NEW YORK - Alfonso Soriano and Derek Jeter led off with consecutive homers and the Yankees held off the Mets 9-8 Saturday night for a sweep of their two-ballpark, day-night doubleheader.
In the first game at Yankee Stadium, Roger Clemens earned his 301st victory, and Hideki Matsui hit a grand slam and drove in a career-high five runs in the Yankees' 7-1 win.
The Yankees built a 9-0 lead in the nightcap at Shea Stadium, only to see the Mets nearly come all the way back. Raul Gonzalez's three-run double off Mariano Rivera in the eighth cut it to 9-8, but Gonzalez got caught in a rundown between second and third and was thrown out.
That ended the Mets' best chance. Rivera struck out Ty Wigginton to get out of the inning and finished for his 13th save in 14 chances.
Brandon Claussen allowed two runs - one earned - and pitched into the seventh inning in his major-league debut for the Yankees, who have won six straight.
The Yankees have won all five games against the Mets this year and go for a season sweep today. With three wins at Shea Stadium in 2003, the Yankees completed the first Subway Series sweep by either team since interleague play began in 1997.
The Mets have been swept in four doubleheaders this season.
Claussen, considered the Yankees' top pitching prospect, was animated on the mound at times but seemed in control throughout - he even drove in a run with his first career hit.
Claussen, who had "Tommy John" surgery on his left elbow last June, allowed eight hits, struck out five and walked one in 61/3 innings, but the bullpen nearly gave away his win.
Wigginton homered off Sterling Hitchcock in the seventh to make it 9-3. In the eighth, Tony Clark hit a run-scoring double off Hitchcock, Dan Miceli walked Timo Perez and Rivera came on in relief.
Roberto Alomar hit a pinch-hit sacrifice fly, and Gonzalez, recalled from Triple-A Norfolk before the second game, sent a drive into the right-center gap to make it 9-8.
After the first game, the teams took bus to Shea Stadium in less than a half-hour, complete with police escorts, to play the nightcap in the second two-park doubleheader in the majors since 1903. On July 8, 2000, the Mets and Yankees opened at Shea and finished in the Bronx, both 4-2 Yankees wins.
The Mets have lost four in a row overall, and eight of nine.
Claussen's debut was drastically better than the Mets' Jeremy Griffiths in Game 1.
Griffiths allowed five runs - including Matsui's grand slam - and seven hits in three-plus innings. Matsui, who leads major-league rookies with 60 RBIs, homered in the third and sent the 55,343 fans at Yankee Stadium into a cheering frenzy.
Clemens allowed six hits, struck out seven and walked one in eight innings for his first victory since winning his 300th on June 13. He moved past Hall of Famers Lefty Grove and Early Wynn for sole possession of 19th place on the career wins list.
