BOSTON — Derek Jeter shook off a leg injury to tie Willie Mays for 10th place on the career hits list, backing Phil Hughes and helping the Yankees beat the Red Sox 2-0 Thursday night to maintain a share of the AL East lead.
New York won consecutive games for the first time in a month and kept pace with the Orioles, who completed a three-game sweep of the Rays.
Hughes retired his first 10 batters and gave up five hits in 7⅓ innings. He struck out seven, walked one and allowed just three runners past first base, ending a streak of seven straight starts in which he allowed home runs. Hughes has given up two or fewer runs in five of his past six starts.
Jeter started at DH after leaving Wednesday's win when he pulled up lame lunging for first base trying to beat out a double-play grounder in the eighth.
He was 0-for-3 Thursday before he blooped a run-scoring single to center in the seventh for the 3,283rd hit of his career to match Mays. Eddie Collins is next at 3,313.
Boston lost for the 13th time in 15 games, lowering its magic number for AL East elimination to two. Felix Doubront dropped to 0-5 with a 7.38 ERA in his past eight starts. He was chased with one out in the seventh when he walked Steve Pearce and allowed a single to Eduardo Nunez. Junichi Tazawa gave up Jeter's single.
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