DETROIT (AP) – Chien-Ming Wang allowed five hits in seven innings and Gary Sheffield drove in the game’s only run, leading the New York Yankees over the Detroit Tigers 1-0 Sunday.

The win was New York’s first in 28 tries this season when scoring three runs or fewer. The Yankees had not won a regular-season game when scoring three or fewer since a 3-2 victory over Toronto in the final game of the 2004 season.

Starting in place of the injured Carl Pavano, Wang (5-3) walked one and struck out two. It was the first time the rookie did not allow a run in a start.

Tom Gordon pitched the eighth and Mariano Rivera worked around a leadoff double to Ivan Rodriguez in the ninth, earning his 18th save in 20 tries and finishing the Yankees’ first 1-0 victory since July 22, 2004, against the Blue Jays.

Nate Robertson (3-7) took another tough loss, allowing just nine hits in his second complete game in three starts. Robertson is 0-4 at home this season despite a 2.56 ERA.

The Tigers are 1-5 on their homestand and have lost eight of 10 overall.

Both teams missed several scoring opportunities.

Detroit had two runners on in the first two innings, while the Yankees had runners on the corners with none out in the third, only to see John Flaherty pop out and Derek Jeter ground into a double play.

New York finally broke through in the fourth, but could have had more than one run.

Robinson Cano led off with a double and scored on Sheffield’s single. After a strikeout, Sheffield was thrown out stealing, which cost the Yankees a run when Bernie Williams and Hideki Matsui followed with hits.

Placido Polanco tripled with two outs in the fifth, but Carlos Guillen flew out. Wang got out of the sixth after walking Magglio Ordonez and hitting Rodriguez to start the inning.

Notes: The game drew 40,056 fans, the third sellout of the series. … Pavano was scratched because of a sore shoulder. Tanyon Sturtze will start Monday at home against Baltimore, then Randy Johnson will pitch on short rest Tuesday. … Wang hit three batters, including Polanco in each of his first two at-bats. … The Yankees won a road series for the first time since taking two of three from the Mets from May 20-22. … Detroit’s Rondell White, who has not played the field since Tuesday due to a sore shoulder, is expected to be in left field for Monday’s doubleheader in Cleveland. … The Yankees needed 80 games to win with three or fewer runs, the longest into a season in franchise history. The 27 consecutive losses in those games was the longest since losing 36 in a row in 1912. … Polanco’s triple was his first as a Tiger. … Rivera extended his majors-best scoreless streak to 22 innings over 21 appearances.

AP-ES-07-03-05 1552EDT