OAKLAND, Calif. — Carlos Beltran sat at his locker in the visiting clubhouse at O.co Coliseum methodically wiping a rag over the barrel of his bats.
He was cleaning off the marks made by previous batted balls.
“It’s something I just like to do,’’ Beltran said before the Yankees’ 5-3 win over the Athletics on Saturday night. “I like to wipe off the bad marks and leave the good ones.’’
You could say that Beltran was wiping away the disappointments of this early season. You can be sure the fastball he crushed to center in the sixth inning off A’s starter Jesse Hahn left a mark on the sweetest spot of the bat.
“That was a good one,’’ Beltran said later with a smile.
It was the best ball Beltran has hit all season and carried over the center-field fence for a two-run home run that turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead.
Beltran added an RBI single in the eighth as the Yankees came away with a much-needed road win. The Yankees had dropped the first two games against the lowly A’s, making them losers in nine of their last 10 road games.
In the month of April, Beltran hit .162 and was fighting to find his timing after last year’s elbow injury. But he is batting .308 in May with seven doubles and all four of his home runs. He also has raised his average to .245.
“Everything is magnified when you start the season slow,’’ Beltran said. “At the end of the day, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. I’m healthy, I feel good.
“I still get nervous every at-bat, it’s great to produce.’’
This was a game the Yankees had no right to win because starter Nathan Eovaldi gave up 11 hits over 4 ²/₃ innings, but he was fortunate the A’s made baserunning mistakes and played all-around terrible baseball.
The home run by Beltran marked the sixth straight game in which the Yankees have homered.
The Yankees are tied for 19th in hitting with a .245 average. The Rays are next at .243 while the Red Sox are at .240.
The Yankees live by the home run and are tied with the NL West-leading Dodgers for second place with 63 home runs apiece. The AL West-leading Astros top all of baseball with 68 home runs.
This was a most interesting night for the Yankees as manager Joe Girardi finally got around to sitting slumping second baseman Stephen Drew, replacing him with young Jose Pirela.
“Have we made a position switch, no, not necessarily,’’ Girardi said of the move.
Drew is hitting .157. It’s time to take a seat and serve the Yankees as a backup infielder. Drew entered the game late as a defensive replacement for Pirela.
Over the last two years with the Yankees, Drew is hitting .154. That’s a lot of tough luck.
Despite his struggles, Drew said he is not worried about losing his job.
“I trust my talent that in the long run it is going to come out,’’ Drew said.
“You go through these things as a player. Every player has done it. It makes you stronger. It’s just one of those years.
“Numbers sometimes don’t tell you how you are really hitting. This year has been frustrating at times. For the most part I’ve had productive at-bats, just no luck.’’
Girardi said this was a rest day for Drew, but also said Pirela can earn more playing time.
Clearly, Drew could wind up losing his job if Pirela produces.
But everything in the Yankees’ world would look better if Beltran becomes a big run producer again.
“He’s had a great month of May,’’ Girardi said. “We just need it to carry over. There was frustration [in April], but he is at full strength now and you are seeing Carlos.’’
Beltran was removed for defense in the eighth inning, with Chris Young coming in to play right.
Girardi is going to have to squeeze everything he can out of Beltran while trying to keep him healthy.
Wipe away those bad results and win.