With Red Sox on Deck, Yankees Finish Sweep of Orioles

BALTIMORE — Robinson Cano hit the tiebreaking homer in the seventh inning after New York blew a five-run lead, and the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-7 yesterday for a three-game sweep.

Cano went 4-for-5 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored. Johnny Damon hit a three-run homer and Bobby Abreu had three hits for the Yankees, who scored 22 runs in their first sweep at Baltimore since May 2004.

New York has a day off before beginning a three-game series at home against the Boston Red Sox, who lead the Yankees by five games in the AL wild-card race.

Brian Roberts, Melvin Mora, and Aubrey Huff homered for Baltimore, which dropped a season-high seven games under .500. Roberts, Huff and Jay Payton each had three hits, but the Orioles stranded 13 and went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

The game ended when Nick Markakis looked at a third strike from Mariano Rivera with a runner on third.

Cano hit a solo shot that traveled an estimated 425 feet off Jamie Walker (1-2), who has yielded nine homers in 31.1 innings this year.

Edwar Ramirez (4-1) allowed one run in 1.1 innings, and Rivera, the sixth New York pitcher, got four outs to earn his 31st save — the third in the series.

Baltimore trailed 7-5 in the fifth when Yankees manager Joe Girardi summoned Ramirez to face Roberts, who hit the right-hander's second pitch into the center-field bleachers to knot the score.

In a game that lasted more than four hours and featured 29 hits, neither starter got out of the fourth inning.

Bidding to go 4-0 against New York this season, Daniel Cabrera gave up seven runs, nine hits and three walks in 3.2 innings.

Darrell Rasner allowed five runs, three earned, and eight hits in 3.1 innings — his shortest start of the year.