Umpire crew chief Charlie Reliford signals that a hit by the New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez off Tampa Bay's Troy Percival is a home run after an instant-replay review during the ninth inning Wednesday.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Alex Rodriguez figured that one of his prodigious home runs would provide the historic first test for major league baseball's week-old instant replay system.

"There's probably 800 players in the big leagues. The odds of my being in some controversy are probably 2-to-1," the New York Yankees slugger said Wednesday night, after his ninth-inning homer against the Tampa Bay Rays was upheld in the first use of video to review boundary calls.

"It's just funny," added Rodriguez, a lightning rod for headlines on and off the field throughout his career. "Somehow I find myself in those situations all the time."

Rodriguez hit a long, two-run shot down the left field line that went over the foul pole and struck one of the catwalks that support the roof at Tropicana Field. He had no doubts that the ball was fair.

Third base umpire Brian Runge immediately ruled it a home run, sparking protests from Rays catcher Dioner Navarro and manager Joe Maddon.

"I had the best view because I was at home plate. I saw what Brian saw, and for sure I knew this was going to get replayed," Rodriguez said of his 549th career homer, which moved him ahead of Mike Schmidt for sole possession of 12th place on the all-time list. "I saw the way Navarro jumped and then Maddon jumped out of the dugout and I said, 'Here we go."'

The umpires, all feeling it was a homer, convened behind the pitcher's mound at the urging of Maddon, who said the foul poles in the domed stadium are not tall enough to tell if balls hit that high are fair or foul.

Crew chief Charlie Reliford led a procession to the review room near the visiting team dugout, where it took 2 minutes, 15 seconds to back the onfield call.