No matter how old or young the players are, their size, their style of play, fans of any sport will pay good money to see the best of the best. At Turner Field on June 3, fans in attendance had the privilege of seeing two legends in action, this time taking the mound for their respective teams — Roger Clemens for the Yankees and Greg Maddux for the Atlanta Braves. Yet the matchup of aces didn’t become the pitchers’ duel that was expected, as New York and Atlanta settled into a slugfest.
June 3: Yankees 7, Braves 11 (box score)
Record: 29-22 (Tied for 1st place in AL East)
The visiting Yankees came into the second game of the three-game interleague series having won the first contest by a score of 5-2. And with two fantastic but stylistically different arms on the mound for both sides, it was bound to be an exciting bout with the Yankees looking to win a big series on the road against a 35-18 Braves squad.
The Bombers arrived on time, as well. The first four men in the order found their way on base via a hit. Chuck Knoblauch smoked a line drive to left, and Derek Jeter followed that up with a single of his own to center field. Paul O’Neill brought Knoblauch across home plate for the first run of the game with another line drive single to left, and Bernie Williams brought Jeter home with a double to center, putting the Yankees up 2-0.
The Braves responded in the bottom of the first against Clemens, cutting the lead to one run, but as a result of an error by Clemens on the throw to first. Clemens struck out the next two batters to keep the Yankees in the lead.
After Maddux struck out Clemens to begin the top of the second, Knoblauch hit another ball to left field, this time a double. He stole third base with Jeter up at the plate, and the Yankees’ shortstop brought his middle infield partner across to score with a single, reinstating the two-run lead.
The Braves did not go away, though, as Bobby Bonilla doubled to right to lead off the bottom of the second inning. Groundouts from Rafael Furcal and Fernando Lunar brought Bonilla across to score, bringing the deficit back to one before the inning ended.
A surprising backup soon helped the Yankees out. Catcher Chris Turner stepped in for Jorge Posada after the soon-to-be All-Star took a pitch off the hand behind the plate and left injured. Although not remotely the offensive threat that Posada was, Turner celebrated his coincidental appearances at Turner Field by putting the Yankees back up two runs with a leadoff home run off Maddux in the top of the third, his first as a Yankee. Despite the billing of a matchup of two elite pitchers, neither starter could establish a rhythm.
In the bottom of the third, Jones led off the inning with a walk against Clemens, and after Wally Joyner reached on an error by Jeter, it was Brian Jordan’s turn to respond, and he did. A loud crack of the bat sent the baseball flying over the left field wall and put Atlanta up 5-4, giving them their first lead of the game.
Yet again, the top of the Yankees’ lineup came back against Maddux. Knoblauch went back to the dugout for the first time on the night before singles from Jeter and O’Neill. A double steal would’ve put runners in scoring position, but the throw from Atlanta catcher Lunar sailed, scoring Jeter and putting O’Neill at third. Williams grounded out with no movement from Jeter at third, but Martinez stepped up and brought Jeter across to score, reclaiming a 6-5 lead.
The Braves tied the game on a Javy López pinch-hit double to center that Williams could not corral, scoring Furcal. But in the top of the sixth, again the Yankees fought back, at last forcing Maddux from the game. Jeter scored his third run of the game on another Turner hit, and Maddux departed after 5.2 innings pitched, a startling 13 hits allowed, and seven earned runs against.
With the Yankees up 7-6, all they needed was for the bullpen to hold on, but that wasn’t on the cards. Jason Grimsley pitched one inning clean, but allowed two unearned runs after an error credited to Martinez, a hit by pitch, and a wild pitch. A double from López scored two runs and gave the Braves a lead that they would not give away again.
New York’s bullpen gave up three more runs in the bottom of the eighth, and the offense could not find a rally in their bones, dropping the contest 11-7. It was a sour way to go down; it must’ve been hard to envision dropping a game with Clemens on the mound on a day the offense pounded out 13 hits. In any event, the Yankees would look to regroup and take the series the next day with Andy Pettitte on the mound.
Read the full 2000 Yankees Diary series here.