Grand ‘D’ is dandy in clutch

The Yankees have had to rely on Curtis Granderson’s bat more than a few times this season, but last night, they needed his glove.

Granderson, playing in his customary shallow spot in center, had to race deep into left-center to catch up to Omar Quintanilla’s drive in the seventh inning that almost certainly would have scored Josh Thole from first to tie a game the Yankees ended up winning, 4-2.

“Whenever you can keep runs from scoring, it’s always big,” Granderson said.

Especially when you’re going through an 0-for-18 slump.

Granderson snapped that in the bottom of the eighth when he hit his 18th homer of the season, a shot to right off Bobby Parnell to give the Yankees an insurance run.

Despite the hitless streak, Granderson never thought he lost his swing.

“I felt like I had decent at-bats,” Granderson said. “I just haven’t been able to do much with them. It’s not mechanical.”

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But he hasn’t been bothered in the field. After Thole’s one-out single in the seventh knocked Phil Hughes out of the game, southpaw Boone Logan was brought in to face the lefty-hitting Quintanilla.

Though the Mets’ newest shortstop isn’t about to make anyone forget Ruben Tejada, let alone Jose Reyes, he has had a strong Subway Series so far.

After coming up with the Mets’ only hit off Hiroki Kuroda on Friday night — a double up the gap in left-center — Quintanilla added a homer to right in the second inning last night. Then he came up with what looked like another extra-base hit in the seventh.

“It was just a matter of trying to get there,” Granderson said. “The ball hung up a little bit, and I was able to get there and catch it. A play like that can change a ballgame.”

It did. Thole never scored and the Mets failed to knot the game.

And it made Granderson even more confident about leaving plenty of room between him and the fence.

“It can go both ways,” Granderson said. “You don’t want a double [over your head], but I feel more comfortable going back. I feel better that way, and I get a better jump going back since that’s my first instinct.”

One that served the Yankees well last night.

dan.martin@nypost.com

Curtis Granderson, Granderson, Omar Quintanilla, Josh Thole, the Yankees, Yankees, Hiroki Kuroda, Bobby Parnell

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Cardinal Hayes' Jenkins ends the suspense, picks George Mason

Jalen Jenkins, the supremely versatile and talented forward out of Cardinal Hayes, has toyed with the idea of going straight to college or taking a postgraduate year for a while now.

The recent high school graduate has gone back and forth between the two like a pendulum swinging from side to side. In that time, colleges have come and gone, some turned off by the possibility he may reclassify into the Class of 2013 and others hoping he would do so.

George Mason never stopped recruiting the Yonkers native. The CAA school wanted him either way – this coming season or the one after. Jenkins returned the Patriots’ loyalty this week, verbally committing to George Mason and head coach Paul Hewitt. He has yet to decide if he will be at the Fairfax, Va., school in the fall or do a prep year – at 17 years old, he is a young senior, after all.

Denis Gostev

Cardinal Hayes' Jalen Jenkins has verbally committed to George Mason.

“They’re with me whatever I want to do,” he said while playing with New Heights at Rumble in the Bronx at John Jay College in Manhattan.

Jenkins, an All-City second team selection by The Post, chose George Mason over Rhode Island, Fordham, Manhattan, Quinnipiac, Iona and others, but he said it was really George Mason all the way. He fell in love with the campus and was comfortable with the coaching staff, notably Hewitt who was his lead recruiter.

“It’s always good when the head coach calls you – that’s who calls the shots,” Jenkins said. “It was a big sign, a sign they wanted me and saw potential in me.”

There were high major schools to enquire and show interest in Jenkins, he said, like Providence and Marquette, but he felt George Mason fit him like a glove.

“They make the [NCAA] Tournament every year, they compete every year,” he said. “I know if I work hard and do what I need to do, they’re going to give me a chance.”

Jenkins was particularly impressed with the sprawling campus, which he said reminded him of the North Carolinas and Dukes of the ACC. He wanted to get out of New York City, but not go too far, and George Mason offered that.

“I wanted to get out, experience something new,” he said. “When you’re a kid playing basketball in New York City, you’ve seen all of the tri-state and everything it has to offer.”

His transition will be eased by the presence of point guard Corey Edwards, a good friend of his who he stayed with on his visit. The two talked a lot about the school in recent weeks and Jenkins liked everything Edwards had to say, from the coaching staff to the school’s social life to its academic programs.

“It’s a great marriage,” New Heights coach Kimani Young said. “It’s a great level for him, whether he gets there this year or next year. Paul Hewitt will be a great mentor for him.”

George Mason is getting a multidimensional player in Jenkins. A combo forward who can step out behind the 3-point line, score inside and distribute and lead a fastbreak, one Division I coach familiar with Jenkins said he has the “potential” to be an all-conference performer in the CAA.

“Jalen is a very cerebral player who can really pass and handle the ball for a forward,” the coach said. “He’s a great kid that will have a lot of success in the MAAC.”

Jenkins is happy to have the long-and-winding process over with. While there is the possibility he could attend prep school in the fall – he will likely decide after the AAU season ends in July, his most important decision – where he will attend college – is over with.

“[George Mason] has everything I wanted,” he said.

zbraziller@nypost.com

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Trojans lament poor at bats, Sanchez's absence in loss to Grand Street

George Washington believed its title got away in the early innings.

“We didn’t let the pitcher work,” Trojans star Nelson Rodriguez said. “We didn’t take good at bats.”

The catcher felt he and his teammates were too anxious at the plate against Grand Street ace Gerry Gonzalez. They swung at too many first pitches and didn't look to work enough walks. The crafty left didn't give up a hit through the first four innings to the mighty GW lineup. By the time they adjusted, Gonzalez had his confidence and a two-run lead.

“I think we let him get into a rhythm and didn’t break up his rhythm at all,” George Washington coach Steve Mandl said.

Christina Santucci

George Washington's Steven Segarra reacts to the loss.

Photos: Grand Street Campus-George Washington

His team got just a fifth-inning run and left the bases loaded with one out for the defending champions. With two on in the seventh, Randy Rodriguez hit a comebacker to Gonzalez that ended the fourth-seeded Trojans' 2-1 loss to No. 2 Grand Street Campus in the PSAL Class A baseball final Friday night at MCU Park in Brooklyn.

“We outhit them and even five hits are a shock to us,” said Mandl, who didn’t coach last year because of a suspension for recruiting violations.

The Trojans played without one of their best players in center fielder Fernelys Sanchez, who was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 16th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft earlier this week. Mandl said he found out Thursday that the organization didn’t want him to play and his advisor agreed out of fear of him getting hurt. Sanchez missed almost the whole season with a broken fibula. The longtime coach wasn’t happy, but didn’t use it as an excuse.

“It made no sense whatsoever,” Mandl said. “All these kids play in the College World Series. Their first two picks are a catcher and a pitcher in the College World Series.”

GW starter Edwin Corniel gave his team a chance to rally giving up just four hits over five innings while walking three and striking out four. The senior allowed an RBI triple to Kevin Martir in the first inning and a solo blast to left by Ernesto Lopez in the fourth to make it 2-0 Grand Street (21-1).

The Trojans (19-3) showed life in the top of the seventh. Bryan Mejia reached on an error and with one out Yasmany Gomez was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second. Henry Rodriguez flied out Randy Rodriguez repeatedly fouled off Gonzalez pitches and was almost safe on a high throw.

“He is one of the people you want up in that situation,” Mandl said.

While that at bat didn’t go its way, George Washington still lamented its approach at the plate in the early frames.

“When we had bases loaded that’s when we started taking pitches,” Nelson Rodriguez said. “He started walking people and then we started swinging at first pitches. We weren’t patient.”

jstaszewski@nypost.com

George Washington, George Washington, Nelson Rodriguez, Nelson Rodriguez, Grand Street ace Gerry Gonzalez, Trojans, Randy Rodriguez, SantucciGeorge Washington, Grand Street, Grand Street, Gonzalez, Grand Street Campus, Steven Segarra, Atlanta Braves, Mandl

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Time Warner mulling leadership change at CNN

Time Warner brass is succession planning at CNN, but no one’s walking the plank just yet.

Senior management is putting together a short list of potential candidates to run CNN Worldwide to end the ratings death spiral at the flagship news channel, several sources confirm.

The once-mighty neTWork, created in 1980 by Ted Turner, has been recording some of its lowest ratings in 20 years. Last month, CNN ranked 44th in prime time in the advertiser-coveted, 25-to-54-year-old demographic.

That lowly rank places CNN below even Oprah Winfrey’s OWN network and the Bio Channel — attracting just 114,000 viewers in the demographic. A lackluster primary season hasn’t helped the network rustle up its usual presidential election spike.

Dimitrios Kambouris

Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes (above) and Andersen Cooper can’t help fractured ratings.

CNN has pulled in an average of just 633,000 primetime viewers in the year ending June 30 — about 20 percent fewer eyeballs than two presidential election cycles ago.

Such a rating meltdown demands action and TW higher- ups are brainstorming for ideas for new management candidates with an eye on potentially replacing Jim Walton, who runs CNN Worldwide, several sources said.

The 53-year old executive’s contract is said to end on Dec. 31. Nothing will happen before the Nov. 6 elections The Post has learned.

When asked if there’s a search on, one TW insider told The Post, “We’re always thinking about succession. Are there any changes right now? No.”

Officials declined comment.

The poor ratings come as Madison Avenue allocates its annual ad dollars.

CNN’s ad revenue growth over the last two years is roughly 12 percent — the smallest increase of any of its rivals, including younger sibling Headline News, which saw ad revenue grow 20 percent in the period.

“Its being looked at very hard by [Time Warner CEO] Jeff Bewkes,” said one source who is familiar with TW’s thinking, adding, [Turner’s] “Phil [Kent] has stuck by Walton through thick and thin. Until recently they had a good business story going for them, but they’re having to do a lot of make-goods.”

Other cable news outlets are doing make-goods, too.

At a recent media conference, Walton’s direct boss, Kent, chairman and CEO of Turner Broadcasting, said he was “very unhappy,” with the situation.

Kent backed the current primetime lineup, which only includes shows hosted by Anderson Cooper at 8 p.m. and Piers Morgan at 9 p.m. A Cooper re-run airs at 10 p.m.

“We haven’t put the best shows on the air,” said Kent, speaking of the line-up outside of prime time.

Several news business high-ups say one name being floated internally to come in and revive CNN ratings is Jeff Zucker, the former NBCUniversal boss. Zucker is friendly with both Bewkes and corporate adviser, Gary Ginsberg. The Zucker prospect has rattled some in the executive ranks. No outreach has occurred around that idea.

In any case, Zucker is tied to Walt Disney Co. until at least early next year, as exec producer of “Katie.” Zucker did not return a call for comment.

Meanwhile, CNN insiders are also carping about the hiring of chef Anthony Bourdain to record a weekend show as editorial staff are being downsized. “People were like, ‘whaaaat?’ They’re eliminating reporters and replacing them with a food guy?”

catkinson@nypost.com

Jeff Zucker, Time Warner, CNN Worldwide, Jim Walton, TW, Ted Turner, succession planning, Jeff Bewkes, Andersen Cooper, Anderson Cooper, ratings, presidential election

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Belmont strike averted

Place your bets!

Saturday’s Belmont Stakes — where I’ll Have Another has a chance to win horse racing’s first Triple Crown in 34 years — should go off without a hitch now that a contentious labor dispute has been settled.

The Local 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers had waged a two-year war with the New York Racing Association — which was trying to control soaring overtime and health care costs — and had threatened to strike just days before the historic race.

But Gov. Cuomo called on both sides to hammer out a deal, and federal mediator David Thaler oversaw negotiations until a deal was reached early yesterday morning.

“With the potential for the nation’s first Triple Crown in more than three decades, this year’s Belmont Stakes holds particular excitement for horse racing fans here in New York and across the globe,” Cuomo said in a statement. “I am pleased that by coming together, NYRA and IBEW Local 3 have been able to forge a labor contract agreement that helps allow the much-anticipated Belmont Stakes to be held this weekend.”

Vincent McElroen, financial secretary for the union representing 150 starters and maintenance workers, said, “We’re happy that we got an agreement.”

NYRA President Ellen McClain also hailed the agreement.

“We can [now] focus exclusively on this Saturday’s Belmont Stakes and I’ll Have Another’s historic attempt to become the first Triple Crown champion since Affirmed in 1978,” she said.

Union bigs and NYRA sources had said the big race would have been run even if the workers walked out, with replacements from other tracks taking their place.

While specifics were not immediately disclosed, the administration said the deal addresses the overtime costs and concerns over soaring health care costs for both current employees and retirees.

* All 12 Belmont Stakes contenders were bedded down in the Barn 2 isolation barn by 12:04 p.m. yesterday, when I’ll Have Another was the last to arrive.

The last horse to arrive on the grounds was Union Rags, who vanned up in the morning from the Fair Hill training center in Maryland.

* Churchill Downs’s TwinSpires ADW service has credited the accounts of customers whose payouts were reduced when NYRA was skimming $8.5 million from bettors because they did not reduce the takeout on exotic wagers, as mandated by law, for 18 months.

* A liquor store on Long Island is having a “If he wins, you win” promotion. If I’ll Have Another wins the Triple Crown, buy a bottle of booze on Sunday, you get another one free.

ed.fountaine@nypost.com

Triple Crown, Triple Crown, Belmont Stakes, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, New York Racing Association, NYRA, horse racing, health care costs, David Thaler, health care

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Finger Lakes Results

FIRST-1m&70y; $9,000; cl($4,500); 3up

2

Evl's Brothr (Mrls)

30.40

8.40

3.90

1

a-Raytessa (Yang)

2.20

2.10

5

Zippy's Tiger (Sone)

2.20

* Exacta (2-1) $67.00 * Trifecta (2-1-5) $145.00

SECOND-5 1/2f; $9,000; cl($4,500); 3up

1

Cured (Ignacio)

5.90

2.90

2.70

8

Mandate (Davila,Jr.)

2.60

2.50

4

Wabash River (Henry,Jr.)

7.10

* Daily Double (2-1) $129.50 * Exacta (1-8) $14.20 * $1 Superfecta (1-8-4-2) $152.20 * Trifecta (1-8-4) $134.50

THIRD-5 1/2f; $9,000; cl($4,500); 3up; (f&m)

3

Kochr Grl (Rdrguz)

10.40

4.70

3.20

4

Bold Dixie (Sone)

3.60

2.40

1

Wheely Pink (Morales)

5.40

* Exacta (3-4) $24.80 * $1 Superfecta (3-4-1-7) $298.50 * Trifecta (3-4-1) $174.50

FOURTH-5 1/2f; $9,000; cl($4,500); 3up

5

Bstro Soree (Son)

9.00

3.60

2.40

7

Max's Beau (Alvarado)

2.60

2.10

1

a-Another Silver Oak (Lopez)

2.10

Scr: Sunday Dreamer.

* Exacta (5-7) $22.00 * Trifecta (5-7-1) $62.50

FIFTH-5 1/2f; $20,000; alw; 3up; (f&m)

3

Fr Ldy Olv (Surez)

16.40

6.10

4.40

2

Joyce's Choice (Ignacio)

3.80

3.20

9

Spanish Luck (DeDiego)

6.10

Scr: Sheza Sweet Lemon.

* Pick 4 (1-3-5-3) 4 Correct $1,276.00 * Pick 3 (3-5-3) 3 Correct $377.00 * Daily Double (5-3) $117.00 * Exacta (3-2) $57.00 * $1 Superfecta (3-2-9-7) $552.50 * Trifecta (3-2-9) $492.00

SIXTH-6f; $17,800; alw opt clm; 3up; (f&m)

3

Interrogte (Lopez)

3.30

2.20

2.10

6

Proud House (Sone)

4.30

3.40

1

Gatto Nero (Carr)

2.20

Scr: Gentle Ride.

* Daily Double (3-3) $36.40 * Exacta (3-6) $15.40 * Trifecta (3-6-1) $34.00

Winner picked by Affrunti

SEVENTH-6f; $15,500; cl($12,500); 3up

6

Le Freak (Perez)

6.00

3.20

2.40

3

Chapel Chief (Rodriguez)

3.50

2.90

2

Lateef (Rohena)

3.60

* Exacta (6-3) $21.00 * $1 Superfecta (6-3-2-4) $138.00 * Trifecta (6-3-2) $135.50

EIGHTH-6f; $17,800; alw; 3up

3

Snd On Sndy (Crr)

8.60

4.40

2.40

1

Bruce's Choice (Flores)

4.60

2.60

4

Bernstein's Friend (Rohena)

2.30

* Exacta (3-1) $29.00 * $1 Superfecta (3-1-4-2) $58.50 * Trifecta (3-1-4) $71.00

NINTH-6f; $9,000; cl($4,500); 3up

1

Pure Grit (Frates)

5.20

3.20

3.40

4

Trackmens Star (Gomez)

3.00

2.70

7

Poorpete (Suarez)

4.50

Scr: Coruscation, Doing Without, Swift to the Bid, Knockout, Twenty to Life.

* Pick 4 (3/5-6-3-1/5/8/9) 4 Correct $103.00 * Pick 3 (6-3-1) 3 Correct $96.50 * $1 Superfecta (1-4-7-2) $214.20 * Trifecta (1-4-7) $92.00 * Daily Double (3-1) $26.20 * Daily Double (3-8) $7.70 * Exacta (1-4) $13.60

Attendance unavailable.

Trifecta, Davila,Jr., Henry,Jr., Daily Double, Daily Double, Daily Double, Ignacio, cl

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Djokovic survives four match points to beat Tsonga at French Open

PARIS — Four times, the stands at Roland Garros were ready to erupt, a beloved Frenchman standing one point from beating the world’s top player and ending his quest for history.

Four times, Novak Djokovic had an answer for Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

And so, instead of Tsonga Time at the French Open, Djokovic is still on the road to the “Novak Slam.”

Top-seeded Djokovic overcame four match points, to say nothing of the wildly partisan crowd, for a 6-1, 5-7, 5-7, 7-6 (6), 6-1 victory over Tsonga that ended near twilight yesterday in front of drizzle-soaked stands that had quickly emptied after Tsonga’s match points vanished and the final set had become academic.

Djokovic’s win was his 26th straight in the majors.

Tsonga, the No. 5 seed, had dreams of becoming the first Frenchman to win his country’s Grand Slam event since Yannick Noah in 1983.

It was the end to a remarkable day of tennis that included third-seeded Roger Federer’s comeback from two sets down for a 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-0, 6-3 win over No. 9 seed Juan Martin del Potro. After both the winners rest their legs, they’ll meet with a spot in the final on the line.

Djokovic’s last Grand Slam loss came against Federer in that semifinal last year — a defeat that ended the Serb’s 43-match winning streak.

If Federer does it again, he’ll set the stage for his 17th Grand Slam tournament title and his first since the 2010 Australian Open.

Djokovic, meanwhile, will try to set up a chance to join Rod Laver and Don Budge as the only men to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time.

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Novak Djokovic, Djokovic, Roger Federer, Tsonga, Yannick Noah, the French Open, match points, Juan Martin del Potro

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