NEW YORK _ CC Sabathia's turn came up at the right time, if you ask Joe Girardi.
"I always talk about the competitive fire that burns in CC," Girardi earlier on Wednesday. "It's special. And he really has it."
And the Yankees really needed it on Wednesday night, to stiff-arm the Red Sox from joining them atop the AL East.
After another dud from Masahiro Tanaka on Tuesday night, Sabathia tossed eight scoreless innings in an 8-0 Yankees win before 44,380 fans at the Stadium.
Sabathia struck out five batters and gave up just five hits, inducing a lot of soft contact in winning his fifth straight start (Tanaka has lost five straight).
Out of the No. 9 hole, Chris Carter clubbed a three-run homer to highlight a four-run fourth inning against Boston right-hander Rick Porcello, the reigning AL Cy Young award winner.
Porcello (3-8) lasted 6 1/3 innings, yielding six runs (five earned) on eight hits and two walks. He struck out five and also gave up a solo homer to Didi Gregorius to open the third inning.
In victory, Sabathia (7-2) matched the majors' longest streak of winning starts this year, tying Tanaka's five earlier this year, as well as the Dodgers' Alex Wood.
This season, the Yankees (34-23) are 10-2 in Sabathia's 12 starts, matching Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers and Lance McCullers Jr. of the Astros. Houston's Dallas Keuchel has a 10-1 mark.
"He's had really good stuff over the course of his career and he's been a stopper," Girardi said of the one-time staff ace who snapped Boston's three-game winning streak.
After splitting the first two games of this series, the second-place Red Sox (32-26) now trail the Yankees by two games entering Thursday's finale, with lefty David Price set to oppose Michael Pineda.
In the fourth inning, with one out, Sabathia called time out on the mound and removed the heavy brace around his arthritic right knee. Sabathia has been pitching with the brace for over a year; he missed most of the 2014 season with the condition and was fitted for an improved brace after the 2015 season.
Upon removing the brace, Sabathia gave up an infield hit before getting Sandy Leon to rap into an inning-ending double play to maintain a 1-0 lead.
Starlin Castro opened the home fourth with a double off the center field wall, over the head of Jackie Bradley Jr.
Gary Sanchez, dropped to No. 6 in the order, followed with a soft line single to center for a 2-0 lead.
It was Sanchez's first RBI since belting two homers last Thursday night at Toronto. Sanchez was 1-for-16 until that RBI single.
Before the game, Girardi said the idea of moving Sanchez down was related to moving Aaron Hicks up to No. 2 in the order, putting the Yanks' highest on-base percentage hitters in the top spots.
In doing so, that puts Sanchez in "maybe more of a traditional RBI spot" in the batting order and "see if it gets him going," Girardi said.
It's been a struggle for Carter most of the season, but he singled in the third before clouting his sixth homer of the year in the fourth, a blast over the left field fence that followed a Chase Headley single.
Sanchez narrowly missed another homer in the sixth, robbed by leaping attempt at the wall by Mookie Betts.
Girardi argued that a fan had interfered with the play but did not win that argument.
Matt Holliday's RBI single scored a hustling Brett Gardner from second base in the seventh and the Yanks tacked on two more runs in the eighth.
Jonathan Holder came on in the ninth, after Sabathia had done the heavy lifting
"I've always felt that CC was somewhat of the glue of the team," Girardi said earlier. "He always has the ability to pull a clubhouse together and I'm not just talking about pulling pitchers together, I'm talking about pulling everybody together. He has that personality.
"And I think his calmness when he's about to pitch in a big game (is a big factor). He's the same guy day in and day out I think means a whole lot to this team."
