hits on Friday, surpassing a mark held by legendary Lou Gehrig for more than 70 years.

  

  Derek Jeter steps up to the plate.

  PHOTO: AFP

  Jeter smacked a single to right field in the third inning for his 2,722nd career hit. That gave him one more than Gehrig, whose career was cut short by illness in 1939.

  Jeter added an RBI single in the fourth inning that put the Yankees 4-1 up before leaving the game after a rain delay in the top of the seventh inning.

  Baltimore had rallied by then, and Yankees manager Joe Girardi pulled most of the starters. The Orioles went on to win 10-4.

  

  New York Yankees batter Derek Jeter squats before going up to bat against the Baltimore Orioles during the third inning in New York on Friday.

  PHOTO: AFP

  The start of the game had been delayed for an hour and a half by heavy rain and Jeter was appreciative of fans who braved the conditions.

  “I didn’t expect that many people to be out there after the rain delay, considering how hard it was raining when we started the game,” Jeter said. “But the fans were incredible. It says a lot about how they feel about their team and more importantly how they feel about the history of their team. I appreciate each and every one that was there.”

  Jeter equaled Gehrig’s mark on Wednesday night, when he burst out of an 0-for-12 slump with three hits against the Tampa Bay Rays.

  The Yankees were off on Thursday, and Jeter resumed his pursuit on Friday.

  Jeter’s record-breaker was reminiscent of the one he used to tie Gehrig on Wednesday — a grounder up the first-base line.

  This time, Yankees players streamed out of the dugout and mobbed Jeter at first.

  “I didn’t know that they were going to do that, so that sort of caught me off-guard,” Jeter said. “It’s s special moment for me, it’s a special moment for the organization. To be able to enjoy it with my teammates was a lot of fun.”

  On an already emotional night, when the team commemorated the eighth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks with special logos on their caps and pre-game ceremonies, the rain-soaked fans gave Jeter an ovation that lasted nearly three minutes.

  “For those who say today’s game can’t produce legendary players, I have two words: Derek Jeter. Game in and game out he just produces,” Yankees owner Georger Steinbrenner said in a statement. “As historic and significant as becoming the Yankees’ all-time hit leader is, the accomplishment is all the more impressive because Derek is one of the finest young men playing the game today.”

  Gehrig got his final hit on April 29, 1939, a single against the Washington Senators.

  The “Iron Horse” had held the Yankees record since September 6, 1937, when he passed Babe Ruth.

  Gehrig’s career ended abruptly in 1939, and he died two years later of the neurological disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), widely known in the US as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

  Jeter also moved past Gehrig for 53rd place on baseball’s career hit list. Roberto Alomar is 52nd at 2,724.

  ANGELS 7, WHITE SOX 1

  Pitcher Joe Saunders won his fourth straight start as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Chicago White Sox.

  Saunders allowed just three hits over seven innings, struck out three and retired his final 15 batters.

  In other AL action, it was:

  • Blue Jays 6, Tigers 4

  • Athletics 12, Twins 5

  • Royals 2, Indians 1, 12 inns

  NATIONAL LEAGUE

  AP, SAN FRANCISCO

  Los Angeles pitcher Hiroki Kuroda dodged the barrel of a broken bat that flew toward him and retired 19 straight batters during one stretch as the Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 10-3 in the National League on Friday.

  The win maintained Los Angeles’ two-game lead in the NL West while the Giants vanishing playoff hopes receded further.

  Blake returned to the Dodgers lineup following a five-game absence with a hamstring injury and hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning as the team matched its win total from last season at 84, still with 20 games to play.

  Kuroda, making his second start since missing three weeks after sustaining a concussion, quickly ducked out of the way and off the mound when Matt Cain’s bat splintered in the third inning, sailing beyond second base.

  In other NL action, it was:

  • Braves 1, Cardinals 0

  • Rockies 4, Padres 1

  • Phillies 4, Mets 2

  • Cubs 6, Reds 4

  • Brewers 6, Diamondbacks 3

  • Nationals 5, Marlins 3

  • Astros 9, Pirates 1
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