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Times WiresThe bullpen blows it, but David Ortiz gets a single to end it as Boston beats the Yankees 5-4.
BOSTON - David Ortiz knows how to take orders.
Called on to pinch hit with two outs in the ninth inning of a tie game Saturday, Ortiz carried out Boston manager Grady Little's instructions to the letter.
"I wasn't trying to do too much that at-bat. Grady told me to go and hit the Green Monster," Ortiz said.
He did just that, sending Armando Benitez's pitch off the left-centerfield fence at Fenway Park for a run-scoring single that gave the Red Sox a 5-4 win over the Yankees.
"I knew (Benitez) has a good fastball and I guess I was just looking for a fastball," Ortiz said.
Ortiz, who didn't start because he is 0-for-20 lifetime against Yankees starter Mike Mussina, spent part of Saturday morning working on his swing with hitting coach Ron Jackson.
"I have been getting under the ball lately, and we were working on that and getting my timing right," Ortiz said. "He corrected me."
Home runs by Nomar Garciaparra and Manny Ramirez helped the Red Sox build a 4-0 lead against Mussina, who had won four straight decisions against Boston. But the bullpen blew it, nearly wasting an outstanding start by John Burkett.
The Yankees tied the score against closer Byung-Hyun Kim on Karim Garcia's pinch-hit run-scoring single in the eighth.
Benitez, acquired from the Mets on July 16, gave up a one-out single to Jeremy Giambi in the ninth.
Giambi stole second - his first career steal - as Jason Varitek struck out. After Johnny Damon was intentionally walked, Ortiz came through.
"They got me. What can you do?" Benitez said. "I made a good pitch to him."
When his teammates pulled it out, Burkett gleefully ran onto the field in shorts, sandals and a cutoff T-shirt as the Red Sox mobbed Ortiz.
After losing the opener 4-3 Friday night, Boston trimmed New York's lead in the AL East to 21/2 games.
Burkett is 0-6 in 10 career starts and 11 appearances against the Yankees. He came in with a 9.66 lifetime ERA against New York, but pitched much better this time.
"I would have been disappointed if we didn't win today," Burkett said. "Whether I get the win or not doesn't matter."
Kim got the win after losing the last two meetings between the teams.
Ruben Sierra's pinch-hit single in the seventh off Todd Jones cut Boston's lead to 4-2. But the Red Sox got out of the inning when Jones struck out Alfonso Soriano and Garciaparra threw out Enrique Wilson at the plate trying to score on Derek Jeter's double off the leftfield wall.
Wilson, pinch running for Sierra, ran through third-base coach Willie Randolph's stop sign.
"You try to preach aggressiveness and sometimes it burns you," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "That's what happens. I think when he rounded third Willie was trying to stop him, but his head was down trying to dig and go harder."
Bernie Williams reached second on a throwing error by Red Sox reliever Scott Sauerbeck in the eighth and scored on Nick Johnson's two-out double to make it 4-3. Garcia's single off Kim tied it.