ST. . PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Baltimore isnt the only team barrelling in on the sputtering New York Yankees in the AL East. Tampa Bay is closing fast, too. James Shields pitched eight strong innings to outlast CC Sabathia and light-hitting Chris Gimenez drove in two runs Monday as the Rays beat the Yankees 4-3, further tightening the division and fueling Tampa Bays bid to reach the playoffs for the fourth time in five years. The Yankees, who led by 10 games earlier this summer, had their edge cut to one game by Baltimore, which beat Toronto 4-0. The Rays moved within 2 1-2 games of New York. "This is the start of September, and this is where you want to be," Shields said. "In spring training, we always want to be in the playoff hunt, and now here we are again." Shields (13-8) and the Rays ruined the return of Alex Rodriguez. The slugger went 1 for 4 with a strikeout in his first game after being sidelined six weeks with a broken left hand. Gimenez snapped a 3-all tie in the eighth with a two-out grounder that just made it to the outfield for a single off David Robertson (1-5). Gimenez, recalled from the minors on Saturday and batting just .203 when the day began, also had a RBI single off Sabathia in the second. "I would say that is probably one of the funnest things thats happened. It was fun just to be up in that situation. It was a confidence booster, righty on the mound -- being who it is -- and hes pretty darn good himself," said the 29-year-old catcher, in his fourth major league season after stints with Cleveland and Seattle. "Just getting a chance to go up there, hey, whats the worst that can happen? I get out? OK, Ive done that before in my life," Gimenez added. "I told myself before I got in the box that this is definitely the biggest at-bat of your life, so you might as well do something fun." Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for Tampa Bay, striking out Rodriguez and earning his 41st save by fanning pinch hitter Curtis Granderson with the tying run on third base. Granderson had been out since leaving Saturdays game with tendinitis in his right hamstring. "I just loved the way we played. I thought we were so up for that game from the first pitch," said Rays manager Joe Maddon, who was ejected in the eighth, before Tampa Bay scored the go-ahead run. "When were playing better teams, I think we play our better baseball," Maddon added. "Everybody talks about the difficulty of the schedule the remaining part of the season, I kind of like it. Actually, I think its going to bring out the best of us." Sabathia allowed three runs and eight hits, struck out four and walked two in seven innings. He gave up a solo homer to B.J. Upton in the third and a walk, single and Evan Longorias RBI grounder that made it 3-3 in the fifth. Robertson gave up a leadoff single to Jeff Keppinger in the eighth, and it didnt look like it would wind up hurting the Yankees when Russell Martin threw out pinch runner Rich Thompson on a close play at second. Maddon trotted out of the dugout to protest the call and was ejected after an animated discussion with second base umpire Bob Davidson. But Tampa Bay wasnt finished. Ryan Roberts singled and stole second before Gimenez delivered his go-ahead hit on a grounder that just got past second baseman Robinson Cano. Cano said he felt a twinge in his left hip when he reached for the ball. The All-Star whos hitting .303 with 28 homers and 71 RBIs said he wasnt sure if hell be able to play Tuesday night. "I was trying to reach for ball. Its a little tight," Cano said. Rodriguez had been out since breaking his left hand on July 24, when he was hit by a pitch by Seattles Felix Hernandez. Manager Joe Girardi plugged him into his customary cleanup spot as the designated hitter to bolster an offence missing the injured Mark Teixeira and Granderson, who have combined to hit 57 homers. A-Rod said before the game that was not returning to "save the day" for the struggling Yankees, but rather to be "part of a winning team." Rodriguez popped up in his first at-bat before singling up the middle and scoring on Raul Ibanezs triple in the fourth. Shields retired him on a grounder in the sixth inning, and Rodney struck him out to begin the ninth. Hitless through three innings, the Yankees broke through for three runs in the fourth. Cano got them started with a double down the right-field line, A-Rod hit a squibber that eluded shortstop Elliot Johnson for his hit and Chavez followed with a sacrifice fly to trim Tampa Bays lead to 2-1. Rodriguez scored from first when Ibanez hit to a liner to right field that skipped to the wall when Ben Francisco was unable to make a diving catch. Ibanez scored, putting the ahead 3-2, when Martin hit a grounder off Shields that pulled first baseman Jeff Keppinger far enough away from the bag that the hustling Yankees catcher was able to beat out his single by sliding into first to avoid a tag. Shields, coming off a 1-0 loss to Texas in which he allowed three hits over seven innings, settled to retire 10 of the next 11 batters before walking Derek Jeter on a 10-pitch at-bat leading off the eighth. The Yankees threatened in the ninth when Chavez reached on an error. Pinch runner Eduardo Nunez stole second before taking third when Ibanez grounded out. New York has lost four of its past five days, however Jeter said theres no cause for alarm. "Whos panicking? Im not. Youre going to have highs and lows, but youre still going to have confidence," the Yankees captain said. Said Sabathia: "We still have the lead. You just have to keep playing baseball." "Its frustrating not being able to hold the lead. Ive just got to be a lot better." NOTES: Olympic gold medallist Tiana Madison threw out the ceremonial first pitch. The Tampa resident was part of the United States womens 4x100 relay team in London. ... Teixeira missed his sixth consecutive with a left calf strain. He took batting practice Monday and could return by the end of the week. "The real test is going to come when he has to run," Girardi said. "Can he make those bursts he has to make?" [url=http://www.lionsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-jason-hanson-jersey-uw-39... Hanson Jersey . Greenway struck Lions receiver Calvin Johnson in the head and neck area in last Sundays victory over Detroit. He apologized to Johnson afterward. "I didnt mean any intent to hurt him or anything. . -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive lineman Davin Joseph has a torn right patellar tendon and will undergo surgery that will sideline him for the entire season. [url=http://www.lionsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-nick-fairley-jersey-kb-14... . Manship joined the team in time for Sundays game against the Detroit Tigers. The Twins designed reserve outfielder Erik Komatsu for release or assignment to make room on the roster. [url=http://www.lionsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-riley-reiff-jersey-rc-63.... Reiff Jersey . Schumacher made his name winning multiple titles with both the Benetton and Ferrari teams before returning from retirement to have a second run with Mercedes. . -- Reginas Reuben Ross finished fifth on the mens three-metre to conclude the third stop on the FINA Grand Prix diving circuit Sunday. CALGARY -- Pierre Lueders had a satisfying conversation with German bobsled rival Christoph Langen after both men retired from the sport to coach. Langen told him the Germans couldnt figure out how Lueders was beating them when they had so much to work with and the Canadians so little at the time. "We certainly stuck our nose in where it didnt belong and it was a lot of fun doing it," Lueders said Thursday with some glee. The Olympic bobsled champion drove Canada into the worlds elite in the sport both literally and figuratively with his fierce competitive streak and not a little stubbornness. Lueders joins eight others who will be inducted into Canadas Sports Hall of Fame later his year. Hockey player Scott Niedermayer, speedskater Jeremy Wotherspoon, soccer player Charmaine Hooper, rower Derek Porter and the figure skating pair of Jamie Sale and David Pelletier are the athletes joining Lueders in the class of 2012. The late Daryl (Doc) Seaman, an owner of the Calgary Flames, and Marion Lay, an athlete-turned-advocate, join them as builders. Their induction ceremony will be Oct. 18 at the Sports Hall of Fame, which opened the doors to its new building at Canada Olympic Park on July 1, 2011. The Sports Hall Of Fame celebrates Canadians achievements across all sports. Each class of inductees represent a variety of athletes and builders, from people like Herman (Jackrabbit) Smith-Johannsen, the founder of cross-country skiing in Canada, to racehorse Northern Dancer. Lueders and Wotherspoon were two of this years inductees in the Grand Hall for Thursdays reveal. When they received a phone call about their induction, both men said they went straight to their computers to research some of the 520 who have gone into the Hall before them. "Theres some big names there that you watched as a young kid growing up in Canada," Lueders said. "To be honoured with those same athletes, its pretty hard to put into words." Both athletes remain in their sport as coaches. Lueders is a pilot coach with Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton based in Calgary. The 41-year-old from Edmonton is grooming the next generation of drivers, but not the next Pierre Lueders. "I think one Pierre Lueders was more than enough," he said with a chuckle. Lueders won Olympic gold in 1998 and silver in 2006, as well as two world titles in two-man bobsled during his 20 years on the national team. Wotherspoon, winner of a record 67 World Cup races and an Olympic silver medal, still holds the world record in the mens 500 metres. The 35-year-old from Red Deer, Alta., oversees young speedskaters at an academy in Inzell, Germany. Hes married to former speedskater Kim Weger and they have a young daughter Ella. "I wass always focused on the last race or the last month of training or the most recent events and this has given me a reason to look at my career as a whole," Wotherspoon said. [url=http://www.lionsofficialteamstore.com/autographed-deandre-levy-jersey-ew-44... Levy Jersey. "I owe speedskating a lot. If it wasnt for this sport, I wouldnt be doing anything Im doing now. I probably wouldnt have moved to Calgary, I wouldnt be in this Hall of Fame. I wouldnt be coaching speedskating in Germany. I met my wife in speedskating and shes the reason I have a daughter." Niedermayer, from Edmonton, is the only hockey player to win every major North American and international championship in his career. That includes the Memorial Cup, world junior championship, mens world championship, the World Cup, Stanley Cup and an Olympic gold medal. Niedermayer played 18 NHL seasons with New Jersey and Anaheim and won four Stanley Cups during his career. Edmontons Sale and Pelletier, from Sayabec, Que., provided Canada and the world riveting drama at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. They skated a stellar long program to "Love Story" but were initially given silver medals. Outrage over a judging scandal prompted the awarding of a second pair of gold medals to the Canadians during the Games. The judging system in figure skating has drastically altered because of that incident. Like Lueders, Hooper was an outspoken pioneer in her sport and backed it up on the soccer pitch with long and decorated career. Hooper, born in Georgetown, Guyana, played in a record 129 international matches for Canada, including three FIFA Womens World Cups. She scored 71 international goals. Porter, a rower born in Belfast, won two Olympic medals, including gold in the mens eights in 1992. Porter also won a world title in 1993 in single sculls. Seaman was one of six businessmen who brought the Flames to Calgary from Atlanta in 1980. The Second World War veteran was a key player in getting the Saddledome built in 1983 and bringing the 1988 Winter Olympics to the city. His hockey foundation has contributed over $5 million to minor hockey initiatives. Lay won bronze in swimming at the 1968 Summer Games in the freestyle relay. She went on to establish the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women in Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) and headed operations for Rick Hansens Man in Motion World Tour in 1985. Lay was a founder of the Canadian Sport Centre in Vancouver and served as chair of the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation. Triathlete Peter Reid, hockey player Ray Bourque, football player Lui Passaglia, soccer player Andrea Neil, para-Alpine skier Lauren Woolstencroft and International Olympic Committee member Richard Pound were the first class of inductees to enter the new Hall last November. ' ' '