Yankees split twinbill
White Sox rookie earns opening win
CHICAGO -- Chien-Ming Wang's pitching led the way on a night the Yankees showed they might be ready to break out of an offensive funk.
"We've had pretty good pitching, but we haven't been able to mount any kind of offense," Yankees manager Joe Torre said after last night's 8-1 win over the White Sox earned a split in their day-night doubleheader.
"Hopefully this starts something, because we're certainly capable."
Hideki Matsui drove in four runs, slumping Bobby Abreu had a key RBI single, and Derek Jeter added a run-scoring triple. Melky Cabrera and Jorge Posada homered in the ninth.
"Wang did what he usually does. We swung the bats a little better," Jeter said. "We've just been scuffling. We needed one of these games, but we need it to continue."
Wang (2-3) allowed six hits and a run over seven innings. He beat Jose Contreras (3-4), who gave up five hits and four runs -- two earned -- in 6 2/3 innings on a 46-degree night at US Cellular Field.
In the first game, Chicago rookie lefty John Danks worked out of a couple of tight jams and outpitched veteran Mike Mussina to give the White Sox a 5-3 victory.
The second game was delayed at the start for one hour, 15 minutes by rain.
Matsui hit a two-out, two-run double in the third inning of the nightcap when Chicago center fielder Darin Erstad apparently had trouble reading the ball and couldn't retreat fast enough as it sailed over his head. The inning was aided by shortstop Juan Uribe's error on Jeter's grounder.
The Yankees tacked on two runs in the top of the seventh on a two-out RBI single by Abreu, who'd struck out his first three at-bats. Jeter followed with an RBI triple to right center as Erstad hit the fence chasing the drive.
Cabrera and Posada homered and Matsui hit a two-run, bases-loaded single off Andrew Sisco in a four-run ninth to make it 8-1.
In the opener, Danks (2-4) struck out a career-high seven in 6 1/3 innings. He gave up two runs and seven hits in winning his second straight start.
"It's more important just to get a win. Obviously to beat a team like the Yankees that makes you feel a little better about yourself," he said.
A.J. Pierzynski hit a tiebreaking homer to start a three-run sixth and Paul Konerko also homered for the White Sox.
Abreu homered off Danks and Josh Phelps added a solo shot off David Aardsma, but the Yankees couldn't sustain a big inning.
Danks retired Alex Rodriguez on a foul pop with two runners on in the fifth and struck out Miguel Cairo with runners at second and third in the sixth.
Pierzynski, moved into the No. 3 slot in the batting order, homered to put the White Sox ahead 3-2. One out later, Jermaine Dye doubled, Mackowiak was hit by a pitch and Joe Crede delivered an RBI single to finish Mussina (2-2).
Mussina had been scheduled to start Tuesday before the game was postponed because of rain. 