New York - The double play is a pitcher's best friend, but in the confusing world of Baseball where bad can sometimes be good as long as it's not really bad, the solo home run can be a fine companion to the men who make their living on the 10-inch hill of compacted dirt in the middle of the diamond.

The exception is when your pitchers give up five such homers as the Indians did Friday afternoon in a 6-5 loss to the Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Derek Jeter hit the bases-empty homer that mattered the most with two out in the eighth inning to break a 5-5 tie.

One more exception should be considered after a game such as Friday's. That exception is that a high outside fastball on a 3-2 pitch should be called a ball even if future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera throws it.

Plate umpire Phil Cuzzi naturally called it a strike. The strike retired Mark DeRosa and ended the game. The Indians had runners on first and second with two out against Rivera.

DeRosa, who homered, singled and scored two runs in the game, had worked Rivera to a full count, while fussing and complaining to Cuzzi all the while.

Victor Martinez, hitting .378 (17-for-45), was on deck with a chance to tie or put the Tribe ahead if DeRosa reached base.

"It was a ball," said DeRosa, quietly in the Indians locker room. "Mariano Rivera is going to go down as the greatest closer of all time, but it was up and away.

"It's tough. We're down a run. We got two guys on and the hottest hitter on our team on deck. You work yourself back into a 3-2 count and give Vic a chance to win the game for us. It's disappointing."

DeRosa argued the call. He threw his bat. He spread his arms in frustration. Cuzzi walked away.

"He didn't say anything," said DeRosa. "Rivera is tough enough to hit when he's throwing strikes. His 91 mph is not your normal 91 mph. It's cutting. It has life. You have to bear down.

"I felt like I put together a good at-bat. Gave myself a chance to get a pitch to hit at 3-2. The ball comes out of his hand up and away and it's called a strike. I don't understand."

This would be a perfect time for a "Welcome to Cleveland, Mark," but DeRosa spent his last two years playing for the Cubs. He feels your pain.

Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira, Melky Cabrera, Robinson Cano and Jeter homered for the Yankees. It's the first time they've hit five homers in a game since Aug. 1, 2007, against the White Sox.

Anthony Reyes started for the Indians and gave up three of the five homers. They were the only runs he gave up in five innings. Manager Eric Wedge, saying his eight-man bullpen is overworked, wanted more out of Reyes, but he'd already thrown 93 pitches.

"They were starting to square him up," said Wedge.

Wedge went to the pen in the sixth with a 5-3 lead after the Tribe scored three runs in the fifth off Joba Chamberlain. It was bad from the get-go.

Zach Jackson gave up a leadoff homer to Cano in the sixth.

Wedge gave the ball and a 5-4 lead to Vinnie Chulk in the seventh. Chulk chucked it away on a throw into the runner at first base on Teixeira's routine bouncer. It allowed Damon to score the tying run all the way from first.

"That's a mistake that can't happen," said Wedge.

Jensen Lewis, who walked three straight left-handed hitters in his most recent appearance, started the eighth by striking out two straight lefties in Hideki Matsui and Brett Gardner. He fell quickly. Jeter, the next batter, drove his 3-1 pitch over the right-field fence.

"I thought it was a pop fly off the bat," said Lewis.

Wedge met with Chris Antonetti, assistant general manager, after the game. He said the state of the 3-8 Indians is being assessed daily.

"It starts with our starting pitching," said Wedge. "We've got to get more than five innings an outing. There's not a bullpen out there that can survive that night after night."

DeRosa gave the Indians a 1-0 lead with a homer in the first. The Yankees reclaimed the lead with consecutive homers by Damon and Teixeira in the third. Ben Francisco's run-scoring single in the fourth made it 2-2.

Cabrera homered in the fourth to put the Yankees back in front, 3-2. DeRosa, Martinez and Ryan Garko drove in runs in the fifth for the Tribe's 5-3 lead.