MINNEAPOLIS -- Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltran went deep to tie the game. Then the New York Yankees turned to their leadoff man to win it.
Jacoby Ellsbury hit a tiebreaking, two-run single in the ninth inning and the Yankees rallied past the Minnesota Twins 7-6 Saturday.
The Yankees trailed 4-0 after six innings. Rodriguez hit his 695th career homer in the seventh and Beltran added his own two-run shot in the eighth.
For Beltran, it was his 18th of the season, one shy of his total from 2015, and the latest in a line of big hits for the 39-year-old outfielder.
"Homers? I don't really look for that. That's not my approach," Beltran said. "My approach is to stay in the middle of the field. It's great I'm able to do that. But my whole approach is being able to hopefully stay in the field and give my team a chance to get the rally going."
The Yankees scored three times in the ninth for a 7-4 lead. Closer Aroldis Chapman gave up back-to-back homers to Eduardo Escobar and Kurt Suzuki with two outs in the bottom half before holding on for his 13th save in 14 chances.
It was 4-all when Fernando Abad (1-1) walked Chase Headley to lead off the Yankees. Didi Gregorius slipped a bunt past Abad and beat second baseman Brian Dozier's throw to put two runners on with nobody out.
A passed ball prompted an intentional walk to Rob Refsnyder to load the bases. Reliever Ryan Pressly struck out pinch-hitter Starlin Castro, but Ellsbury singled to right on a full-count pitch.
After a wild pitch, Brett Gardner hit a sacrifice fly.
"You want to feel that you can always come back. You want to have a team that grinds out at-bats," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We have guys that have been around a long time and have seen relievers, and it's not the first time they've seen certain guys."
Byung Ho Park homered and had a sacrifice fly, giving Minnesota a 4-0 lead.
Andrew Miller (4-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win.
Rodriguez hit his eighth home run this year, connecting off Ricky Nolasco one pitch after Beltran beat out an infield dribbler for a single.
Beltran tied it with an opposite-field homer off Kevin Jepsen. Gardner narrowly beat out a grounder to short to set up Beltran's shot.
Twins manager Paul Molitor had a chance to force the switch-hitting Beltran to bat right-handed if he'd brought in Abad, his lefty setup man.
Molitor declined to second-guess his decision to stick with Jepsen, who lost his closer job earlier this month.
"Beltran is having a great year. He's dangerous both ways, but I'd rather see him hit left-handed, in that situation, than right-handed against a little more experience," Molitor said. "Kevin got ahead of him, but then he left a changeup up that (Beltran) took out the other way."
Yankees starter Michael Pineda tied his season high with nine strikeouts.
Park made it 3-0 in the fourth inning with his 12th homer, a two-run shot to right. He added a sacrifice fly in the sixth.
RARE DAY FOR CHAPMAN
Chapman hadn't allowed any home runs in his first 17 games this season. The last time any team tagged him for consecutive homers was on May 19, 2013, when the Phillies' Erik Kratz and Freddy Galvis did it.
"When that happens, you can't lose your concentration," Chapman said through a translator. "Your job is to get the next guy out, and that's it."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Yankees: 1B Mark Teixeira (torn cartilage, right knee) is close to heading to the minor leagues for a rehab assignment, Girardi said. Teixeira, who has been sidelined since June 4, ran the bases before Saturday's game and could be ready to start his rehab stint as early as Tuesday. "Every test, he has passed so far, so we're looking at a couple more days' work and then sending him out," Girardi said.
Twins: GM Terry Ryan said OF Miguel Sano (strained left hamstring) did a significant amount of running on Friday and will undergo agility drills on Monday. Ryan indicated that Sano could be ready to head out for a minor league rehab assignment next week.
UP NEXT
Yankees: RHP Nathan Eovaldi (6-3) went 6-0 over a span of seven starts, but he hasn't won since May 29. He's posted a 9.82 ERA and given up five home runs in his last three outings. He is coming off his shortest start of the year, in which he gave up six runs in four innings in a loss at Colorado on Tuesday.
Twins: RHP Ervin Santana (1-7) is 0-5 with a 7.71 ERA in his last five starts. He won his first four career decisions against the Yankees, but he hasn't beaten them in 10 starts since 2008.
New York Yankees
Jacoby Ellsbury hit a tiebreaking, two-run single in the ninth inning and the Yankees rallied past the Minnesota Twins 7-6 Saturday.
The Yankees trailed 4-0 after six innings. Rodriguez hit his 695th career homer in the seventh and Beltran added his own two-run shot in the eighth.
For Beltran, it was his 18th of the season, one shy of his total from 2015, and the latest in a line of big hits for the 39-year-old outfielder.
"Homers? I don't really look for that. That's not my approach," Beltran said. "My approach is to stay in the middle of the field. It's great I'm able to do that. But my whole approach is being able to hopefully stay in the field and give my team a chance to get the rally going."
The Yankees scored three times in the ninth for a 7-4 lead. Closer Aroldis Chapman gave up back-to-back homers to Eduardo Escobar and Kurt Suzuki with two outs in the bottom half before holding on for his 13th save in 14 chances.
It was 4-all when Fernando Abad (1-1) walked Chase Headley to lead off the Yankees. Didi Gregorius slipped a bunt past Abad and beat second baseman Brian Dozier's throw to put two runners on with nobody out.
A passed ball prompted an intentional walk to Rob Refsnyder to load the bases. Reliever Ryan Pressly struck out pinch-hitter Starlin Castro, but Ellsbury singled to right on a full-count pitch.
After a wild pitch, Brett Gardner hit a sacrifice fly.
"You want to feel that you can always come back. You want to have a team that grinds out at-bats," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We have guys that have been around a long time and have seen relievers, and it's not the first time they've seen certain guys."
Byung Ho Park homered and had a sacrifice fly, giving Minnesota a 4-0 lead.
Andrew Miller (4-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win.
Rodriguez hit his eighth home run this year, connecting off Ricky Nolasco one pitch after Beltran beat out an infield dribbler for a single.
Beltran tied it with an opposite-field homer off Kevin Jepsen. Gardner narrowly beat out a grounder to short to set up Beltran's shot.
Twins manager Paul Molitor had a chance to force the switch-hitting Beltran to bat right-handed if he'd brought in Abad, his lefty setup man.
Molitor declined to second-guess his decision to stick with Jepsen, who lost his closer job earlier this month.
"Beltran is having a great year. He's dangerous both ways, but I'd rather see him hit left-handed, in that situation, than right-handed against a little more experience," Molitor said. "Kevin got ahead of him, but then he left a changeup up that (Beltran) took out the other way."
Yankees starter Michael Pineda tied his season high with nine strikeouts.
Park made it 3-0 in the fourth inning with his 12th homer, a two-run shot to right. He added a sacrifice fly in the sixth.
RARE DAY FOR CHAPMAN
Chapman hadn't allowed any home runs in his first 17 games this season. The last time any team tagged him for consecutive homers was on May 19, 2013, when the Phillies' Erik Kratz and Freddy Galvis did it.
"When that happens, you can't lose your concentration," Chapman said through a translator. "Your job is to get the next guy out, and that's it."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Yankees: 1B Mark Teixeira (torn cartilage, right knee) is close to heading to the minor leagues for a rehab assignment, Girardi said. Teixeira, who has been sidelined since June 4, ran the bases before Saturday's game and could be ready to start his rehab stint as early as Tuesday. "Every test, he has passed so far, so we're looking at a couple more days' work and then sending him out," Girardi said.
Twins: GM Terry Ryan said OF Miguel Sano (strained left hamstring) did a significant amount of running on Friday and will undergo agility drills on Monday. Ryan indicated that Sano could be ready to head out for a minor league rehab assignment next week.
UP NEXT
Yankees: RHP Nathan Eovaldi (6-3) went 6-0 over a span of seven starts, but he hasn't won since May 29. He's posted a 9.82 ERA and given up five home runs in his last three outings. He is coming off his shortest start of the year, in which he gave up six runs in four innings in a loss at Colorado on Tuesday.
Twins: RHP Ervin Santana (1-7) is 0-5 with a 7.71 ERA in his last five starts. He won his first four career decisions against the Yankees, but he hasn't beaten them in 10 starts since 2008.
2:10PM,EDT,June 18,2016
Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| New York - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Ellsbury reached on infield single to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Gardner struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Beltrán grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first, Ellsbury out at second. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Núñez grounded out to third. | 0 | 0 |
| D. Santana grounded out to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Mauer lined out to left. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Rodriguez flied out to left. | 0 | 0 |
| McCann flied out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Headley grounded out to second. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Dozier struck out looking. | 0 | 0 |
| Kepler doubled to deep right. | 0 | 0 |
| Park flied out to center, Kepler to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Escobar singled to right center, Kepler scored. | 0 | 1 |
| Centeno struck out swinging. | 0 | 1 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Gregorius singled to right center. | 0 | 1 |
| Refsnyder grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Gregorius out at second. | 0 | 1 |
| Davis struck out swinging. | 0 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Buxton struck out swinging. | 0 | 1 |
| Núñez grounded out to pitcher. | 0 | 1 |
| D. Santana grounded out to pitcher. | 0 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Ellsbury flied out to center. | 0 | 1 |
| Gardner lined out to center. | 0 | 1 |
| Beltrán singled to right center. | 0 | 1 |
| Rodriguez grounded out to shortstop. | 0 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Mauer struck out looking. | 0 | 1 |
| Dozier tripled to deep right. | 0 | 1 |
| Kepler struck out looking. | 0 | 1 |
| Park homered to right (398 feet), Dozier scored. | 0 | 3 |
| Escobar struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| McCann flied out to left. | 0 | 3 |
| Headley struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Gregorius singled to right center. | 0 | 3 |
| Refsnyder grounded into fielder's choice to third, Gregorius out at second. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Centeno struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Buxton struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Núñez singled to right. | 0 | 3 |
| Núñez stole second. | 0 | 3 |
| D. Santana grounded out to first. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Davis struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Ellsbury flied out to center. | 0 | 3 |
| Gardner grounded out to shortstop. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Michael Pineda pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Mauer struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Dozier singled to left. | 0 | 3 |
| Dozier stole second. | 0 | 3 |
| Kepler safe at first on error by pitcher Pineda, Dozier to third. | 0 | 3 |
| Swarzak relieved Pineda. | 0 | 3 |
| Park flied into a sacrifice double play, Dozier scored, Kepler out at second. | 0 | 4 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Ricky Nolasco pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Beltrán reached on infield single to third. | 0 | 4 |
| Rodriguez homered to right (383 feet), Beltrán scored. | 2 | 4 |
| McCann struck out swinging. | 2 | 4 |
| Headley singled to left. | 2 | 4 |
| Gregorius flied out to left. | 2 | 4 |
| Refsnyder singled to left, Headley to second. | 2 | 4 |
| Davis grounded out to pitcher. | 2 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Anthony Swarzak pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Escobar struck out swinging. | 2 | 4 |
| Centeno grounded out to third. | 2 | 4 |
| Buxton struck out swinging. | 2 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Buddy Boshers pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Boshers relieved Nolasco. | 2 | 4 |
| Ellsbury flied out to center. | 2 | 4 |
| Gardner reached on infield single to shortstop. | 2 | 4 |
| Jepsen relieved Boshers. | 2 | 4 |
| Beltrán homered to left (358 feet), Gardner scored. | 4 | 4 |
| Rodriguez struck out looking. | 4 | 4 |
| Abad relieved Jepsen. | 4 | 4 |
| McCann flied out to left. | 4 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Andrew Miller pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Miller relieved Swarzak. | 4 | 4 |
| Núñez reached on infield single to first. | 4 | 4 |
| D. Santana sacrificed to catcher, Núñez to second. | 4 | 4 |
| Mauer struck out swinging. | 4 | 4 |
| Dozier struck out swinging. | 4 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| New York - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Fernando Abad pitching for Minnesota | NYY | MIN |
| Headley walked. | 4 | 4 |
| Gregorius reached on bunt single to second, Headley to second. | 4 | 4 |
| Headley to third, Gregorius to second on passed ball by Centeno. | 4 | 4 |
| Refsnyder intentionally walked. | 4 | 4 |
| Pressly relieved Abad. | 4 | 4 |
| Castro hit for Davis. | 4 | 4 |
| Castro struck out swinging. | 4 | 4 |
| Ellsbury singled to right, Headley and Gregorius scored, Refsnyder to second. | 6 | 4 |
| Refsnyder to third, Ellsbury to second on wild pitch by Pressly. | 6 | 4 |
| Gardner flied out to left, Refsnyder scored. | 7 | 4 |
| Beltrán struck out swinging. | 7 | 4 |
| 3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Minnesota - Bottom of 9th | SCORE | |
| Aroldis Chapman pitching for New York | NYY | MIN |
| Hicks in right field. | 7 | 4 |
| Refsnyder at first base. | 7 | 4 |
| Castro at second base. | 7 | 4 |
| Chapman relieved Miller. | 7 | 4 |
| Grossman hit for Kepler. | 7 | 4 |
| Grossman struck out swinging. | 7 | 4 |
| Park struck out looking. | 7 | 4 |
| Escobar homered to left (344 feet). | 7 | 5 |
| Suzuki hit for Centeno. | 7 | 5 |
| Suzuki homered to left (396 feet). | 7 | 6 |
| Plouffe hit for Buxton. | 7 | 6 |
| Plouffe grounded out to second. | 7 | 6 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
New York Yankees
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellsbury CF | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 21 | .284 | .347 | .413 |
| Gardner LF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 20 | .248 | .360 | .355 |
| Beltrán RF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 21 | .288 | .321 | .576 |
Hicks RF
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .221 | .273 | .316 |
| Rodriguez DH | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 17 | .219 | .268 | .418 |
| McCann C | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | .207 | .314 | .374 |
| Headley 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | .260 | .336 | .355 |
| Gregorius SS | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | .287 | .319 | .413 |
| Refsnyder 2B-1B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 | .283 | .333 | .391 |
| Davis 1B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | .182 | .250 | .182 |
a-Castro PH-2B
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .254 | .289 | .413 |
| Totals | 36 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 147 | |||
| a-struck out swinging for I Davis in the 9th | ||||||||||
| BATTING HR: Rodriguez (8, 7th inning off Nolasco 1 on, 0 Out); Beltrán (18, 8th inning off Jepsen 1 on, 1 Out) RBI: Rodriguez 2 (23), Beltrán 2 (48), Ellsbury 2 (24), Gardner (15) SF: Gardner GIDP: Beltrán, Refsnyder Yankees RISP: 1-4 (Beltrán 0-1, Ellsbury 1-1, Davis 0-1, Castro 0-1) Team LOB: 5 | ||||||||||
| FIELDING E: Pineda (2, catch) DP: 1 (Ellsbury-McCann-Refsnyder). Outfield Assist: Ellsbury (Kepler at 2nd base). | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Target Field, Minneapolis, MN |
| Attendance | 30,760 (78.8% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 3:10 |
| Weather | 81 degrees, partly cloudy |
| Wind | 5 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Quinn Wolcott, First Base - Paul Emmel, Second Base - Pat Hoberg, Third Base - Mark Carlson |
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