| | NEW YORK -- Bernie Williams showed the New York Yankees why he was worth all that money.
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| Williams |
Williams homered, doubled and drove in six runs Tuesday night to
lead the New York Yankees to a 8-0 victory over the Texas Rangers
in the first game of their best-of-5 series.
Williams spent much of this season trying to live up to the
$87.5 million, seven-year contract he signed in the offseason. He
batted .342 with 202 hits, 115 RBI, 116 runs and 100 walks -- all
career highs -- and hit 25 homers.
But the only month that matters for the Yankees is October, and once again Williams stepped up.
"When I heard the lineup, something in me woke up," Williams
said. "It was time to play. This is the postseason. It's not the
regular season anymore."
Williams started his spectacular game with his glove, not his
bat. With runners on first and second in the third inning, Juan
Gonzalez hit a looping liner that Williams tracked down in
right-center and made a sliding catch on to preserve a 1-0 lead.
"I didn't think I had a shot at it," Williams said. "But at
the last minute, the ball just stayed up a little bit longer than I
anticipated. It gave me a chance to make a dive and I was fortunate
enough to make the catch."
Williams then delivered at the plate. After being retired his
first two at-bats, Williams came up with two on and two outs in the
fifth.
He fell behind 0-2 to Aaron Sele before working the count full, fouling off a pitch and then launching a two-run double off the
wall in center field to make it 3-0.
"I got a pitch up when I didn't want to," Sele said. "He took advantage of it."
Williams put the game away in the sixth. With runners on first
and second and two outs, Williams hit a homer to right field off Mike Venafro to make it 7-0. It was Williams' 10th
postseason homer in 39 games.
"From his first at-bat to that last at-bat you saw a different
player," manager Joe Torre said. "That's what happens with
Bernie. You never know when that this is going to get a hold of him
and it's going to become something he can't get out of."
Williams also helped Torre out in the dugout. Torre was visibly shaken after bench coach Don Zimmer was hit in the jaw with a foul ball in the dugout.
Williams was the one who calmed him down.
"He definitely looked a little bit upset about the whole
situation," Williams said. "I came to his side and told him if he
was all right, just to stay with us in the game."
But Williams' biggest strength is at the plate. He capped his
night off with an RBI single in the eighth off Jeff Fassero to give him 35 playoff RBI.
"Tonight's an example of the type of team we have," Darryl Strawberry said. "You don't look to any one person. Tonight it was Bernie. Next time it could be anyone else."
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