Cahill, A's hit hard in 17-7 loss to Yankees

NEW YORK (AP) - Trevor Cahill blew his game plan in the second inning.

Cahill was rocked for 10 runs as the Yankees scored 14 times in the second and third innings, and New York went on to beat the Oakland Athletics for the 11th straight time, 17-7 in the searing heat Friday night.

"Against a team like that, I was saying before I pitched that I've got to try to avoid the big inning," Cahill said. "And the second inning was a big inning and I tried to regroup, and before you know it, I was out there and the same thing was happening again."

After giving up five runs in the second, Cahill (8-9) allowed the first five batters to reach in the third - including Nick Swisher's three-run homer - before being lifted. Mark Teixeira hit a grand slam after two bases-loaded walks by Mike Wuertz and Oakland gave up a season-high nine runs in the inning.

Cahill has lost his last four decisions going back to June 30. The two-plus innings and 10 runs were career worsts. He allowed 12 of the 17 men he faced reach base and his ERA went from 3.16 to 3.77. He fell to 0-4 against the Yankees with a 13.50 ERA in four starts.

"It was a little tough to get a grip on the ball. But, other than that, I felt fine out there," Cahill said. "It's kind of embarrassing. I feel like I let the team down."

Derek Jeter drove in three runs and Swisher matched a career high with five RBIs for the Yankees. Backup catcher Francisco Cervelli reached base five times with three hits and two walks.

Jemile Weeks returned to Oakland's lineup after missing a game with a sore right foot and had a two-run single among his three hits. Cliff Pennington hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs against a listless Phil Hughes. But seven Oakland pitchers allowed nine walks in a 3-hour, 41-minute game.

"To our credit, at least we battled back and scored some runs and didn't quit," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "But, yeah, it got out of hand."

Hector Noesi (2-0) pitched 3 2-3 innings of four-hit ball.

The Yankees needed only one inning to perk up after arriving home at 3:30 a.m. from a 4-4 trip played entirely on artificial turf. With temperatures in New York topping 100 degrees, the Yankees skipped batting practice - Oakland was out there in the blazing sun and stifling humidity.

"That's exactly what we needed. The past road trip didn't go exactly as we wanted it to," Swisher said. "Especially with the way the weather was and the way we got our bat going with our fans in the stands it was nice to play the way we did."

While manager Joe Girardi said he remembers a teammate once putting lettuce on his head to cool off, players on both teams didn't appear to resort to such extreme measures with the thermometer at 100 for a 7:08 p.m. first pitch. The Yankees posted in the clubhouse a list of suggestions for avoiding dehydration and promoting recovery for Saturday's 1:05 p.m. start.

Looking for his first win in the Bronx this season, Hughes struggled from the start. He walked two and gave up an RBI double to Scott Sizemore in the first. Pennington had a run-scoring single in the second and a two-run homer in the fourth. Hughes, with a 14-5 lead, slammed the rosin bag when Girardi came to remove him with one out and the bases loaded in the fifth.

The Yankees exerted considerable energy in scoring five times in the second, using five singles, a walk, a sacrifice fly and some hustle from Brett Gardner to go up 5-2.

After Eduardo Nunez had an opposite field single to right for the first run, Gardner hit a slow chopper between first and second that Weeks fielded and tossed to Cahill. Gardner dived for the bag as Cahill lunged to touch the base and Gardner was called safe although replays indicated that Cahill touched the side of the base first as another run scored.

Jeter also went the other way for a two-run single for hit No. 3,011, passing Wade Boggs for 25th place. Curtis Granderson, starting in the No. 3 hole for the first time, hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5-2.

NOTES: A's hitting coach Gerald Perry was ejected in the fourth. ... The last time the temperature at Yankee Stadium for the first pitch was 100 degrees was on July 5, 1999. It was 102 degrees at Yankee Stadium on the day of the 1977 All-Star game. ... Hideki Matsui on being asked if he thought he would hit his 500th homer - combined total between Japan and major leagues - in New York (he hit it Wednesday in Detroit): "That would have been too good of a tale." The Yankees showed a video compilation of Matsui homers on the scoreboard after the first innings. He hit 140 homers with New York. ... To combat the heat, A's manager Bob Melvin said Landon Powell will catch Saturday to give Suzuki a rest. ... The Yankees have beaten the A's 25 of the last 29 meetings since 2008.