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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
NEW YORK (AP) -- Olmedo Saenz quickly rocketed a three-run homer
off Roger Clemens, and Barry Zito and Oakland's bullpen made sure
the lead held up.
The brash Athletics forced the New York Yankees back to Oakland
for a decisive fifth game in their AL Division Series with a
surprisingly easy 11-1 rout Saturday night.
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GAME 4 AT A GLANCE
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Every game a hero
With a rookie starter on the mound, the best thing that could happen for Oakland would be to stake Barry Zito to an early lead. Olmedo Saenz did just that, slamming a three-run homer off Roger Clemens in the first.
Key move
Art Howe had been batting lefty-hitting Matt Stairs or Eric Chavez in the cleanup spot against right-handed pitching. But Saenz, who slugged .575 against right-handers this year, got the call in Game 4. It was purely a gut call by Howe -- Saenz had been been 0-for-1 with two walks in his career against Clemens.
Key number
The Yankees have scored four runs or less in 11 consecutive games -- four playoff games and the final seven of the regular season. The last time they scored at least five runs was a 6-3 win over Detroit on Sept. 24.
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Zito, the youngest pitcher in the series at 22, shut down New
York's sickly offense for 5 2/3 innings in his postseason debut,
allowing just one runner past first base until the sixth. A's
relievers didn't allow a hit until the ninth.
Oakland, whose $33 million payroll is less than one-third of the
Yankees' $113 million outlay, stopped the 10-game postseason home
winning streak of the two-time World Series champions and put New
York one loss from elimination in the best-of-5 series.
Andy Pettitte, who rescued New York by winning Game 2, will
pitch on three days' rest in the twilight Sunday night against
Gil Heredia, who beat Clemens in the opener.
Both traveled to the West Coast on Saturday, to be well-rested
in case Game 5 was needed to determine Seattle's opponent in the AL
Championship Series starting Tuesday. Their teammates were to
arrive only about 14 hours before gametime.
Clemens, the second-oldest player in the series at 38, looked
like his five Cy Young Awards were rusty relics, dropping to 3-5
with a 4.32 ERA in 14 postseason starts.
"Nothing has really come easy this year at all," Clemens said.
"It's disappointing, no question about it."
He walked two of his first three batters, gave up a line-drive
homer to Saenz into the left-field seats, then needed great defense
to bail him out of a jam in the second.
"That gave us a hill to climb right away," Yankees manager Joe
Torre said.
It took 25 pitches before a batter swung and missed, and hitters
swung and missed just seven of the 93 pitches Clemens threw in
five-plus innings.
|  | | Randy Velarde completes the double play after forcing out Derek Jeter at second base in the first inning. The Yankees fell behind 6-0 before scoring in their 11-1 loss. |
While he recovered in the middle innings, retiring nine in a
row, Oakland chased him in the sixth when Eric Chavez singled,
Miguel Tejada doubled under the glove of a diving Scott Brosius at
third and Ben Grieve singled them both in.
Ramon Hernandez drove in Grieve with an infield grounder off Mike Stantonfor a 6-0 lead.
That was around the time Benny Agbayani's 13th-inning homer led
the New York Mets over San Francisco across town at Shea Stadium.
Saturday marked the first time two major league postseason games
were played in one city on the same day.
Clemens, booed when he walked back to the Yankees dugout after
Torre took him out, was pitching on three days' rest for the first
time in seven years, and was wild from the beginning, walking
Terrence Long on four pitches leading off the game.
Randy Velarde grounded into a force play, Jason Giambi walked
and Clemens gave up a homer on a high fastball to Saenz, who had
just nine in 214 regular-season at-bats.
"It's been a grind," Clemens said. "We're obviously not
trying to do it the easy way."
Saenz was bruised when he was hit on a wrist by a pitch from
Dwight Gooden in the ninth and left the game.
Zito, a little more than a year out of Southern California,
looked sharp and self-assured, hooking curveballs past the Yankees'
slumping batters at will.
"That's the way he's been just about every time out," Oakland
manager Art Howe said. "Thank goodness he was sharp tonight. He
was the key to the game, to go out and keep putting zeros up."
New York, which ended the season with 15 losses in 18 games,
hasn't homered in seven games and 62 innings since Glenallen Hill
connected at Tampa Bay on Sept. 28.
The Yankees, seeking to become the first team to win three
straight Series titles since the A's from 1972-74, are hitting like
Superman after contact with Kryptonite, batting .221 in the series
with just eight extra-base hits in four games -- all doubles.
"Hopefully, we can get some hits," Torre said. "That's been
the most frustrating part of it for me, my players and my coaches.
We're going to get hits sooner or later, mark my words. Hopefully,
it's (Sunday) so we can give Andy some breathing room."
When the Yankees finally got runners to first and second with
two outs in the fifth, Luis Sojo hit into a forceout.
New York finally broke through for a run in the sixth, just its
12th in the first four games of the series.
Paul O'Neill, just 2-for-14 in the series with a pair of infield
hits, legged out a grounder to the right side and David Justice
(2-for-14) singled with one out.
Hill (1-for-12) flied out and Jorge Posada hit an RBI double,
putting runners on second and third. Jim Mecir then relieved and
got Tino Martinez to pop out.
Ryan Christenson added an RBI single off Gooden in the eighth
and Oakland pounded Gooden for four runs in the ninth. Chavez hit a
two-run double, Tejada had an RBI grounder and Bo Porter drove in a
run with a bunt single.
Sojo, playing second in place of scatter-armed Chuck Knoblauch,
threw out Grieve at plate in the second on Long's grounder, with
Posada expertly blocking Grieve's foot from touching home.
Game notes
Mecir left in the seventh with patella tendinitis in his
left knee, but thinks he'll be able to pitch Sunday. ... New York
has lost 22 of its last 23 when scoring three runs or fewer,
including 14 in a row since beating Toronto 3-2 on Sept. 13. ...
The previous two times the Yankees went to a fifth game in the
first round, they lost 4-3 at Cleveland in 1997 and 6-5 in 11
innings at Seattle in 1995. ... It was the Yankees' largest
postseason loss since Boston beat them 13-1 in the ALCS last year.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Oakland Clubhouse
NY Yankees Clubhouse
Stark: Yankees in heap of trouble
Clemens caves under Game 4 pressure
RECAPS
Oakland 11
NY Yankees 1
St. Louis 7
Atlanta 1
NY Mets 3
San Francisco 2
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Art Howe talks with ESPN's Ann Werner.
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Joe Torre hopes tomorrow is the day everything comes together.
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Barry Zito was happy for the ealry run support.
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Derek Jeter would like to put this game behind him.
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Barry Zito feels his team provided him a winning atmosphere.
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