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First Posted: 7/20/2013 (AP) Brett Gardner and Lyle Overbay each had three hits and drove in a run to back Hiroki Kuroda's seven strong innings, carrying the New York Yankees to a 5-2 win over the Boston Red Sox on Saturday afternoon.
The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the injury-riddled Yankees, who hope to be bolstered by the return of captain Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez soon.
Mike Carp had three hits and scored a run for the Red Sox. It was just Boston's second loss in its last 11 games in Fenway Park.
In a matchup veteran right-handers, Kuroda and John Lackey both mostly relied on fastballs in the low 90s with hard sliders to go along with outstanding control. The pair combined for just one walk by Kuroda and threw a high percentage of strikes.
Kuroda (9-6) gave up two runs, five hits, striking out four with a pair of wild pitches one that led to a run.
All Star game MVP Mariano Rivera entered to a nice ovation and worked the ninth for his 31st save. Robinson Cano added two RBIs.
The game was tight when Lackey left with a pair of runners on, trailing 2-0 in the seventh. New York then built its lead to 4-0 in the inning on consecutive RBI singles by Cano and Overbay against reliever Matt Thornton.
Lackey (7-7) was charged with four runs on 10 hits in 6 1-3 innings, striking out seven. It snapped a stretch of six consecutive starts when he's allowed two or fewer runs, and was just the third time in his 17th starts this season he's given up more than three.
Jonny Gomes had a sacrifice fly and Carp scored on Kuroda's wild pitch, cutting it to 4-2 in the seventh.
Pitching in sweltering conditions with a game-time temperature of 91 with oppressive humidity, the pair battled through four scoreless innings until New York took a 1-0 lead in the fifth on Gardner's two-out, RBI single.
It looked like the Yankees had squandered a good chance when they had a runner cut down at the plate on Luis Cruz's grounder to short. But Cruz, who reached on the fielder's choice on the play, advanced on a wild pitch before Gardner's soft liner up the middle just got past the glove of diving second baseman Dustin Pedroia. Eduardo Nunez had a leadoff single, stole second, and was sacrificed, but was thrown out by Stephen Drew.
Cruz's RBI single made it 2-0 in the seventh before Cano and Overbay added their hits.
Boston also had a runner nailed at the plate when Carp was tagged out by Kuroda in the fifth, ending the inning after his pitch ticked off the glove of catcher Stewart and about 20 feet behind the plate.
NOTES: Red Sox manager John Farrell said before the game that OF Shane Victorino "felt better than I think he expected to feel" after leaving Friday's game with left hamstring tightness. Farrell also said "we expect him back in the lineup (Sunday)." ... Boston moved LHP Jon Lester back a few days and will send right-hander Ryan Dempster (5-8, 4.24 ERA) in the series finale against the Yankees' CC Sabathia (9-8, 4.07 ERA) on Sunday night. ... Count Sabathia as one that really enjoyed the four-day All Star break. In fact, he didn't even know that teammate Cano got plunked on the right knee in the midsummer classic until he heard from one of the coaches before his flight to Boston. "I was just hoping he didn't come in on crutches," he said, smiling. "It was good to get the four days. I got away from baseball. As far as anything going on (with the All Star game or Home Run Derby), I didn't know anything." ... At the Yankees' complex in Tampa, Fla., C Francisco Cervelli (right hand and elbow) said he has started hitting drills in an indoor cage and OF Curtis Granderson (broken pinkie), expected back early next month, ran the bases during a simulated game but did not hit. He is taking batting practice. ... The start was delayed 21 minutes because of a threat of thunderstorms in the area.
<a title="Associated Press" href="http://www.ap.org" class="url org fn">Associated Press</a>

Kuroda 7 strong in Yankees' 5-2 win over Red Sox