A Series That Never Sleeps

The New York Yankees, the Humongous Engine That Could and Then Some, filled the other half of New York’s highly anticipated Subway Series on Tuesday night, clinching their 37th American League pennant in dramatic fashion to set up a World Series showdown against the cross-town rival Mets.

With his team trailing by a run in the seventh inning, David Justice blasted a three-run homer into the upper deck in right field to push the Yankees toward a 9-7 victory over the Seattle Mariners in Game 6 of the American League championship series.

Justice’s shot off Mariner reliever Arthur Rhodes highlighted a six-run inning that sent a crowd of 56,598 into a frenzy and made old Yankee Stadium literally quiver with excitement.

Elation quickly turned to anxiety in the eighth, though, when the Mariners scored three runs off starter Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez and closer Mariano Rivera, snapping Rivera’s 34-inning playoff scoreless streak dating back to 1997 and pulling to within 9-7.

But Rivera blew a fastball by pinch-hitter Jay Buhner to end an inning that included Alex Rodriguez’s homer and Mark McLemore’s two-run double, and then blanked the Mariners in the ninth to send the crowd into delirium again and bring new meaning to Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York,” which punctuates most Yankee home victories.

With the stubborn Mariners finally eliminated, the Yankees--and the rest of this sports-crazed city--can finally focus on what has infatuated New Yorkers from the time the playoffs began--the first Subway Series since the Yankees played the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1956.

It will be a borough battle between the Queens and the Bronx--does Manhattan play the role of Switzerland here?--the 7 train and the 4 train, the Amazins and the Bombers, Nelson Doubleday/Fred Wilpon and George Steinbrenner, Jerry Seinfeld and Billy Crystal, the Haves and the Have Even Mores.

Combined payrolls of the Mets and Yankees: Almost $200 million.

“It’s gonna turn this city upside down, it’s gonna be wild,” Yankee first baseman Tino Martinez said. “I can’t even imagine what it’s gonna be like. We’re just gonna have to stay indoors until it’s all over.”

Justice, whose Game 6 home run in the 1995 World Series lifted the Atlanta Braves to a Series-clinching 1-0 victory over the Cleveland Indians, was named the AL championship series most valuable player after setting a major league record with 51 playoff runs batted in, breaking Reggie Jackson’s previous mark of 48.

“This city is gonna be on fire,” Justice said. “Everything is right here. We don’t have to leave the city limits. It’s going to be incredible for everyone involved.”

New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani was in the middle of the Yankees’ champagne-soaked clubhouse afterward, but he was already playing diplomat.

“A New York team will be coming up the Canyon of Heroes in another week or so--you’ll just have to fill in the blank,” Giuliani said. “I wish we could honor both teams, because they both deserve a ticker-tape parade. They’ve already produced one of the most exciting years in sports history.”

Crystal, a huge Yankee fan who is making a movie about the 1961 Yankees of Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle, was also part of the celebration and couldn’t resist a jab at Seinfeld, a fellow comedian and known Met supporter.

“I hope I get a chance to smack Seinfeld around a bit,” Crystal said.

If it’s anything like the Yankees smacked Rhodes around in the seventh inning Tuesday night, Seinfeld is going to need some smelling salts.

After RBI doubles by Rodriguez and Edgar Martinez in the first and Carlos Guillen’s two-run homer in the fourth gave Seattle a 4-0 lead, New York came back with a three-run fourth that featured Jorge Posada’s two-run double and Paul O’Neill’s RBI single off starter John Halama.

Jose Vizcaino then opened the seventh with an infield single off reliever Jose Paniagua and took second on Chuck Knoblauch’s sacrifice bunt. Jeter singled to left, a seeing-eye grounder, to put runners on first and third.

Seattle Manager Lou Piniella summoned the left-hander Rhodes, who was ripped for three runs on four hits in the eighth inning of Game 2. Rhodes fell behind Justice, 3-and-1, and grooved a fastball that Justice ripped for his 13th postseason home run and a 6-4 Yankee lead.

“This was right behind the [World Series homer],” Justice said. “It’s like the 100 meters in the Olympics. The gold medal was the 9.7 and this was a 9.71. It was just magic when I ran the bases, just to see this place erupt and the fact it put us up by two runs.”

The Yankees weren’t done, though. Williams singled to right, and Martinez hit a ground-rule double to left. Rhodes walked Posada intentionally to load the bases, and up stepped O’Neill, who had been pinch-hit for twice with Rhodes on the mound this series.

Tired of watching Glenallen Hill strike out against Rhodes, Yankee Manager Joe Torre let O’Neill hit, and O’Neill rewarded the decision by grounding a two-run single to right for an 8-4 lead. Vizcaino capped the rally with a sacrifice fly off Jose Mesa to make it 9-4.

Seattle put a good scare into the Yankees in the eighth, but that didn’t prevent Hernandez, who gave up six runs on seven hits in seven gutsy innings, from improving his career postseason record to 8-0.

Rodriguez greeted Hernandez with a towering homer to left-center in the eighth, Martinez walked, and Torre made that slow walk to the mound as he called for Rivera.

Rivera allowed McLemore’s two-out double that hit the bag at first base, stunning Yankee fans, but he restored order in the ninth, as the chants of “Subway Series, Subway Series,” echoed through the stadium.

“I have a feeling this city is not going to be the same for the next 10 days, and maybe for some time after that,” Torre said. “I hope it’s a clean series. And I hope people behave themselves, because it’s going to split a few families up.”

Perhaps no one captured the excitement around the city better than O’Neill, who was asked to sum up his feelings in one word.

“I think you need two words,” O’Neill said. “New York, New York.”

GAME 1

METS

at YANKEES

5 p.m. Saturday

Channel 11

FIRST LOOK

Clemens-Piazza? Benitez-Martinez? This series has rivalries ready. D9

NOTES

Yankee coach Zimmer says this has been Torre’s best managing. D9