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Yankees rally and hold on for win over Devil Rays

Jul 15, 2007 - 11:44 PM ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- Andy Phillips came up with a big hit and a sparkling defensive play to lead the New York Yankees to victory.

Phillips had and RBI single in the eighth inning and made a diving grab in the bottom of the frame to spark the Yankees to a 7-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Sunday.

"I feel good about the personality of this team," New York manager Joe Torre said. "They showed me a lot, they feel good about themselves. We just keep hitting and grinding. It's all about the little things. This is very satisfying but we have a lot of work ahead of us."

Phillips gave New York a 6-5 lead with an RBI single to left field off of Gary Glover. Derek Jeter followed with a run-scoring single to extend the lead to 7-5.

The Devil Rays closed to 7-6 in the bottom of the eighth but Phillips kept them from getting any closer. The Yankees' first baseman made a diving catch with one out and then threw to second to double up pinch runner Josh Wilson.

Mariano Rivera pitched out of trouble in the ninth for his 426th career save.

"I like the fact that he was available with a one-run lead," said Torre. "You trust him so much. He about bit my head off when I came out in the last inning and I said 'You sure you want to go after this guy (Carlos Pena)?' and he said, 'Let's go,' and that was the end of the conversation."

Luis Vizcaino (5-2) retired the only batter he faced to end the seventh and pick up the win. Kyle Farnsworth pitched the eighth, allowing a run and two hits and Rivera the ninth for his 13th save of the season.

"I got a lot of breaks," said New York starter Mike Mussina, who left after six innings with a chance to win the game. "I realized early on that it was going to be a fight. There were some great plays behind me like Phillips taking on their fast guy (Carl Crawford) one-on-one at the goal line. I didn't have good command of the ball today."

Casey Fossum (5-8) allowed a run and a hit in 2/3 of an inning to take the loss.

Jeter went 2-for-4 with three RBI for the Yankees (45-44), who took 3-of-4 from the Devil Rays and pulled within nine games of the Boston Red Sox in the American League East Division standings.

The Yankees trailed 3-0 in the fifth before scoring four runs. Jeter hit a two-run homer off of Tampa Bay starter Edwin Jackson to cap the frame.

"I thought Jackson was pitching really well again," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. "It's unfortunate that things didn't end up better. That was a tough inning."

Phillips had an RBI triple in the fifth that center fielder B.J. Upton misplayed. It appeared that Upton would catch the liner by Phillips but he overran the ball, which rolled all the way to the wall.

Robinson Cano scored on the play and it appeared to affect Jackson, who allowed an RBI double to Wil Nieves and Jeter's homer later in the frame.

"I'm not disappointed the way it turned out for me but I'm disappointed that we lost," Jackson said. "I feel (the Jeter home run) was my only mistake."