BRONX, New York (Ticker) -- Andy Pettitte kept the New York Yankees in the game long enough for Alfonso Soriano and Jason Giambi to redeem themselves.

Pettitte tossed seven brilliant innings and Soriano and Giambi delivered RBI singles in a three-run seventh as the Yankees posted a 4-1 triumph over the Minnesota Twins and evened their American League Division Series at one game apiece.

No stranger to postseason pressure, Pettitte (1-0) delivered in a huge spot, yielding just three singles and a solo homer to Torii Hunter in the fifth. The veteran lefthander walked three but established a postseason career high with 10 strikeouts.

"I put so much value on someone who pitches under the stress that he pitches under," Yankees manager Joe Torre said of Pettitte. "I don't think I can trust anybody more than I trust Andy."

"We sent the right guy to the mound, no doubt about it," Giambi added. " Andy Pettitte has been our guy all year long. He has been unbelievable and he answered it. I mean, I know I haven't spent a lot of time around here as a Yankee, this is my second year, but the game he pitched tonight was - I don't think there could have been a bigger one in postseason right now to get us off that first game and get us a win."

Pettitte, who is two shy of the major league record of 13 postseason wins, tried to put this outing into the context of his other memorable October outings.

"I was pretty emotional out there tonight," he said. "Like I said, just I could sense it, with the team in the dugout, stuff like that, and everybody is trying to pat each other on the butt and pick each other up and hoping we would scratch out a run. It was a fun game. This was one of the funnest games that I have pitched in in the playoffs."

"Pettitte made pitches when he had to," Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "He was mixing it up, he was hitting spots when he had to. He'd fall behind, 2-0, and he hit spots."

After New York scored in the opening inning, Minnesota starter Brad Radke settled in and held the Yankees in check into the seventh. Down one game to none and headed to Minnesota for Games Three and Four, New York - an overwhelming favorite in the series - was facing mounting pressure.

Radke (0-1) hit Nick Johnson with a pitch to open the bottom of the seventh and Juan Rivera got down a sacrifice. LaTroy Hawkins came on to face Soriano after striking him out in a big spot in Game One. This time, the Yankees' All-Star second baseman got the hard-throwing reliever, grounding an RBI single into left field.

"The way the game is sometimes you play well and sometimes you don't," Soriano said. "Tuesday I didn't play well and today I did. ... It was my time to do something for the team. I never thought that we would lose, but I was a little worried."

Derek Jeter followed with a chopper that Hawkins rifled off the glove of Gold Glove first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz , moving both runners into scoring position. Giambi, who was hitless in Game One and had not driven in a run in his last four postseason contests, drilled a two-run single into center field for a 4-1 lead.

"There is no question these guys were pressing," Torre said. "They have 56,000 people out here who supported us all year long and the eight years I have been here. And you wish they wouldn't try so hard. ... We were swinging too hard, trying to hit the ball out of the ballpark instead of just putting it in play. And that inning, all of a sudden, once we got the runner to second, Soriano with the single and then Giambi with a huge base hit."

Giambi, who was booed during Games One and Two, never got discouraged.

"I guess I went from zero to hero real quick, so that's a great thing about this game," he said. "Yesterday I had kind of a tough game and today I got an opportunity again and (came through)."

"It was a 3-1 count and I had to throw a strike," Hawkins said. "I didn't want to walk him and he hit it. It could've been worse. He could've hit it over the fence. He got a ground ball. I got three ground balls. I'm going to get you or you're gonna get me. Tonight, they got me. The other day, I got them."

As for the errant throw, Hawkins said, "I kind of rushed it. Speed kills. I rushed it and it rolled up on Dougie. There's nothing I can do about it. You can't go back."

Twins manager Ron Gardenhire had an interesting take on what he thought may have caused Radke's seventh-inning struggles.

"I thought sitting there in that long inning, during 'God Bless America,' that I never like those situations because it takes a long time and the pitcher has got to sit there for an extra amount of time," Gardenhire said. "Then he goes out there and he ends up hitting the first hitter right in the butt. We have seen that happen to our pitchers before when you have those long innings like that."

Mariano Rivera preserved the three-run cushion, retiring the final six batters to notch the save.

"This isn't the regular season, this is do or die," Mariano Rivera said. "Getting the win tonight changes the complexion of the series. ... I was not surprised at all to pitch two innings. I've done it before and I'm sure it'll continue. I felt good. I feel confidence in myself and my team."

Radke allowed two runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out four. He threw only 98 pitches, which may enable him to start a potential Game Five on Monday.

New York looked like it was going to break open the game in the first against Radke as Soriano, Jeter and Giambi singled to load the bases. Bernie Williams delivered a sacrifice fly on a 2-0 pitch, but Radke struck out Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui .

Minnesota left a runner in scoring position in the third but got even in the fifth when Hunter hit a 1-1 pitch over the center field fence for his first career postseason homer. The Twins had runners at the corners later in the inning, but Pettitte got Luis Rivas on a bouncer to third.

Giambi struck out with two aboard to end the fifth but came through in the seventh.

"It's a tight ballgame, and when you play against these guys in tight ballgames, they seem to find a way," Radke said.