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Gardner delivers walk-off hit to give Yankees much-needed win

Aug 16, 2008 - 10:36 PM BRONX, New York (Ticker) -- After an afternoon of missed opportunities and questionable strategy, the struggling New York Yankees got a boost from an unlikely source.

Rookie Brett Gardner delivered an RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the 13th inning Saturday, lifting the Yankees to a 3-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

It was the second walk-off hit of the season for the light-hitting Gardner, who also had the game-winner with an infield single in the 10th inning of a 5-4 victory over the Boston Red Sox on July 6.

Recalled on Friday when slumping Melky Cabrera was sent down to the minors, Gardner will be the Yankees' every-day center fielder until further notice. He had three hits Saturday, raising his average to .176.

His winning hit Saturday came after the Yankees were 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position. They did not score after loading the bases in the fourth with no outs and again in the eighth with one out.

In the ninth, an odd move by manager Joe Girardi backfired. With runners on first and second and no outs, Girardi elected not to bunt with Johnny Damon, who struck out. Derek Jeter then grounded into an inning-ending double play.

While the Yankees' offense struggled, they received a superb performance from their bullpen as six relievers combined to allow just one hit in 6 2/3 innings. Rookie David Robertson (3-0) tossed the final two frames to record the win.

New York finally broke through in the 13th against Jeff Fulchino (0-1), who was making his first appearance since June 22 after being recalled on Friday. Robinson Cano singled with out, moved up on Ivan Rodriguez's groundout and scored when Gardner slapped a single to left field.

New York, which began the day seven games behind the Boston Red Sox in the wild card race, won for only the seventh time in its last 20 contests.

Kansas City starter Zack Greinke blanked the Yankees through six innings, allowing only four hits. But the Royals unraveled in the seventh, allowing New York to erase a 2-0 deficit with a pair of unearned runs.

Alex Rodriguez reached second on a pair of errors by third baseman Alex Gordon, one on a bobble and one on the throw. Three batters later, Cano ripped an RBI triple, then scored the tying run on a wild pitch.