MLB

Showalter preys on playoff struggles of A-Rod, Swisher

BALTIMORE — Buck Showalter played this bit of strategy in the seventh inning last night with the tying run on second base: He brought in his best righty reliever, Darren O’Day, to face a righty and his best lefty reliever, Brian Matusz, to walk a lefty and put the go-ahead run on first.

It was such an untraditional move Robinson Cano actually “thought they were joking” when catcher Matt Wieters stood up to begin the intentional walk.

“He wasn’t joking,” Cano said.

No, Showalter was dead serious. The Orioles skipper is a “head-hit-the-pillow” manager, which is to say he could never have slept if he let the Yankees’ best hitter by far beat him at any time of year, much less in a Division Series Game 2. Instead, he knew he could live with — and sleep peacefully after — the outcome of seeing if annual October duds Alex Rodriguez and Nick Swisher could reverse their history, avoid turning into baseball pumpkins yet again at this time of year.

“No disrespect to anybody hitting behind him, but it’s a chance we took,” Showalter said.

Showalter is too publicly diplomatic to say it, but in what turned into a 3-2 Orioles triumph, he showed that until further notice he has respect for Cano and none for A-Rod or Swisher.

Showalter played the numbers. Rodriguez is hitting .169 in the postseason with no homers and 17 whiffs in 16 games since his tremendous 2009 playoffs. That includes one hit in 16 at-bats with runners in scoring position. Swisher is 1-for-33 in his postseason career with runners in scoring position — and the one hit did not even produce a run.

Plus, A-Rod is now 1-for-7 with four strikeouts lifetime off O’Day after being retired by the righty sidewinder in each of the first two games of this series. Swisher is 1-for-20 off Matusz after being retired in each of the first two games by the lefty.

So you see how the masters of close, late games — Baltimore is now 30-9 in contests decided by one run — are going to operate. Cano has a better chance of being elected governor of Maryland than getting a hittable pitch with the outcome on the line.

“It is up to us to have quality at-bats and be productive around Robby or else they aren’t going to pitch to Robby,” A-Rod said.

As of last night, Joe Girardi said he was sticking with Rodriguez, homerless now in his past 19 games, as the No. 3 hitter as this best-of-five switches to The Bronx tied at one apiece.

Rodriguez actually had a chance to be an early hero yesterday. With first and second and nobody out in the first, he lined a shot up the middle that if it gets through likely gives the Yankees a 1-0 lead and puts runners at first and third. Instead, second baseman Robert Andino sprawled to snare the ball and start a double play that would have been a triple play if not for alert baserunning by Ichiro Suzuki. Showalter thought it was the biggest play of the game, Rodriguez called it a substantial “momentum changer.”

In the seventh, Ichiro was on second when O’Day struck out A-Rod with a 3-2 slider. This is when Showalter summoned Matusz to walk Cano, who had doubled in a run in the first inning and finished the season the hottest hitter in baseball, “though that seems like every week,” Showalter said.

Swisher said he was aware of his numbers against Matusz and understood the move of disrespect. Swisher actually hit very well in the clutch this year and had a walk and sac fly with runners in scoring position in Game 1. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third. A single would have given the Yankees the lead, honored the strong work of Andy Pettitte and put the Orioles ever closer to postseason demise. Instead, Swisher popped to left.

Showalter, a master tactician, was aware of all these numbers, also aware of the emotional burden he wants to put on more fragile types such as A-Rod (whom he managed) and Swisher.

Showalter announced his strategy to the world in full yesterday. You never have a lefty walk a lefty. You never put the go-ahead run on base. Showalter did both to avoid Cano.

His statement is clear: We are daring Rodriguez and Swisher to win this series. That duo now has a few days in The Bronx to make Showalter sleep uneasy.

joel.sherman@nypost.com