CC Sabathia pitched into the seventh inning in his return for New York on Saturday, and Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltran homered in the cold to lift the Yankees to an 8-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers.
Sabathia (1-0) allowed three runs and four hits in six-plus innings in his first start since missing the postseason last year while undergoing alcohol rehabilitation. He retired the first nine batters he faced and had only one really messy stretch, in the fourth. Rodriguez gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead in the first with his 688th career homer, and Beltran hit a two-run shot in the fifth.
Mike Pelfrey (0-1) allowed six runs and eight hits in 3 2/3 innings in his first start for the Tigers after signing with Detroit in the offseason.
The temperature at game time was 31 degrees, the coldest in Comerica Park history, according to STATS LLC.
