NEW YORK -- The Yankees four-game set against the AL-leading Rangers started Monday with what Chase Headley called maybe the toughest loss of his career.On Wednesday, Texas was two outs from winning the first three games. And yet the series ended Thursday with New York somehow earning a split when Headley scampered home on a passed ball for his teams second straight victory in the bottom of the ninth.Headley just beat the throw with two outs for a 2-1 win. Four Yankees pitchers combined to strike out 16 Rangers -- 12 by starter Michael Pineda.Didi Gregorius, who had the winning home run hours earlier when the Yankees rallied from a four-run ninth-inning deficit Wednesday night, hit a solo shot in the fifth to tie the score. Shin-Soo Choo had homered to lead off the game.Reliever Tony Barnette (5-3) walked Headley to lead off the bottom of the ninth. With runners on second and third and two outs, Robinson Chirinos dropped a fastball from Barnette.Headley had been concerned that Chirinos might try to throw behind him, and when he saw the pitch wasnt low, he started to take a half-step back before he saw the ball squirt away.Once it got by, though, theres no going back, he said. You just hope that you make it.Chirinos said he knew which pitch was coming and its location.Its my fault, he said.Barnette blamed himself for the leadoff walk.Its unacceptable, he said. You walk a guy to start an inning, most of the time hes going to score.Aroldis Chapman (2-0) worked around Adrian Beltres leadoff single in the top of the ninth to earn the win.In what manager Joe Girardi called his best outing of the season, Pineda was sharp after a shaky first inning, when Choo crushed the fourth pitch of the game for his 18th career leadoff homer.Pineda struck out Rougned Odor with two runners on to prevent further damage, and he didnt allow a hit the rest of the way -- reaching what is a magical six-inning mark for Yankees starters because of their trio of hard-throwing relievers.Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Chapman each pitched a scoreless inning.After a rough start to the season, Pineda had a 2.75 ERA in June, though he has just one win to show for it because of a lack of run support.Like Pineda, Rangers starter A.J. Griffin cruised after laboring through the first. Both pitchers struck out the side in the second, and overall nine straight batters struck out from the bottom of the first through the top of the third.Griffin retired 12 in a row before Gregorius tying homer. Griffin departed after throwing 88 pitches in five innings. He allowed the one run and two hits with two walks and eight strikeouts.After Headleys walk in the ninth, Gregorius came up again with a chance to win it -- but this time he sacrificed, bunting Headley to second with one out. Aaron Hicks then walked.Starlin Castro, who hit a walk-off home run of his own eight days earlier, grounded out to first to put the runners on second and third with two outs.MOMENTUM SWINGOn Monday, the Yankees blew a ninth-inning lead after a 3 1/2-hour rain delay, and the game didnt end until 2:44 a.m. But now they start a 10-game road trip back at .500.Hopefully this is what really got us going, Girardi said.TRAINERS ROOMYankees: Carlos Beltran, who didnt start for the second straight game because of right hamstring tightness, can bat, but he cant run. He pinch-hit for No. 9 hitter Ronald Torreyes in the seventh, and after he walked, Castro, who didnt start with a day game after a night game, pinch-ran for him. Girardi is concerned about Beltrans ability to play the field during this weekends interleague series at San Diego and doesnt expect him to start Friday. ... C Brian McCann played a day game after a night game even though tendinitis in his knee flared up Wednesday.UP NEXTRangers: Texas continues its 10-game road trip with a three-game series at Minnesota, with LHP Martin Perez (7-4) seeking his seventh straight victory when he faces RHP Ervin Santana (2-7) on Friday.Yankees: New York opens a 10-game road trip with an interleague series at San Diego, when RHP Nathan Eovaldi (6-5) looks for his first win in more than a month in a matchup against RHP Colin Rea (4-3). Curry 6 Cheap . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. Cheap Curry 3 Shoes . Belfort (24-10) needed just 77 seconds to down Henderson in the headlining bout of Saturdays "UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson" event at Goiania Arena in Goiania, Brazil. The fight served as a rematch of the pairs 2006 meeting, which Henderson won by decision. http://www.curryshoesclearance.com/ua-curry-one-basketball-shoes.html . LOUIS -- Lance Lynn was one of the more enthusiastic participants as the St. Stephen Curry Shoes Cheap . To the surprise of many, it isnt the Wolverines but their in-state rivals the Michigan State Spartans. Curry 2 For Sale . LeBron James and Chris Bosh didnt need any more. Williams scored 11 points in 10 minutes, Alan Anderson scored 17 points, and the Brooklyn Nets finished the exhibition season with a 108-87 win over the Miami Heat on Friday night. CLEVELAND -- The football popped into the air and Jason Pierre-Paul knew exactly what to do next.Use both hands.I knew one of these days I was going to catch the ball, he said. I knew if I was ever catching a ball, Im going to the end zone.Pierre-Paul returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown and recorded three sacks to lead the New York Giants to their sixth straight win, 27-13 over the Cleveland Browns.Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes -- two to Odell Beckham Jr . -- as the Giants extended their longest winning streak since 2008 and moved closer to securing their first playoff berth in five years. The Browns (0-12) have lost 15 straight dating to last season.With the Giants (8-3) slogging through a game where they seemed to be playing down to Clevelands level, Pierre-Paul helped New York open a two-touchdown lead and avert disaster with his third career touchdown -- maybe one that meant a little bit more to the defensive end.Under pressure, Browns quarterback Josh McCown was hit as he threw by New Yorks Jonathan Hankins and the ball was corralled by Pierre-Paul, who tucked it under his left arm and rambled untouched for the TD to give the Giants a 20-6 lead. It was another stirring moment in the comeback for the 27-year-old Pierre-Paul, whose career was nearly ended by a horrifying fireworks accident in 2015, when he lost his index finger and parts of two others on his right hand.The fumble return only reaffirmed Pierre-Pauls return to form as an elite player, coming a week after he had 2 1/2 sacks, forced a fumble and deflected a pass in a win over Chicago.Im not proving anything, he told reporters Sunday. I told you all last year when I came in, I already won.Pierre-Paul is the first player to have three sacks and a fumble return for a touchdown of at least 40 yards since 1982, when the NFL first recognized individual sacks as an official statistic.His humility after the performance was just as impressive. He has been an inspiration to his teammates, who have marveled at his resiliency.Hes basically taken over these last two games, Giants linebacker Jonathan Casillas said. Ive been a fan of JPP since he came into the league, and knowing what hes been through, its so encouraging to watch him now.Pierre-Pauls TD was originallyy ruled an interception before being changed to a fumble.ddddddddddddIt was an interception, he said with a laugh. How else can you get seven points? The ball never touched the ground, so were going to call it an interception.The Giants recorded seven sacks on McCown, who said there are few players as tough to block as Pierre-Paul, who was limited in practice this week because of a knee injury.He is a big dude and a heck of an athlete, and he plays hard, McCown said. You have those types of things where he has a very rare skillset for that size and speed. That is what gives him an edge.Here are a few other takeaways from the Giants win:NEW ROLE? Beckham had a 59-yard punt return TD called back by a holding call, but that didnt stop him from celebrating in the end zone.As he mimicked the powder toss made famous by Cavaliers star LeBron James, a close friend, Browns punter Britton Colquitt informed him the play was coming back.I told him, `I dont care, I still ran it back on you, Beckham said.Giants coach Ben McAdoo wouldnt commit to Beckham taking over return duties.DOWN BROWNS: Cleveland is four losses from history, and first-year coach Hue Jackson may have reached a breaking point.Jacksons eyes teared up when discussing a nightmarish season that is almost over. The Browns are trying to avoid joining the 2008 Lions as the only 0-16 teams, and Jackson is vowing his team wont be bad in 2017.I am not feeling like this next year, Jackson said. There is no way. Uh-uh. No. I am a fighter, and I dont lose many fights.WAR OF WORDS: Browns wide receiver Terrelle Pryor and Giants cornerback Janoris Jenkins wont be exchanging Christmas cards.Despite Pryor catching six passes for 131 yards, including a 54-yarder, Jenkins ripped him on Twitter following the game with a vulgar post. Pryor answered back with praise, writing you are a great corner. Solid defender! You played a solid game. Good luck rest of year.Earlier in the week, Jenkins said Pryor, a converted quarterback, wouldnt be a challenge and called him another receiver, just bigger.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '