Chase Headley’s grounder to Eduardo Nunez hardly looked like it was going to end Monday’s marathon game in The Bronx.
Instead, Nunez fumbled the ball at short and inexplicably threw to first as pinch-runner Brendan Ryan raced home with the winning run in a wild, 8-7 victory in 10 innings.
The win helped the Yankees open a 10-game homestand successfully and pushed their lead over the idle Blue Jays to one game.
“It felt like we played two games,” Brett Gardner said when the 4:13 game was over.
In the end, they used seven pitchers, saw starter Bryan Mitchell knocked out by a Nunez liner in the second on a frightening play that left the right-hander with a fractured nose and also get their fourth win in five games.
And arguably the biggest hit came from their newest bat, as Greg Bird — in for an injured Mark Teixeira — belted a double to open the bottom of the 10th against closer Glen Perkins.
Brian McCann, who had five RBIs, followed with a double to left that was nearly caught, keeping Bird at third before Carlos Beltran was walked intentionally to bring up Headley.
“This would have been a tough one to lose,” Headley said, who hit the ball directly to Nunez after Minnesota manager Paul Molitor brought in a fifth infielder — to no avail.
“It’s all my fault,” said Nunez, the former Yankee known for his frequent mental gaffes. “The pitchers [did] a good job. I have to do my job. … I think I lost the game.”
A game like Monday’s is hardly that simple, especially when Mitchell lasted just 1 ²/₃ and Caleb Cotham had to come into just his second major league game.
The right-hander struggled, as did his more experienced counterparts, Chasen Shreve and Justin Wilson, as the trio ended up surrendering six runs in 4 ¹/₃ innings before Adam Warren, Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller slammed the door.
Most impressive was Betances, who tossed 2 ¹/₃ scoreless innings before Miller pitched a perfect 10th for the win.
It took a while to get there.
McCann gave the Yankees a 3-0 lead with a three-run homer in the first before the Stadium crowd was silenced by Nunez’s line drive.
The shot ricocheted all the way into center field and Eddie Rosario scored from third to make it 3-1.
After staying on the ground for several minutes, he was led off the field by trainer Steve Donohue with a blood-soaked towel over his face.
Cotham came in and struck out Aaron Hicks looking to end the inning.
Mitchell was taken to New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where he was diagnosed with a small nasal fracture. He was released and will be monitored by team doctors regarding concussion protocol.
The teams traded leads before Beltran delivered a two-run homer off Brian Duensing to tie the game at 7-7 in the sixth.
An inning later, the Yankees loaded the bases, but McCann and Beltran were unable to drive in the go-ahead run.
No matter, as by that point, Joe Girardi already had gotten to the dominating part of his bullpen.
The concern would have begun, though, if the game had gone on much longer, since Tuesday’s starter, CC Sabathia, was the next pitcher out of the bullpen.
Sabathia never even had to get up thanks to the offense’s quick work in the 10th.
“I don’t know what I have [Tuesday],” Girardi said. “But we won tonight.”