NEW YORK — Johnny Damon put on a hitting display for the record books and finished it off in style.

Damon went 6 for 6 with a game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning, rallying the New York Yankees to a wild 12-11 victory yesterday over the Kansas City Royals.

The left fielder's six hits matched a Yankees record, and tied the American League mark for a nine-inning game.

"It was pretty amazing. Pretty exhausting," Damon said.

New York overcame a pair of four-run deficits and a huge game by Kansas City's Jose Guillen, who hit a tiebreaking grand slam in the seventh for his second home run and matched a club record with seven RBIs.

After David DeJesus put the Royals ahead 11-10 with a homer on the first pitch from Mariano Rivera (2-1) in the ninth, Jorge Posada connected against Joakim Soria with one out in the bottom half to tie it.

With two down, Wilson Betemit walked and Melky Cabrera reached on an infield single. Damon pulled a 3-1 pitch from Soria (0-1) into the right-field corner for his sixth hit, setting a career high and equaling a Yankees record now accomplished three times.

"I have had a couple of opportunities, but I never got the sixth. It was a perfect time," Damon said.

Myril Hoag also went 6 for 6 for New York on June 6, 1934, at Boston, and Gerald Williams was 6 for 8 in a 15-inning game May 1, 1996, at Baltimore.

Damon finished with four RBIs from the leadoff spot. His two-run single in the eighth off Ramon Ramirez tied it at 10.

"A couple of the pitches he hit weren't bad pitches," Royals manager Trey Hillman said. "It was one of those days that Johnny Damon was really hot and we weren't real sure where to throw him."

Damon doubled and scored in the first, then singled in the third, fourth and sixth.

White Sox 11, Twins 2: Joe Crede hit two homers for the second straight game and had six RBIs to lead host Chicago to its fifth straight win. Crede, who went 4 for 4 with two solo drives Friday night after missing a game with a sore wrist, had a pair of three-run homers as Chicago moved 4 1/2 games ahead of the second-place Twins in the AL Central. Mark Buehrle (3-6) pitched eight innings to get his first win in three weeks.

Red Sox 11, Mariners 3: Manny Ramirez hit his 504th career homer and Tim Wakefield pitched seven solid innings to lead host Boston. Ramirez tied Eddie Murray for 23rd on the career list with a two-run drive off Miguel Batista (3-7) in the first. Wakefield (4-4) allowed two runs and five hits.

Tigers 8, Indians 4: Edgar Renteria's grand slam keyed a six-run eighth inning and host Detroit ended a four-game losing streak. Zach Miner (3-3) pitched two innings in relief of starter Kenny Rogers. Todd Jones got the final out for his ninth save.

Angels 5, Athletics 3: Jon Garland allowed two runs in seven-plus innings, Maicer Izturis hit a leadoff homer for the second straight game, and visiting Los Angeles beat Oakland. Garland (6-3) gave up five hits in seven innings with eight strikeouts and one walk to remain unbeaten in his last seven starts.

Orioles 9, Blue Jays 5: Jay Payton had five RBIs, Jeremy Guthrie tossed seven strong innings and visiting Baltimore earned its third straight win. Guthrie (3-6) allowed one run and six hits to win for the first time since May 13 against Boston. He struck out six and walked none.

Rays 5, Rangers 4: Willy Aybar hit a tiebreaking two-run double in the eighth inning and visiting Tampa Bay beat Texas. J.P. Howell (5-0) pitched two innings of one-hit shutout relief for the victory.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Marlins 8, Reds 7: Cody Ross hit a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth inning and host Florida came from behind to beat Cincinnati. Ross' home run off closer Francisco Cordero (2-1) came on an 0-1 pitch and drove in Dan Uggla from first. The Marlins started the inning down 7-5, and closed within a run when Jorge Cantu scored on a sacrifice fly by Luis Gonzalez.

Phillies 6, Braves 2: Chase Utley's eighth-inning triple drove in Shane Victorino with the go-ahead run and visiting Philadelphia hit three home runs to beat Atlanta. Kyle Kendrick and four relievers held the Braves to only five hits, including Chipper Jones' two-run homer in the sixth. Carlos Ruiz, Pat Burrell and Jimmy Rollins homered for Philadelphia.

DODGERS 7, CUBS 3: Matt Kemp capped a five-run seventh inning with a three-run homer, Russell Martin also went deep and host Los Angeles beat Chicago. The Dodgers' Derek Lowe (4-5) allowed three runs and six hits through seven innings, striking out four and walking two.

Rockies 7, Brewers 2: Brad Hawpe hit a grand slam, Ian Stewart launched a solo homer into the third deck and Greg Reynolds got his first major league win in host Colorado's victory over Milwaukee. Reynolds (1-3) limited Milwaukee to two runs and four hits over six innings.

Diamondbacks 4, Pirates 3: Chris Snyder hit a home run to lead off the ninth inning, giving visiting Arizona a victory over Pittsburgh. The Arizona catcher hit a 1-1 pitch into the left-field seats off reliever John Grabow (4-2) for his sixth home run of the season.

Cardinals 8, Astros 4: Adam Wainwright shut down host Houston before leaving with a sprained finger and Ryan Ludwick hit a three-run homer for the Cardinals. Wainwright (6-3) left in the sixth inning with a sprained right middle finger. He allowed two runs.

Padres 2, Mets 1: Scott Hairston hit a leadoff homer in the 10th inning to give host San Diego a win over New York. Hairston drove a 3-1 pitch from Pedro Feliciano (0-1) into the left-field seats to give San Diego its season-high fourth straight win.

Giants 6, Nationals 0: John Bowker's grand slam capped a six-run eighth inning and Jonathan Sanchez won his third straight start for visiting San Francisco. Sanchez (5-3) allowed four singles, walked two and struck out four in seven innings.