In his previous two starts, A.J. Burnett allowed three earned runs and struck out 16 in 13 innings.

He didn't duplicate that dominance on Friday night, allowing four runs on five hits and five walks in 6 1/3 innings.

Burnett gave up home runs to Jason Giambi and Troy Tulowitzki and struggled with his command until the later innings when he buckled down.

Burnett actually struck out four Rockies in the sixth inning. He got the chance to do so when Chris Nelson reached on a passed ball after swinging at a third strike. The ball bounced away from Martin, allowing Nelson to reach first.

Burnett then struck out Todd Helton to end the inning.

According to the Yankees, Burnett is the first Yankee to strike out four in an inning. It's the first time that happened in the majors since Seattle's Felix Hernandez did it against Minnesota on June 3, 2010. Burnett last struck out four in an inning on July 5, 2002 against the Mets.