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NEW YORK -- Carlos Beltran felt he was finally emerging from a miserable start to his career with the New York Yankees. One swing Friday night made him certain of it. The slumping slugger launched a three-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning, giving New York a 5-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. "Thank God the past couple of days I would say Ive been feeling more comfortable at the plate and Ive been putting good at-bats together," Beltran said. "I just felt confident that I was going to do something positive." Beltran signed a $45 million, three-year contract with New York this winter after an All-Star season with the St. Louis Cardinals. But he has struggled with inconsistency and an elbow injury has limited him to the designated hitter role since early June. Beltran began the game batting just .221. But right after Brian McCann lined an RBI single, Beltran hit a drive off Zach Britton (3-1) far over the left-field wall. It was the first time this year that the Yankees won in their final at-bat at home, and it was their fourth straight victory overall. "Its been somewhat of a struggle then he got hurt. But you can just see him starting to square the balls up," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "That was a tremendous at-bat." The Yankees kept coming up empty with runners in scoring position until the ninth. Brett Gardner led off the inning with a single, then Derek Jeter struck out looking and Jacoby Ellsbury flied out. Mark Teixeira followed with a walk and McCann singled home a run, setting up Beltrans first walkoff homer since 2008, for the New York Mets. Britton was already off the field by the time Beltran made it to home plate, where he was mobbed by his teammates and then got doused during a postgame interview. "He just had a couple of sinkers up and they made him pay for it," Orioles manager Buck Showlater said of Britton. "I cannot really fault him, all things considered. He let it rip and it did not work for him tonight." David Huff (1-0) gave up Steve Pearces RBI single in the ninth but got the win. Leading 3-1 heading into the ninth, the Orioles missed a chance to pull even with the Yankees for second place in the AL East. "It is frustrating. These are games we want to win right now but you just have to turn the page," said Britton, who has two blown saves in 11 chances. "You cannot just sit here and mope about it. Go out there and make the adjustment." Coming off a decisive three-game sweep of the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays, New York jumped out to a quick lead on Teixeiras RBI double. Then they fizzled, wasting three chances with the bases loaded and failing to capitalize on a career high-tying six walks from Ubaldo Jimenez. "We just couldnt seem to get the big hit when we needed it," Girardi said. Centre fielder Adam Jones threw a runner out at home plate in the second and hit an RBI single in the sixth, helping the Orioles take a 2-1 lead. Nick Hundley doubled for the Orioles first hit off Hiroki Kuroda leading off the sixth and scored on Pearces one-out double. Pearce had an RBI single in the ninth three batters after third baseman Yangervis Solarte made a fielding error to open the inning. The Yankees loaded the bases for the first of three times in the second but Beltran, who doubled leading off, tried scoring on Gardners fly to medium centre field. Jones throw reached Hundley on one perfect hop, and the catcher had plenty of time to apply the tag for the double play. Jimenez loaded bases in the fifth with three straight two-out walks. He needed one pitch to get out of the jam: Teixeira grounded to first base on the first pitch he saw, keeping it 1-0. The Yankees loaded the bases again with two outs in the sixth -- a single and two walks -- but this time Jimenez wasnt given a chance to quash the rally. T.J. McFarland was brought in to face Gardner. Second baseman Ryan Flaherty got the save, though, ranging deep behind second base to field Gardners hard one-hopper and making a swift, backhand flip to shortstop J.J. Hardy covering for the forceout. NOTES: Yankees 2B Brian Roberts singled in the second for his 1,500th career hit. He had 1,452 with the Orioles before signing with New York this off-season. ... Yankees RHP Michael Pineda (60-day, right shoulder muscle) could begin throwing soon. Pineda says he feels good but he had an MRI to make sure the muscle is fully healed before he starts a program, Girardi said. ... Up next: Orioles RHP Bud Norris (6-5) goes against Yankees LHP Vidal Nuno (1-3). 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Ortiz hit a pair of two-run homers, including his 400th shot in a Red Sox uniform, and drove in a career high-tying six runs to power Boston past the Houston Astros 10-7 on Saturday night.SUNRISE, Fla. -- When Roberto Luongo learned he wouldnt be starting the Heritage Classic, the disappointed goaltender asked agent Pat Brisson to call Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gillis just to get a read on his future. When Gillis gave Brisson permission to seek out a potential trade partner for the goalie and his massive contract, the attention turned quickly to the Panthers -- and not just because Luongo calls South Florida home. "It had to be a hockey move," Brisson said. "Roberto wants to play, wants to win. He wants to compete and win. ... When Roberto asked me, I said, I do believe that theres a light at the end of the tunnel for (the Panthers)," Brisson said. "I do believe theres a place where this team is going to go in the right direction." While the Canucks head in the direction of a rebuild, the Panthers look like a team on the upward climb thanks to new owner Vinny Viola and a cadre of young prospects GM Dale Tallon has assembled in the NHLs southernmost market. Through two games with his new team, Luongo has already caught a glimpse of what he and many hockey people believe is a bright future for the Panthers. Luongo sees potential stars in Jonathan Huberdeau, Nick Bjugstad and a handful more young players around the locker-room. At 34 years old, he wants to contribute to the revival of the franchise rather than riding coattails. "Its all about making a commitment to bringing some people in and trying to build a winner," Luongo said Sunday night after facing the Boston Bruins. "Thats what its all about for me. Im not here to fade into the sunset. I want to be part of something special coming here." Something special in the short term might just mean making the playoffs after missing in 11 of the past 12 seasons. Even as the Panthers head toward another early off-season, Bjugstad hopes its just "growing pains" as part of an important learning experience. Thats to be expected for a team whose top players include 18-year-old Aleksander Barkov, 20-year-old Huberdeau, and 22-year-old Erik Gudbranson. Players were on a bus in Boston when they found out Luongo was coming and represented something of a safety valve for mistakes of youth. "Any time you can have a solid goaltender behind you, it gives you confidence that you can make some plays," said 20-year-old forward Vincent Trocheck, who made his Panthers debut the same game Luongo returned. "If you do make a mistake, you know that hes back there to save your butt, basically." Yet in the larger scope, Luongo is not being asked to save a franchise by himself. It is, however, Tallons hope that trading for him "sets the tone" for the organization. The message of taking on the final eight-plus years and over US$28 million of Luongos contract was that the Panthers are willing to spend. Hours after making the move, Tallon said it was about making good on all the talk about wanting to win a Stanley Cup because "talk is cheap." Doing so could be expensive, but its not out of the realm of possibility that Florida has a better chance of winning a Cup in the next four or five years than Vancouver. "You never know," Luongo said. "Its tough to say. You hope so. Thats why Im here. I think the pieces are definitely here, just a matter of making sure that we bring the right piece to complement these young guys that are talented and theyre going to be stars in this league." Tallon has a plan. After already taking the goaltending gamble that was Jacob Markstrom out of the equation and getting Luongo, he has his sights set on signing, drafting or trading for two power wingers to support Barkov, Huberdeau, Bjugstad and Trocheck.dddddddddddd The Panthers payroll is the lowest in the league at just over US$50 million, but with Viola in charge, Tallon expects to be "a cap team or close to a cap team" next season. Having almost $30 million of cap space could help the Panthers continue down the path to being a contender, but it also helps to have Luongo as a salesman and a symbol of the clubs all-out push to get better. "Its hard to recruit anybody if they dont think youre doing the right thing," Tallon said. "I think the commitment of making that deal and the commitment that Vinny Violas going to make ... will really influence a lot of decisions as far as players wanting to come here, seeing that were really committed to winning." Luongo didnt keep close tabs on the Panthers rebuild while he was playing for the Canucks because he didnt expect to get traded, let alone back to Florida. But Brisson, who just negotiated a two-year extension for winger Brad Boyes, had a good sense of what was happening. New ownership meant a new opportunity for Luongo. "If it was back to the former ownership where they werent sure what they wanted to spend, what they wanted to do, I wouldnt have recommended it at the time -- absolutely not," Brisson said. "If you look at good ownership and willingness to spend and the right chef, so to speak, the right cook in the kitchen, its an attractive place for Roberto and the players that are there." Tallon is that chef, and he has quite the recipe on his resume. Even though Stan Bowman was the general manager when the Blackhawks won the 2010 Stanley Cup, Tallon orchestrated much of the turnaround in Chicago. "It went well for them," Bjugstad said. "Thats kind of what were banking on." For every Blackhawks success story theres another example like the Edmonton Oilers, who are set to miss the playoffs for the eighth straight season despite three straight No. 1 picks and six in the top 10. They provide a cautionary tale for the Panthers, even as Tallon rattles off prospect after prospect who could make a difference. Each one of those young, unproven players represents essentially a raffle ticket for Florida, another chance to hit it big. But theres plenty of risk and uncertainty in that. "Obviously weve got to prove ourselves before we can get too excited," Bjugstad said. "Theres a ways to go." In Luongo, the young Panthers get a goalie who is already established. Even if his play is not Vezina Trophy-calibre, he could instill plenty of confidence on and off the ice. "I think maybe as more of an experienced guy in the locker-room to bring whatever I have learned over the years and maybe help them out along the way as far as just being a pro and all that kind of stuff to help their development," Luongo said. That team-wide development and progression toward a playoff team is still in the "early" stages, according to Tallon. Luongos addition speeds it up, but theres still no set goal on when he figures the Panthers will get over the hump. "I dont put numbers on that," he said. "I just let the players start to develop and see when theyre ready to make a real hit on the team as far as moving forward. And when they all come together as a group, as a team, not just in a group of individuals, thats when you pretty well know when youve got something special." ' ' '