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Rays rally in seventh to top Yankees

Jul 20, 2011 - 6:14 AM St. Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Jeremy Hellickson threw seven strong innings as the Tampa Bay Rays used a couple of defensive miscues in the seventh inning to edge the New York Yankees, 3-2, in the second portion of a four-game series.

Hellickson (9-7) allowed two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out seven as the Rays snapped their three-game losing streak.

"I wasn't very effective there the first few innings, threw a lot of pitches," Hellickson said. "I ended up really good."

Joel Peralta pitched a perfect ninth inning to earn his first save of the year.

Bartolo Colon (6-6) went 6 1/3 innings, allowing three runs -- two earned -- on five hits and two walks. He also struck out a season-high nine batters as New York saw its three-game win streak come to an end.

Trailing by a score of 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh, Robinson Chirinos and Sean Rodriguez hit back-to-back singles to knock Colon off the mound.

Boone Logan entered next and got pinch-hitter Justin Ruggiano to launch a towering fly ball into center field, but Curtis Granderson lost it in the roof of Tropicana Field and it fell to the ground, loading the bases. Pinch-hitter Elliot Johnson came up next and hit a chopper to the mound that Logan deflected into the air, allowing everyone to move up a bag safely and scoring Chirinos.

"What are you going to do? You lose a lot of balls in this stadium," Logan said. "It just started from there. Sometimes games end up being like this."

Johnny Damon then hit a blooper into shallow center field. Granderson made a sliding catch on the ball, but Rodriguez hustled home as Granderson's throw sailed past Russell Martin at the plate to give the Rays a 3-2 lead.

Mark Teixeira hit a two-out, broken-bat double down the right-field line in the third and Robinson Cano followed by hammering a home run over the left- center field wall, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead.

The Rays made it a one-run game in the fifth after Sam Fuld tripled over the head of Granderson in left-center field and came home on Reid Brignac's base hit to right.

New York had a chance to put the game away in the top of the seventh, but failed to convert on the opportunity. Brett Gardner hit a two-out single and stole second during an Eduardo Nunez at-bat. Nunez eventually worked a walk and a double-steal by the baserunners put men on second and third. But Derek Jeter hit a weak grounder to first to end the inning, spoiling the Yankees' chance.

Game Notes

New York placed pitcher Sergio Mitre on the 15-day disabled list and recalled pitcher Steve Garrison from Double-A Trenton Tuesday...Before Cano's homer in the third inning, New York had not hit a home run in four straight games, tying a season-high homerless drought...Gardner's two stolen bases in the seventh inning increased his career-best streak to 15 straight without being caught...Tampa Bay improved to 3-4 against New York this season...Tampa Bay's Ben Zobrist exited in the seventh inning after fouling a ball off his right calf in the sixth. He's day-to-day.