The Yankees beat Ricky Romero!

(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

What a difference a year makes, at least as far as the Yankees facing elite AL East southpaws goes.

In 2010, Jon Lester started against the Yankees 4 times and threw 25.1 innings of 6-run ball, and the Red Sox won three of his four starts.

In 2011, Jon Lester has also started against the Yankees 4 times and thrown 23 innings of 11-run ball, and the Red Sox have won two of his four starts.

In 2010, David Price started against the Yankees 4 times and threw 26.2 innings of 13-run ball (though if you remove his 5IP, 7ER outing on July 18 those numbers fall to a far more representative 21.2 innings, 6 runs), and the Rays won three of his four starts.

In 2011, David Price has started against the Yankees 4 times and thrown 25.1 innings of 12-run ball, and the Rays have won two of his four starts.

In 2010, Ricky Romero started against the Yankees 3 times and threw 19.2 innings of 12-run ball (though if you remove his 2.2IP, 8ER disaster on July 3 those numbers fall to 17.2 innings of four-run ball), and the Blue Jays won two of his three starts.

In 2011, Ricky Romero has started against the Yankees 4 times and thrown 24.2 innings of 11-run ball, and the Jays have won just one of his four starts, the most recent being yesterday’s 6-4 contest to the Yankees at the Stadium.

With the Jays up 4-3 in the bottom of the 7th, the Yankees, Romero hit Curtis Granderson by a pitch and walked Alex Rodriguez to put me on 1st and 2nd with two outs. Casey Janssen was summoned to face Robinson Cano, and Cano blasted a 2-2 cutter to center field to plate both runners and take the lead. Romero — who, as illustrated above, has mostly had his way with the Yankees these past two seasons — was saddled with a 6.2IP, 5ER line. Two of those runs shockingly came via Francisco Cervelli‘s third home run of the season.

Bartolo Colon was pretty good, striking out 7 over 6.1 innings, but also giving up 7 hits and four runs. Colon looked incredible in the first inning, pumping gas and striking out the side, but Dewayne Wise of all people rained on Colon’s parade, scoring the tying run after tripling and the go-ahead run on a solo shot in the 5th.

The Yankees will look to sweep the Jays this afternoon, which would be their first sweep at home since taking three from Milwaukee at the end of June, and their first sweep of the pesky Blue Jays — at home or on the road — since July 16-18, 2007, at home.

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