Pettitte quiets Marlins in series opener | 
Andy Pettitte pitched seven innings
against the Florida Marlins tonight, allowing only one run and three hits. He also struck out seven and walked none in the Yankees’ 5-1 victory in the first game of a three-game interleague series in Miami. Pettitte recorded his team-leading seventh victory in the process.
The Yankees scored all five of their runs in the first three innings, including an RBI double from Pettitte himself.
Derek Jeter led off with a ground rule double to start the game. With one out, Mark Teixeira singled to advance Jeter to third. Jorge Posada followed with an RBI single to give the Yankees an early 1-0 lead. Nick Swisher then grounded into his first of two double plays to end the threat.
The Yankees scored three more times in the second inning, with RBI doubles from both Angel Berroa and Pettitte, as well as an RBI single from Johnny Damon. Melky Cabrera added a solo home run in the next frame to cap the Yankees’ scoring.
The only run Pettitte allowed came in the bottom of the third inning when the Yankees were already ahead 5-0. Cody Ross hit a solo home run to left, his 11th of the season. After that, Pettitte continued to cruise until he was taken out after the seventh inning when he had reached 108 pitches. He was relieved by Brian Bruney, who pitched a perfect eighth, and Brett Tomko, who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth also.
The top four hitters in the Yankees’ lineup – Jeter, Damon, Teixeira and Posada – each had two hits apiece. As a team, the Yankees recorded 13 hits, and each starter had at least one hit.
Before the game, it was announced that third baseman Alex Rodriguez would sit out the first two games of this series due to fatigue. He was replaced by Berroa in the lineup. Jeter started his first game since Tuesday after suffering stiffness in his ankle.
With the victory, the Yankees are now 38-29. A.J. Burnett will face his former team tomorrow night at 7:05 p.m. Josh Johnson starts for the Marlins.
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