NEW YORK — Anibal Sanchez shut down a Yankees lineup minus injured Derek Jeter, and the Detroit Tigers capitalized on a missed call by an umpire to beat New York 3-0 Sunday for a 2-0 lead in the AL championship series.
Yankees starter Hiroki Kuroda pitched perfect ball into the sixth inning. But the slumping New York hitters looked lost a day after their captain broke his ankle in the 12th inning of a 6-4 loss.
Making his second postseason start, Sanchez pitched three-hit ball deep into the game to make Tigers manager Jim Leyland's handling of a bullpen without struggling closer Jose Valverde a lot easier.
The Tigers scored twice in the eighth after second base umpire Jeff Nelson missed a call at second base.
Game 3 in the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night in Detroit, with reigning AL MVP Justin Verlander starting for the Tigers.