Pettitte, Jeter, Posada and Rivera help Yankees advance
Photo credit: Getty Images | Derek Jeter #2 of the New York Yankees hits a double in the 6th inning against the Minnesota Twins in Game Three of the ALDS. (October 11, 2009)
ALDS Game 3: Yankees 4, Twins 1
Photos: Yankees sweep Twins in 2009 ALDS
MINNEAPOLIS - On the day the Yankees clinched the American League East title last month, Andy Pettitte was asked if missing the playoffs last year taught him not to take the postseason for granted.
Pettitte looked the reporter in the eye and laughed out loud.
"I already knew," he said, "how much I missed it."
Now the Yankees are heading to the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2004 after their 4-1 win over the Twins last night clinched a sweep. And the four remaining Yankees from the team's glory years - Pettitte, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera - played significant roles in getting them there.
Pettitte allowed one run in 61/3 innings, Posada hit an opposite-field home run to break a 1-1 tie in the seventh, Jeter made a heads-up defensive play that prevented the tying run from scoring in the eighth and Rivera earned another save.
Asked what it means that all four of the longtime Yankees stepped up in this game, Pettitte said, "There's no doubt that makes it special, makes it a little more sweeter."
Said Rivera, "It makes me proud. We have to continue doing that. We have to set the pace."
It started with Pettitte, who has always been one of the rocks of the Yankees' rotation in the postseason. He's the guy Joe Torre used to say he felt most comfortable with pitching a big game. And he lived up to his postseason reputation.
Pettitte allowed three hits and one walk, keeping the Twins at bay long enough for Alex Rodriguez and Posada to break through with solo homers off Carl Pavano in the seventh for a 2-1 lead. "Andy was throwing the ball as good as I've seen all year," manager Joe Girardi said.
Girardi was equally happy with Posada, who was back in the lineup after not starting Game 2 so his backup, Jose Molina, could catch A.J. Burnett. Posada made no secret of his unhappiness with sitting, and he took out whatever leftover ill will on the Twins with his homer and an RBI single in the ninth.
"I love what he did tonight. To put us ahead 2-1 with an opposite-field homer, just great," Girardi said.
But the Yankees' one-run lead wouldn't have stood up if not for the play by Jeter, which is a broken record of a phrase come the postseason.
After Nick Punto led off the eighth with a double off Phil Hughes, Denard Span hit a grounder up the middle. Jeter fielded it behind the bag but didn't throw to first.
"I wasn't going to get Span the way he runs," Jeter said. "I saw Punto out of the corner of my eye, so I just waited for him to commit to going home and then I just tried to get it to Jorge."
After Jeter threw it home, Posada fired to third and nailed Punto as he tried to dive back into the base.
A batter later, Rivera entered with the tying run on first and the dangerous Joe Mauer up. And Rivera did what he always does: make his job look easy. He shattered Mauer's bat and got him to ground out to first.
"These guys," Girardi said, "they've been here in so many situations, tough situations, playoff situations, they know how to play this time of year."
>> COMPLETE COVERAGE: Yankees go for 27th World Series title
>> BLOGS: E-Boland and the Bombers | Davidoff's Baseball Insider >> ALCS: Yankees excited for Angels | Pitching match-ups >> PHOTOS: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | 2009 highlights | Greatest playoff moments >> TWITTER: Anthony Rieber | Jim Baumbach | Ken Davidoff
