NEW YORK -- Reaching a round-number milestone is always sweeter in a win, and Jacoby Ellsbury couldn't have picked a more opportune evening to hit his first career grand slam.
Ellsbury's seventh-inning slam off left-hander Vidal Nuno also represented the 100th home run of his career, helping the Yankees surge within three runs in what ended as a wild 14-11, 10-inning victory over the Orioles.
"It's pretty special," Ellsbury said. "I'm even happier that it could come on a win like that. It's always more enjoyable when the team wins. Pretty special moment for myself -- 100th homer and first grand slam."
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It was the Yankees' first grand slam since the last homer of Mark Teixeira's career, a walk-off blast to defeat the Red Sox last Sept. 28.
Starlin Castro, who hit a game-tying homer in the ninth off Brad Brach, said that Ellsbury's grand slam was the blow that made the Yankees believe a comeback was possible.

"We had people on base every inning," Castro said. "I think after that happened, I told Didi [Gregorius], 'We might win the game today.' That's the feeling we had in the dugout."
Ellsbury became the first Yankee to hit a grand slam for his 100th career home run since Matt Nokes, who did it on May 13, 1992, against the Mariners.
"The guys ahead of me, there's so many quality at-bats, so many big home runs," Ellsbury said. "You start to chip away. Got us within three. It was definitely a huge team effort, probably the most rewarding win of the year. Had to be."