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NEW YORK -- Getting above .500 has proved to be difficult for the New York Yankees.The degree of difficulty is about become even more challenging.The Yankees will begin a 10-game homestand against three of the best teams in the majors starting Friday night when they face the Boston Red Sox.The Yankees will be taking on an opponent that leads baseball in runs (490), batting average (.292), on-base percentage (.359), slugging percentage (.474), OPS (.833) and doubles (216).And the difficulty doesnt let up after that with seven games against the first-place Baltimore Orioles and San Francisco Giants.Its the kind of homestand that can put you in a good position or it could put way downstairs, right fielder Carlos Beltran told reporters during the All-Star break.Way downstairs would be even worse deficits in the American League East and the wild-card races. The Yankees are 7 1/2 games behind the Orioles in the AL East and 5 1/2 out of the second wild card with six teams (Toronto, Houston, Detroit, Chicago, Kansas City and Seattle) ahead of them.Friday begins a stretch of seven straight games against the top two teams in the AL East.Were not in a great position necessarily, but if youre in this position you want to be playing a lot of games, Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. That could be a really good thing.The Yankees have reached .500 eight times since May 24 and the latest instance might have been the least unexpected. New York ended the first half by taking three of four in Cleveland after dropping four of six in San Diego and Chicago, respectively.The Red Sox took a 49-38 record into the break and have seemingly recovered from a June slump that dropped them out of first place. From June 14 to June 29, the Red Sox dropped 10 of 16 to fall 5 1/2 games out, but since then they have won seven of nine and concluded the first half with a 4-0 win over Tampa Bay when David Price threw eight outstanding innings and David Ortiz hit a two-run homer.This homestand is what we needed, Red Sox manager John Farrell said. Coming off a tough month of June, we gain a little momentum as we go into the break.Ortiz has 75 regular-season games remaining in his career and enters Friday with a .332 average, 22 home runs and 72 RBI.According the Elias Sports Bureau, he has the most RBI at the break of any player 40 or older and is the second oldest player to hit 20-plus home runs in the first half.Its probably beyond our expectations coming into his final season, Farrell said. Just a powerful and impressive first half.Ortiz is not the only Red Sox player to post impressive numbers in the first half.Mookie Betts is batting .408 (20-for-49) during an 11-game hitting streak, the sixth Red Sox with a hitting streak of at least 10 games this season. Dustin Pedroia is batting .315 (23-for-73) during his current 18-game on-base streak and Hanley Ramirez is hitting .408 (20-for-49) in his last 14 games since June 22.Michael Pineda (3-8, 5.38 ERA) has personified inconsistency at various points this season and will open the second half for New York.Pineda had a 2.75 ERA in six June starts but began July by allowing five runs and five hits in six innings during a 5-0 loss at Chicago on July 6. It marked the sixth time he allowed at least five runs, and it is one less than the amount of starts that Pineda has gotten at least eight strikeouts.Pineda is 4-4 with a 4.50 ERA in nine career starts against the Red Sox. On April 30 in an 8-0 loss at Fenway Park, Pineda allowed two runs and five hits in five innings. On May 6 in New York, he gave up two runs and eight hits in six innings of a 3-2 win.If pitching to Bostons offense isnt challenging enough, hitting against knuckleballer Steven Wright might only add to the difficulty for the Yankees. Wright (10-5, 2.68 ERA) took a shutout into the ninth inning and pitched a three-hitter in two hours and 20 minutes on May 8 in New York.Wright is 3-1 with a 1.33 ERA in four outings (three starts) against the Yankees. He went into the break with straight wins despite allowing a combined nine earned runs and 17 hits in 11 innings against the Angels and Texas Rangers.Yeezy Boost 350 Authentic . -- Lou Brocks shoulder-to-shoulder collision with Bill Freehan during the 1968 World Series and Pete Roses bruising hit on Ray Fosse in the 1970 All-Star game could become relics of baseball history, like the dead-ball era. Yeezys Cheap .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. http://www.cheapyeezy350sale.com/yeezy-350-v2/yeezy-350-v2-clay.html .com) - The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward James Neal on injured reserve Tuesday. Yeezy Boost 350 Black Cheap . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. Cheap Yeezy 350 Shoes . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency.DALLAS -- After Dallas scored three goals in the first period, it was on Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen to preserve the win.Patrick Eaves capped Dallas three-goal first and the Stars held off the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 Thursday night. Johnny Oduya and Brett Ritchie also scored in the first for Dallas.Colorado outshot Dallas 30-16 in the last 40 minutes, but Lehtonen camp up big while getting 28 of his 34 saves.You need a game once in a while where your goalie makes some big saves to give you a win, Stars center Jason Spezza said, and Kari did that tonight.The last 40 minutes were largely a battle between Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon and Lehtonen.MacKinnon scored a short-handed goal and added an assist on Mikhail Grigorenkos third-period goal.Lehtonen stopped MacKinnon on a breakaway midway through the second period and again on a rebound with 10 minutes left in the game.I didnt love (MacKinnons) first period, just like the rest of our team, Colorado coach Jared Bednar said, but he came hard in the last two periods. He was all around the net, he was hanging onto pucks and it wasnt fancy plays.MacKinnon has scored only three goals this season.It was a tough start to the year, he said. Im just trying to stay positive. Ive got to be better.MacKinnon won 11 of 19 faceoffs in the first two periods. He was 5 for 12 in the third after Stars coach Lindy Ruff matched Cody Eakin, returning for his first game this season, with MacKinnon in the faceoff circle.MacKinnon was eating up (Radek) Faksa, Ruff said, so I looked to (Eakin) to kind of dig in and win a couple. I thought all night he did a good job.Eakin won 15 of 23 faceoffs.Semyon Varlamov stopped 19 shots and snapped an 11-game winning streak against the Stars.Oduya scored his first goal since last Dec. 17 on a slap shot from the left point that went in off Colorado defenseman Tyson Barries left knee at 8:15.I just close my eyes and shoot, Oduya said. I told Patty (Eaves)) that Im not like him, putting it top shelf every time.dddddddddddd For me, its kind of shoot at the net and see what happens, and sometimes it goes in.Barely two minutes later, Ritchie scored from the slot on the power play after taking a pass from Devin Shore low in the left faceoff circle.Eaves power-play goal from the right of the net followed rapid-fire passes from Spezza behind the net and Tyler Seguin high in the slot.I thought we played 20 minutes, Ruff said. Maybe a little more than that, until the short-handed goal. Im frustrated with the short-handed goals weve been giving up, and Im sick of it.Dallas has allowed four shorthanded goals this season.MacKinnons goal with 7:54 left in the second came after he took Andreas Martinsens pass from the right corner just to the right of the net and beat Lehtonen. Two minutes earlier, Lehtonen had stopped MacKinnon on a breakaway at the endThe Avalanche pulled within a goal at 1:51 of the third when Grigorenko redirected MacKinnons shot from the right point into the right side of the net.Game notesA preseason knee injury had sidelined Eakin almost two months. ... Colorado scoring leader C Matt Duchene missed his third game because of concussion-like symptoms. LW Gabriel Landeskog, the Avalanche captain, also sat out with a lower-body injury. ... LW AJ Greer was recalled for his second NHL game, and scored his first point by assisting on Grigorenkos goal. ... Eaves leads the Stars with eight goals. His 14 points in 17 games represent the best start in his 12 NHL seasons. ... Colorado had 12 wins in the previous 15 games vs. the Stars. ... Oduyas goal ended a personal 67-game drought.UP NEXTAvalanche: At Minnesota on Saturday for the second game on a three-game trip.Stars: Host Edmonton on Saturday in the third of four straight home games. ' ' '