Hairston making big impact for Brewers

ST. LOUIS -- The last time, and only time, Jerry Hairston Jr. earned himself a World Series ring, with the Yankees in 2009, he had to crash the ceremony.

Usually, when a player switches teams, as Hairston did, he will wait for a convenient date to pick up his jewelry. Maybe when his former team is in town or current club is visiting.

But Hairston, who signed with the Padres in 2010, didn't feel like putting it off any longer after 13 seasons in the majors. He took a red-eye flight from San Diego to be in the Bronx for the ring ceremony in April 2010, a move that surprised his ex-teammates.

With Milwaukee in the Central time zone, if Hairston wins another ring with the Brewers this month and then joins another team in 2012, at least it'll make for an easier commute.

But first things first. Hairston, 35, a midseason acquisition from the Nationals, was picked up as a versatile bench player. Instead, he has forced his way into the starting lineup at third base for every game of this postseason.

Heading into NLCS Game 5 Friday night, Hairston was batting .375 (12-for-32) with five doubles, four RBIs and six runs in nine playoff games. On a team with two MVP candidates in Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder, Hairston has been a close third in offensive production from the No. 2 spot in the lineup.

"I think we are getting more out of him than I thought," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Coming over, I knew he was a good player. But in this postseason, he's gotten hot offensively and really helped us with what he's doing there."

Hairston, however, committed a two-out error in the third inning of Game 5 that allowed two runs to score, and the Cardinals led 5-1 after six innings.

In Thursday night's Game 4, a tight 4-2 win by the Brewers, Hairston delivered an RBI double in the fourth and scored the tying run with a smart slide around the usually impenetrable Yadier Molina. Hairston took off from second on Yuniesky Betancourt's single up the middle, and with Molina blocking the plate, he used a wide slide to sweep his hand across the only unguarded glimpse of white.

"I'm not the biggest guy out there, so usually running over a catcher is not an option, so I'd better learn how to slide," said Hairston, listed at 5-10, 190. "Yadi does a great job behind the plate, blocking the plate. So I just wanted to get there as soon as I can and avoid his tag, and I was able to do that. It's not that easy."

Said Roenicke: "He's not just athletic and quick-footed and all that, but he's got a good head. He really understands the game, where he should be playing, and the different situations that come up. He reacts very well."

As for Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, little did he know that Hairston -- the little kid who used to run around his White Sox clubhouse -- would grow up to haunt him in the NLCS. Jerry Hairston Sr. played for La Russa with the White Sox; Jerry's Jr.'s grandfather, Sam, and uncle, Johnny, also played briefly in the majors.

"I really enjoyed Jerry. He was one of my favorite players," La Russa said of Jerry Sr., "and then he had these two little kids -- two little jerk kids running into my office telling me to play their dad more than I'm playing him. It makes you feel real old to see Jerry Jr. kicking our butt like he does."

The Hairston family combined includes 2,770 regular-season games, but only the elder Jerry also has played in the postseason, in the 1983 ALCS. Knowing that, it's easier to understand why Jerry Jr. bought that red-eye ticket to the Bronx.