FROM MORNING CALL
NEW YORK — Drawing on pitching from an American League Central rival and using the best closer in baseball history as a setup man, Jim Leyland took care of business in his typically unpredictable way.
The Tigers' manager drew up a pitching plan that worked perfectly, with two scoreless innings from White Sox left-hander Chris Sale a major component. Miguel Cabrera's leadoff double in the fourth inning was the biggest hit in an All-Star Game youngsters headlined and pitchers dominated.
Sale was the winning pitcher in the AL's 3-0 victory, a three-hitter split between 10 pitchers, with Rivera and Joe Nathan locking down home-field advantage in the World Series. The AL triumph comes after a run of three years in which National League teams won the All-Star Game and subsequently a championship.
This wasn't the result a heavily orange-clad crowd of 45,186 wanted when it arrived at Citi Field but it will have lasting memories of watching Rivera, the all-time leader with 638 career saves and another 42 in the postseason. Fans cheered the first sight of the Yankees closer as he began to warm up as Neil Diamond sang "Sweet Caroline'' after the top of the eighth.
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