ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Alex Rodriguez reached another milestone. Robinson Cano made sure it came in a victory.

Cano's pinch-hit homer snapped an eighth-inning tie, and Rodriguez hit No. 521 to match Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Willie McCovey on the career list during the New York Yankees' 8-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays last night.

"It definitely humbles you," said Rodriguez, who hit his shot off Andy Sonnanstine in the first inning. "I'm at a point in my career where you do some things and you start touching some of these names. It's hard to believe."

With shortstop Derek Jeter back in the lineup, Yankees starter Ian Kennedy cruised into the seventh inning with a 7-2 lead before he was hit on the right hip by Jason Bartlett's line drive.

The infield single knocked a hobbling Kennedy out of the game, and Tampa Bay hit three quick homers off New York's bullpen before the inning was over to tie the score at 7.

Carl Crawford hit a two-run homer off left-hander Billy Traber. B.J. Upton added a two-run drive off winner Brian Bruney, then rookie Evan Longoria connected against Bruney (1-0) for his first major league home run.

But Cano, who entered hitting .170 and was rested by manager Joe Girardi, came off the bench to put the Yankees back in front with a long homer to right off Al Reyes (1-2).

"I hope to start from here," Cano said.

Mariano Rivera got four outs for his fourth save in four opportunities.

Red Sox 6, Indians 4: Manny Ramirez hit a two-run homer — No. 493 of his career tying Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig and Fred McGriff for 24th on the career list — and Boston rallied for three runs in the ninth inning against closer Joe Borowski to beat host Cleveland in a stunning rerun of last October's AL championship series. Ramirez's shot to left off Borowski (0-2) was just the latest Red Sox comeback against the Indians. Last fall, Boston rallied from a 3-1 ALCS deficit to beat Cleveland and advance to the World Series.

Tigers 11, Twins 9: Ivan Rodriguez tied it with a two-run triple in a six-run eighth inning, then scored the go-ahead run on Jacque Jones' sacrifice fly to lift Detroit past visiting Minnesota for their first win at home this season. Rodriguez also homered in the seventh.

Orioles 4, Blue Jays 3: Kevin Millar homered and drove in three runs to back Matt Albers (1-0), who allowed one run, five hits and a walk in five innings, in Baltimore's victory over visiting Toronto.

Athletics 2, White Sox 1: Greg Smith (1-0) gave up one run and six hits over seven innings for his first major league win, and Maui-born Kurt Suzuki went 4 for 4 as visiting Oakland won its eighth in 10 games.

Angels 7, Rangers 4: Ervin Santana (2-0) rebounded from a three-run first to pitch seven innings, and Mike Napoli homered as Los Angeles handed host Texas its fourth straight loss.

Royals 5, Mariners 1: Zack Greinke (3-0) pitched a five-hitter, striking out four, for his third career complete game, and Kansas City opened a seven-game road trip with a win over host Seattle. Billy Butler and Miguel Olivo each hit their first homer of the season for Kansas City.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Giants 5, Diamondbacks 4: Randy Johnson had a hard time finding the strike zone in his season debut eight months after back surgery. The Big Unit settled down to finish with seven strikeouts and four walks in five innings, but host San Francisco rallied against Arizona's bullpen for two runs after Johnson left with a 4-3 lead.

Pirates 6, Dodgers 4: Nate McLouth extended his season-opening hitting streak to 13 games with a two-out, three-run homer off closer Takashi Saito (1-1) in the ninth inning, and Pittsburgh beat host Los Angeles. Kaua'i-born Tyler Yates (2-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win.

NOTES

Angels: Second baseman Howie Kendrick is expected to miss at least a couple of games with a strained left hamstring which he injured on Sunday.

Rays: Tampa Bay ace left-hander Scott Kazmir threw 25 pitches over two innings in an extended spring training game yesterday. Kazmir, who could rejoin the team in early May, is to make three minor league starts, including one for Class-A Vero Beach on Friday.