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Rays ride five-run 14th to win over Yankees

NEW YORK -- After playing 18 innings in Thursday's doubleheader, the Rays played 14 more on Friday night before coming away with a 10-5 win over the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

"It was a crazy game," said manager Joe Maddon in the understatement of the year. "From my perspective, we've been looking to come together as a group, whether it's been some of the guys on the field or the guys in the bullpen. Today's really a galvanizing moment, I want to believe, complementing yesterday."

The Rays have won three straight while moving to 4-4 on the 10-game road trip, with two games remaining in New York.

Desmond Jennings drew a leadoff walk against Chris Leroux to start the 14th. One out later, with Wil Myers hitting, Jennings stole second before Myers threaded an RBI single through the middle to put the Rays ahead.

Sean Rodriguez then doubled home Myers before Brandon Guyer singled to center to plate Rodriguez for a three-run lead. Yunel Escobar and Ryan Hanigan added RBI singles to push the lead to five runs, the winning margin.

Heath Bell claimed the win after holding the Yankees scoreless on four hits and a walk in 2 1/3 innings. Josh Lueke, the Rays' sixth pitcher of the night, got the final three outs to preserve the win.

Early on, the game belonged to David Price, who did what the team needed him to do. After the Rays used 10 pitchers in Thursday's doubleheader sweep of the Red Sox, their bullpen was running on fumes. So they looked to their ace to come up big by going deep into the game. And that's what he did, allowing two runs on eight hits and no walks while striking out eight in seven innings.

Price left the game with the Rays holding a two-run lead. But Joel Peralta could not hold it, allowing back-to-back home runs to Mark Teixeira and Alfonso Soriano in the bottom of the eighth to tie the score. The Rays then took a one-run lead into the bottom of the ninth thanks to Evan Longoria's RBI single, but the Yankees tied the score at 5 on Jacoby Ellsbury's RBI single, sending the game into extra innings.

It looked as though the Yankees might win when Ellsbury opened the bottom of the 12th with an infield single off Bell. Derek Jeter then reached on a force attempt that saw Bell throw the ball into center field, and all runners were safe.

But Carlos Beltran hit into a double play that saw Jeter first get caught in a rundown between first and second, then Ellsbury get caught between third and home. The play concluded with Ellsbury being tagged out and Jeter standing on third with two outs. The scoring on the play read: 4-3-3-6-3-4-3-4-5-2.

"It ended up just how it started, no matter what happened. It was a lot of running and throwing -- I don't know, man," Jeter said. "This was just a weird game."

Soriano grounded out to end the threat.

The 13th inning brought a couple of additional twists. Maddon was ejected in the top of the inning after arguing an overturned replay call that resulted in a double play against the Rays.

In the bottom half of the inning, the Yankees had runners at second and third with one out against Bell and pinch-hitter Brett Gardner due up. But before Gardner stepped to the plate, the Rays drew in the infield and expanded its number to five by bringing in right fielder Myers to play first.

"They just pointed to me out there and said, 'Wil, here we go,'" said Myers, who noted that he'd never played first base professionally, though he does have some Minor League experience at third.

Facing the five-man infield, Gardner grounded out on a putout that was officially ruled 3-9 due to the odd configuration of the infield at the time. After the out was recorded, Myers returned to right field.

Bell then intentionally walked Ellsbury to load the bases for Jeter, who grounded out to Bell to end the threat.

"The pitch was down, and he just hit it right back at me," Bell said. "I knew he took off running since I already threw the ball in the outfield once, so I think they were hoping I would throw it in the stands."

With the putout, Jeter finished an 0-for-7 performance.

"I don't remember if I've had seven at-bats in a game," Jeter said. "Funny things happen, strange things happen at times. We had our opportunities; it didn't happen. It would have been a good one to win; you're out there all that time, but you've got to have a short memory. We come back here in a few hours."

Bill Chastain is a reporter for MLB.com.
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