Yanks Add Some Luck to Their Streak, With Two Bad Calls on One Play Jim Mcisaac/Getty Images Ichiro Suzuki was ruled safe at second base when Toronto's Munenori Kawasaki tried to tag him after a Vernon Wells liner in the fifth inning was caught in the outfield but was not called an out. When luck is on your side, even the most absurd calls can go your way. The Yankees are riding one of their hottest streaks of the season, and on Thursday, against their opponent of choice, they graciously took a botched umpiring call in the fifth inning of their 5-3 victory against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Yankees, who have won five straight games and 11 of their last 14, crept within three and a half games of the A's for the second wild-card spot. They have not been this close to the playoffs since Aug. 3 and will play a weekend series in St. Petersburg. "We knew this was going to happen," Andy Pettitte said of the streak. Pettitte won his ninth game of the season, allowing one run in six innings. "It was just a matter of when," he said. You were hoping it wouldn't be too late. The Yankees" gift came in the fifth inning with the bases loaded, one out and the game tied at 1-1. Designated hitter Vernon Wells hit a sinking liner to center field, which replays clearly showed that Rajai Davis caught. But the second-base umpire Alfonso Marquez, after several uncertain moments, made the safe sign with his arms. "I was just looking for a call and didn't find one," Wells said. It was just a state of confusion. Eduardo Nunez, who was on third, had retreated back to the base thinking the ball had been caught, but then tagged up and scored to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Chris Stewart, who was on second, ran toward third but doubled back when he looked at the third-base coach Rob Thomson, who was also unaware of the safe call. "It was just a weird play all around," Stewart said. Nobody really knew what to do on the bases. Ichiro Suzuki, who was on first, raced toward second. Second baseman Munenori Kawasaki, after receiving Davis's throw from center field, tagged out Stewart and then tried to tag Suzuki. Stewart was called out, and Suzuki was ruled safe, even though replays appeared to show that the tag had been made on Suzuki before he reached the bag. Two incorrect decisions had been made on one play, and Wells was ruled to have reached base on a fielder's choice. Toronto Manager John Gibbons was ejected for arguing the call. Mark Buehrle, a starter during Tuesday's doubleheader loss, argued from the bench and was ejected. "We looked at the replay, and it looked to us like it bounced but probably inside his glove," the umpire crew chief Ted Barrett said. So on replay, probably would have been ruled a catch. Not that the Yankees have needed much help against the Blue Jays. The win was their 10th in a row and 12th in 13 games this season. Perhaps improving their playoff chances even more, the Yankees will play the Blue Jays in a three-game series next week in Toronto and again in mid-September. The Yankees have not lost since Boston's Ryan Dempster plunked Alex Rodriguez on Sunday. On Thursday, the Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz told USA Today that perhaps Dempster's pitch "woke up a monster." "Maybe it did," Manager Joe Girardi said. Rodriguez declined to address the issue after the game. Ortiz also told USA Today that he believed that Dempster was wrong to throw at Rodriguez. "I don't know about that," Rodriguez said when asked whether Dempster had fired up his team. I just know that we feel pretty good. But we have to keep getting better. We have a lot of work to do. Every game is precious, and we want to keep taking small bites at it. He added: "I have a lot of respect for Big Papi, but for me I'm just laser-focused on the mission at hand, and that's a big three-game series against Tampa." Rodriguez was more keen to talk about the crucial double play he helped turn in the fifth to thwart a key Toronto rally. After a day off Wednesday, Rodriguez, seemed more spry Thursday, stealing second after walking in the sixth, and then scoring. "I definitely felt better today, my body felt pretty good," Rodriguez said. I thought I moved around well today. After enduring an injury-plagued first half, a midseason slump and the Rodriguez drama, the Yankees are finally starting to catch all the breaks. With Mariano Rivera unavailable after having pitched in three consecutive games in a two-day span, David Robertson pitched the ninth for his second save of the season and the seventh save of his career.