Throughout the entire 2011 season, the New York Yankees faced constant questions about their starting rotation behind CC Sabathia if the team were to make the playoffs.

The team still managed to win the American League East division and secure the best record in the AL, but the main question heading into the playoffs was once again about the starting pitchers.

Unfortunately for the Yankees, it wasn’t the pitching that cost them a chance for a 28th World Series title.

The Philadelphia Phillies loss to the St. Louis Cardinals was also a surprise, but because of some questions on offense and the team’s struggles down the stretch, its loss was arguably not as surprising as the Yankees.

It was much more shocking that the Yankees, a team with a great deal of momentum heading into October, would fall so early in the postseason.

Despite having an offense that scored 867 runs in the regular season, second only to Boston’s 875, New York failed to come through on multiple occasions in the ALDS against the Detroit Tigers, and it led to a surprising early exit for the Bronx Bombers.

For a team that boasts the largest payroll in all of baseball, New York saw little production from the heart of its order, especially Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira.

Rodriguez and Teixeira made more than $55 million combined in total salary in 2011, yet the duo of highly-paid all stars managed just five hits in 36 total at bats in the ALDS.

While those two had their fair share of struggles in the series, the rest of New York’s offense also is responsible for the team’s early departure. During the regular season, the Yankees showed they could produce runs without much contribution from Rodriguez and Teixeira.

Rodriguez missed nearly half the season with injuries and Teixeira had an off year at the plate despite hitting 39 home runs. Even with those factors, the Yankees were still able to be a dynamic offense.

So where did that offense go in the playoffs?

The Yankees did manage to score 28 runs in five games against the Tigers, but the majority came in two blowout wins. New York scored 19 of its runs in its two victories and nine runs combined in its three losses.

The series loss essentially came down to an inability to produce runs in close games. New York’s pitching never gave Detroit’s offense a significant advantage, and in all three losses, the Yankees had numerous opportunities to score runs.

In Game 5, the Yankees lost 3-2 after failing to score runs in several key situations.

Despite outscoring the Tigers 28-17 in the five game series, New York lost to Detroit three times, including twice in the Bronx.

With an offense as potent as New York’s, it is hard to imagine how it can disappear for three games in a single series. That lack of offense led to an early and shocking departure from the 2011 MLB playoffs.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Even with Alex Rodriguez back in the lineup for the first time in more than six weeks, the New York Yankees still found themselves needing an offensive spark in the later innings against Minnesota.

Manager Joe Girardi wasn’t surprised in the least that Curtis Granderson was the one to provide it.

Granderson flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to help the New York Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, A-Rod’s first game back since July 7.

“Nothing he does really surprises me anymore,” Girardi said. “You just kind of expect him to do something great every day.”

Rodriguez went 0 for 5 in the cleanup spot, but Mark Teixeira followed Granderson’s seventh-inning speed show with a more conventional homer and Ivan Nova (13-4) pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees took three of four from the Twins.

Nova allowed five hits and struck out five to rebound from a poor start in Kansas City and Mariano Rivera picked up his 33rd save in 38 tries.

Joe Mauer had three hits for the Twins, who lost starter Nick Blackburn in the second inning because of a strained right forearm. Phil Dumatrait (1-2) got the loss in two innings of relief.

In a breakout season in the Bronx, Granderson has launched 34 balls into the seats to help the Yankees weather Rodriguez’s long absence.

The powerful Yankees offense left the bases loaded twice in the first five innings and seemed to be slogging through the final game of a seven-day road trip when Granderson stepped to the plate against Jose Mijares in the seventh.

His drive hit high off the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field and got away from both center fielder Ben Revere and right fielder Jason Kubel.

“I’ve never seen a ball hit up into that area,” Kubel said. “I just thought it was like every other ball, 99 percent of the time it just drops down and hits the fence.”

Instead it kicked away and Granderson motored around the bases and easily beat the throw home for his third career inside-the-park home run.

“The main thing is that each day I try to do everything I can, at any point, whether it be a sac bunt, a hit-and-run, try to steal a base, drive the baseball to help this team win a ballgame,” Granderson said.

It’s the kind of play MVPs make, and A-Rod wasn’t shy about making that connection.

“When people compare him to other players, you can’t forget he’s a center fielder and he’s playing a high quality defense out there,” Rodriguez said. “He’s scoring a bunch of runs, RBIs, the two most important stats in baseball. And he’s helping our first-place team do what they’re doing. In my eyes, he’s the MVP.”

Teixeira followed with a solo shot to left field to make it 3-0, giving them enough room even with Rodriguez still shaking the rust off in his first game in more than a month and a half.

Rodriguez missed 38 games after having surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee. The injury sapped a lot of the power from his muscular swing, limiting him to 13 homers in his first 80 games. He still has not homered since June 11.

Even though they went 25-13 in his absence, the Yankees were elated to have him back in the cleanup spot to help them in their duel with Boston for the AL East title. New York started the day with a ½-game lead over the Red Sox in the division.

A-Rod grounded out to shortstop twice, popped out to first base with bases loaded in the fifth, flew out to center field in the seventh and popped out to right field in the ninth.

“I was happy with the way I saw the ball and happy with my balance,” Rodriguez said. “I got a lot of good pitches to hit and just missed them by a little bit. But I liked the way I felt up there.”

He was tested in the field when Revere laid down a soft bunt down the third baseline to start the sixth inning. Rodriguez pounced on it, bare-handing the ball and firing to first just in time to get him. But he also mishandled a hot grounder to his backhand in the eighth off the bat of Mauer, who was awarded a hit in a close call by the official scorer.

“Today was a big success, especially because we won the game, most importantly,” Rodriguez said. “I got five at-bats, got some work on the field. But for the most part I liked the way I felt up there.”

With the Yankees offense struggling in the early innings, it was up to Nova to keep them in the game. The right-hander wiggled out of a two-on, nobody-out jam in the fifth. It was a good sign for Nova, who gave up seven runs in 5 1-3 innings of his last start against the Royals.

Blackburn left after walking the bases loaded with one out in the second inning. The team called it a lateral forearm strain and said he would be re-evaluated on Monday, and manager Ron Gardenhire said a trip to the disabled list could be needed.

“I was struggling bad enough,” Blackburn said. “Couldn’t throw any strikes, figured it was time to shut it down.”

NOTES: With Rodriguez on the field and Jim Thome in the lineup for the Twins, it was the first time two players with 600 career homers had met in a game since Hank Aaron’s Braves played Willie Mays’ Mets on July 17, 1973. Thome went 1 for 3 with a walk. … Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira had a fielding error in the third inning that allowed Rene Tosoni to reach base. It snapped an 87-game errorless streak that was the longest single-season streak of his career. … The Twins drew 41,242 fans on Sunday, their 53rd sellout of the season. The series attendance was 164,950, the highest total for a four-game series since Target Field opened last year. … The Yankees said RHP Freddy Garcia will pitch a maximum of four innings or 65 pitches in a rehab start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday. … The Yankees are off on Monday before opening a series against the Oakland Athletics in the Bronx on Tuesday. They will send Bartolo Colon (8-7, 3.54 ERA) to the mound to face RHP Brandon McCarthy (6-6, 3.74). The 38-year-old Colon gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings of his last start against Kansas City. But he is undefeated in his last three home starts, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA. … The Twins will open a series against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night. Carl Pavano (6-9, 4.52) will start for the Twins against Zach Britton (6-9, 4.66). After a rocky finish to July, Pavano has a 2.01 ERA over 22 1-3 innings pitched in three August starts.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Even with Alex Rodriguez back in the lineup for the first time in more than six weeks, the New York Yankees still found themselves needing an offensive spark in the later innings against Minnesota.

Manager Joe Girardi wasn’t surprised in the least that Curtis Granderson was the one to provide it.

Granderson flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to help the New York Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, A-Rod’s first game back since July 7.

“Nothing he does really surprises me anymore,” Girardi said. “You just kind of expect him to do something great every day.”

Rodriguez went 0 for 5 in the cleanup spot, but Mark Teixeira followed Granderson’s seventh-inning speed show with a more conventional homer and Ivan Nova (13-4) pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees took three of four from the Twins.

Nova allowed five hits and struck out five to rebound from a poor start in Kansas City and Mariano Rivera picked up his 33rd save in 38 tries.

Joe Mauer had three hits for the Twins, who lost starter Nick Blackburn in the second inning because of a strained right forearm. Phil Dumatrait (1-2) got the loss in two innings of relief.

In a breakout season in the Bronx, Granderson has launched 34 balls into the seats to help the Yankees weather Rodriguez’s long absence.

The powerful Yankees offense left the bases loaded twice in the first five innings and seemed to be slogging through the final game of a seven-day road trip when Granderson stepped to the plate against Jose Mijares in the seventh.

His drive hit high off the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field and got away from both center fielder Ben Revere and right fielder Jason Kubel.

“I’ve never seen a ball hit up into that area,” Kubel said. “I just thought it was like every other ball, 99 percent of the time it just drops down and hits the fence.”

Instead it kicked away and Granderson motored around the bases and easily beat the throw home for his third career inside-the-park home run.

“The main thing is that each day I try to do everything I can, at any point, whether it be a sac bunt, a hit-and-run, try to steal a base, drive the baseball to help this team win a ballgame,” Granderson said.

It’s the kind of play MVPs make, and A-Rod wasn’t shy about making that connection.

“When people compare him to other players, you can’t forget he’s a center fielder and he’s playing a high quality defense out there,” Rodriguez said. “He’s scoring a bunch of runs, RBIs, the two most important stats in baseball. And he’s helping our first-place team do what they’re doing. In my eyes, he’s the MVP.”

Teixeira followed with a solo shot to left field to make it 3-0, giving them enough room even with Rodriguez still shaking the rust off in his first game in more than a month and a half.

Rodriguez missed 38 games after having surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee. The injury sapped a lot of the power from his muscular swing, limiting him to 13 homers in his first 80 games. He still has not homered since June 11.

Even though they went 25-13 in his absence, the Yankees were elated to have him back in the cleanup spot to help them in their duel with Boston for the AL East title. New York started the day with a ½-game lead over the Red Sox in the division.

A-Rod grounded out to shortstop twice, popped out to first base with bases loaded in the fifth, flew out to center field in the seventh and popped out to right field in the ninth.

“I was happy with the way I saw the ball and happy with my balance,” Rodriguez said. “I got a lot of good pitches to hit and just missed them by a little bit. But I liked the way I felt up there.”

He was tested in the field when Revere laid down a soft bunt down the third baseline to start the sixth inning. Rodriguez pounced on it, bare-handing the ball and firing to first just in time to get him. But he also mishandled a hot grounder to his backhand in the eighth off the bat of Mauer, who was awarded a hit in a close call by the official scorer.

“Today was a big success, especially because we won the game, most importantly,” Rodriguez said. “I got five at-bats, got some work on the field. But for the most part I liked the way I felt up there.”

With the Yankees offense struggling in the early innings, it was up to Nova to keep them in the game. The right-hander wiggled out of a two-on, nobody-out jam in the fifth. It was a good sign for Nova, who gave up seven runs in 5 1-3 innings of his last start against the Royals.

Blackburn left after walking the bases loaded with one out in the second inning. The team called it a lateral forearm strain and said he would be re-evaluated on Monday, and manager Ron Gardenhire said a trip to the disabled list could be needed.

“I was struggling bad enough,” Blackburn said. “Couldn’t throw any strikes, figured it was time to shut it down.”

NOTES: With Rodriguez on the field and Jim Thome in the lineup for the Twins, it was the first time two players with 600 career homers had met in a game since Hank Aaron’s Braves played Willie Mays’ Mets on July 17, 1973. Thome went 1 for 3 with a walk. … Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira had a fielding error in the third inning that allowed Rene Tosoni to reach base. It snapped an 87-game errorless streak that was the longest single-season streak of his career. … The Twins drew 41,242 fans on Sunday, their 53rd sellout of the season. The series attendance was 164,950, the highest total for a four-game series since Target Field opened last year. … The Yankees said RHP Freddy Garcia will pitch a maximum of four innings or 65 pitches in a rehab start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday. … The Yankees are off on Monday before opening a series against the Oakland Athletics in the Bronx on Tuesday. They will send Bartolo Colon (8-7, 3.54 ERA) to the mound to face RHP Brandon McCarthy (6-6, 3.74). The 38-year-old Colon gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings of his last start against Kansas City. But he is undefeated in his last three home starts, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA. … The Twins will open a series against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night. Carl Pavano (6-9, 4.52) will start for the Twins against Zach Britton (6-9, 4.66). After a rocky finish to July, Pavano has a 2.01 ERA over 22 1-3 innings pitched in three August starts.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Even with Alex Rodriguez back in the lineup for the first time in more than six weeks, the New York Yankees still found themselves needing an offensive spark in the later innings against Minnesota.

Manager Joe Girardi wasn’t surprised in the least that Curtis Granderson was the one to provide it.

Granderson flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to help the New York Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, A-Rod’s first game back since July 7.

“Nothing he does really surprises me anymore,” Girardi said. “You just kind of expect him to do something great every day.”

Rodriguez went 0 for 5 in the cleanup spot, but Mark Teixeira followed Granderson’s seventh-inning speed show with a more conventional homer and Ivan Nova (13-4) pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees took three of four from the Twins.

Nova allowed five hits and struck out five to rebound from a poor start in Kansas City and Mariano Rivera picked up his 33rd save in 38 tries.

Joe Mauer had three hits for the Twins, who lost starter Nick Blackburn in the second inning because of a strained right forearm. Phil Dumatrait (1-2) got the loss in two innings of relief.

In a breakout season in the Bronx, Granderson has launched 34 balls into the seats to help the Yankees weather Rodriguez’s long absence.

The powerful Yankees offense left the bases loaded twice in the first five innings and seemed to be slogging through the final game of a seven-day road trip when Granderson stepped to the plate against Jose Mijares in the seventh.

His drive hit high off the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field and got away from both center fielder Ben Revere and right fielder Jason Kubel.

“I’ve never seen a ball hit up into that area,” Kubel said. “I just thought it was like every other ball, 99 percent of the time it just drops down and hits the fence.”

Instead it kicked away and Granderson motored around the bases and easily beat the throw home for his third career inside-the-park home run.

“The main thing is that each day I try to do everything I can, at any point, whether it be a sac bunt, a hit-and-run, try to steal a base, drive the baseball to help this team win a ballgame,” Granderson said.

It’s the kind of play MVPs make, and A-Rod wasn’t shy about making that connection.

“When people compare him to other players, you can’t forget he’s a center fielder and he’s playing a high quality defense out there,” Rodriguez said. “He’s scoring a bunch of runs, RBIs, the two most important stats in baseball. And he’s helping our first-place team do what they’re doing. In my eyes, he’s the MVP.”

Teixeira followed with a solo shot to left field to make it 3-0, giving them enough room even with Rodriguez still shaking the rust off in his first game in more than a month and a half.

Rodriguez missed 38 games after having surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee. The injury sapped a lot of the power from his muscular swing, limiting him to 13 homers in his first 80 games. He still has not homered since June 11.

Even though they went 25-13 in his absence, the Yankees were elated to have him back in the cleanup spot to help them in their duel with Boston for the AL East title. New York started the day with a ½-game lead over the Red Sox in the division.

A-Rod grounded out to shortstop twice, popped out to first base with bases loaded in the fifth, flew out to center field in the seventh and popped out to right field in the ninth.

“I was happy with the way I saw the ball and happy with my balance,” Rodriguez said. “I got a lot of good pitches to hit and just missed them by a little bit. But I liked the way I felt up there.”

He was tested in the field when Revere laid down a soft bunt down the third baseline to start the sixth inning. Rodriguez pounced on it, bare-handing the ball and firing to first just in time to get him. But he also mishandled a hot grounder to his backhand in the eighth off the bat of Mauer, who was awarded a hit in a close call by the official scorer.

“Today was a big success, especially because we won the game, most importantly,” Rodriguez said. “I got five at-bats, got some work on the field. But for the most part I liked the way I felt up there.”

With the Yankees offense struggling in the early innings, it was up to Nova to keep them in the game. The right-hander wiggled out of a two-on, nobody-out jam in the fifth. It was a good sign for Nova, who gave up seven runs in 5 1-3 innings of his last start against the Royals.

Blackburn left after walking the bases loaded with one out in the second inning. The team called it a lateral forearm strain and said he would be re-evaluated on Monday, and manager Ron Gardenhire said a trip to the disabled list could be needed.

“I was struggling bad enough,” Blackburn said. “Couldn’t throw any strikes, figured it was time to shut it down.”

NOTES: With Rodriguez on the field and Jim Thome in the lineup for the Twins, it was the first time two players with 600 career homers had met in a game since Hank Aaron’s Braves played Willie Mays’ Mets on July 17, 1973. Thome went 1 for 3 with a walk. … Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira had a fielding error in the third inning that allowed Rene Tosoni to reach base. It snapped an 87-game errorless streak that was the longest single-season streak of his career. … The Twins drew 41,242 fans on Sunday, their 53rd sellout of the season. The series attendance was 164,950, the highest total for a four-game series since Target Field opened last year. … The Yankees said RHP Freddy Garcia will pitch a maximum of four innings or 65 pitches in a rehab start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday. … The Yankees are off on Monday before opening a series against the Oakland Athletics in the Bronx on Tuesday. They will send Bartolo Colon (8-7, 3.54 ERA) to the mound to face RHP Brandon McCarthy (6-6, 3.74). The 38-year-old Colon gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings of his last start against Kansas City. But he is undefeated in his last three home starts, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA. … The Twins will open a series against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night. Carl Pavano (6-9, 4.52) will start for the Twins against Zach Britton (6-9, 4.66). After a rocky finish to July, Pavano has a 2.01 ERA over 22 1-3 innings pitched in three August starts.

Updated Aug 21, 2011 9:18 PM ET

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)

Even with Alex Rodriguez back in the lineup for the first time in more than six weeks, the New York Yankees still found themselves needing an offensive spark in the later innings against Minnesota.

Manager Joe Girardi wasn’t surprised in the least that Curtis Granderson was the one to provide it.

Granderson flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to help the New York Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, A-Rod’s first game back since July 7.

”Nothing he does really surprises me anymore,” Girardi said. ”You just kind of expect him to do something great every day.”

Rodriguez went 0 for 5 in the cleanup spot, but Mark Teixeira followed Granderson’s seventh-inning speed show with a more conventional homer and Ivan Nova (13-4) pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees took three of four from the Twins.

Nova allowed five hits and struck out five to rebound from a poor start in Kansas City and Mariano Rivera picked up his 33rd save in 38 tries.

Joe Mauer had three hits for the Twins, who lost starter Nick Blackburn in the second inning because of a strained right forearm. Phil Dumatrait (1-2) got the loss in two innings of relief.

In a breakout season in the Bronx, Granderson has launched 34 balls into the seats to help the Yankees weather Rodriguez’s long absence.

The powerful Yankees offense left the bases loaded twice in the first five innings and seemed to be slogging through the final game of a seven-day road trip when Granderson stepped to the plate against Jose Mijares in the seventh.

His drive hit high off the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field and got away from both center fielder Ben Revere and right fielder Jason Kubel.

”I’ve never seen a ball hit up into that area,” Kubel said. ”I just thought it was like every other ball, 99 percent of the time it just drops down and hits the fence.”

Instead it kicked away and Granderson motored around the bases and easily beat the throw home for his third career inside-the-park home run.

”The main thing is that each day I try to do everything I can, at any point, whether it be a sac bunt, a hit-and-run, try to steal a base, drive the baseball to help this team win a ballgame,” Granderson said.

It’s the kind of play MVPs make, and A-Rod wasn’t shy about making that connection.

”When people compare him to other players, you can’t forget he’s a center fielder and he’s playing a high quality defense out there,” Rodriguez said. ”He’s scoring a bunch of runs, RBIs, the two most important stats in baseball. And he’s helping our first-place team do what they’re doing. In my eyes, he’s the MVP.”

Teixeira followed with a solo shot to left field to make it 3-0, giving them enough room even with Rodriguez still shaking the rust off in his first game in more than a month and a half.

Rodriguez missed 38 games after having surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee. The injury sapped a lot of the power from his muscular swing, limiting him to 13 homers in his first 80 games. He still has not homered since June 11.

Even though they went 25-13 in his absence, the Yankees were elated to have him back in the cleanup spot to help them in their duel with Boston for the AL East title. New York started the day with a 1/2-game lead over the Red Sox in the division.

A-Rod grounded out to shortstop twice, popped out to first base with bases loaded in the fifth, flew out to center field in the seventh and popped out to right field in the ninth.

”I was happy with the way I saw the ball and happy with my balance,” Rodriguez said. ”I got a lot of good pitches to hit and just missed them by a little bit. But I liked the way I felt up there.”

He was tested in the field when Revere laid down a soft bunt down the third baseline to start the sixth inning. Rodriguez pounced on it, bare-handing the ball and firing to first just in time to get him. But he also mishandled a hot grounder to his backhand in the eighth off the bat of Mauer, who was awarded a hit in a close call by the official scorer.

”Today was a big success, especially because we won the game, most importantly,” Rodriguez said. ”I got five at-bats, got some work on the field. But for the most part I liked the way I felt up there.”

With the Yankees offense struggling in the early innings, it was up to Nova to keep them in the game. The right-hander wiggled out of a two-on, nobody-out jam in the fifth. It was a good sign for Nova, who gave up seven runs in 5 1/3 innings of his last start against the Royals.

Blackburn left after walking the bases loaded with one out in the second inning. The team called it a lateral forearm strain and said he would be re-evaluated on Monday, and manager Ron Gardenhire said a trip to the disabled list could be needed.

”I was struggling bad enough,” Blackburn said. ”Couldn’t throw any strikes, figured it was time to shut it down.”

NOTES: With Rodriguez on the field and Jim Thome in the lineup for the Twins, it was the first time two players with 600 career homers had met in a game since Hank Aaron’s Braves played Willie Mays’ Mets on July 17, 1973. Thome went 1 for 3 with a walk. … Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira had a fielding error in the third inning that allowed Rene Tosoni to reach base. It snapped an 87-game errorless streak that was the longest single-season streak of his career. … The Twins drew 41,242 fans on Sunday, their 53rd sellout of the season. The series attendance was 164,950, the highest total for a four-game series since Target Field opened last year. … The Yankees said RHP Freddy Garcia will pitch a maximum of four innings or 65 pitches in a rehab start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday. … The Yankees are off on Monday before opening a series against the Oakland Athletics in the Bronx on Tuesday. They will send Bartolo Colon (8-7, 3.54 ERA) to the mound to face RHP Brandon McCarthy (6-6, 3.74). The 38-year-old Colon gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings of his last start against Kansas City. But he is undefeated in his last three home starts, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA. … The Twins will open a series against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night. Carl Pavano (6-9, 4.52) will start for the Twins against Zach Britton (6-9, 4.66). After a rocky finish to July, Pavano has a 2.01 ERA over 22 1-3 innings pitched in three August starts.

Thanks to a seven-game winning streak, the New York Yankees are appropriately tied atop the American League East with the Boston Red Sox heading into the rivals’ weekend series at Fenway Park.

However, if the Yankees are to win a season-high eighth straight contest Friday night, they must snap a seven-game skid to the Red Sox and avoid yet another loss to Jon Lester.

Though Boston has outscored New York 60-37 to win eight of the first nine meetings, the Yankees are 35-15 since being swept by the Red Sox in the Bronx from June 7-9.

Boston is a solid 32-16 since that series, allowing the rivals to separate themselves from the rest of the division with identical AL-best 68-42 records.

“We are excited. We feel like we have a great team and so do they,” Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia, batting .439 in his last 10 games, said on the eve of Friday’s opener at 7:10 p.m. ET. “We are trying to win the division. It’s a great division we are in and that’s what makes baseball fun.”

The Red Sox had been alone in first place since July 7 before losing Thursday.

“I think it says that we’ve been playing well,” said Yankees manager Joe Girardi, whose team’s only win over the Red Sox came at Fenway on April 9. “We’ve been chasing them for awhile now. It just says a lot about this club and what we’ve been through. We’ve overcome some things. It is significant.”

Though the Yankees are mired in their longest skid against the Red Sox since dropping nine straight over the 2008-2009 seasons, they enter this series confident because they’ve won seven in a row overall while averaging nine runs. New York totalled 31 during the final three of a four-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox that concluded with a 7-2 win Thursday.

Hot bats

Robinson Cano, who has homered in consecutive games, went 7-for-15 (.467) with seven runs batted in against the White Sox. Fellow all-star Curtis Granderson also drove home seven runs in the series and is batting .444 (12-for-27) over his last six contests.

Cano and Granderson, however, have batted a combined .220 with 12 strikeouts against Lester (11-4, 3.17 ERA), who is 8-1 with a 3.56 earned-run average in 14 starts versus New York.

The left-hander has won five straight outings against the Yankees, posting a 2.51 ERA, but hasn’t dominated them this year. He’s allowed seven runs and 13 hits in 12 innings over two outings, though both were in the Bronx.

Lester is 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA in two starts since leaving a no-hitter after four innings with a strained muscle in his back July 5. He allowed two homers and two other hits while striking out eight in eight innings of a 10-2 win at Chicago on Saturday.

“We are fortunate to have Lester back in the rotation,” catcher Jason Varitek said.

Lester looks to help the Red Sox bounce back after they fell 7-3 on Thursday to split a four-game home set with Cleveland. Jacoby Ellsbury had two hits and is batting .376 with 26 RBIs his last 30 games, including game-winning hits in the ninth the previous two days.

He’s hit .444 (12-for-27) with a homer and five RBIs in his last six games versus New York but is 1-for-5 against scheduled starter Bartolo Colon (8-6, 3.30).

The veteran right-hander has lost both of his starts against the Red Sox this year as he’s allowed five runs — three earned — in 10 1/3 innings.

Colon, though, has won his last two starts and has a 2.45 ERA over his past three. He yielded two runs and struck out six while labouring for 105 pitches in five innings of an 8-3 win over Baltimore on Saturday.