Alex Rodriguez was just one of many Yankees whom Oliver Perez placed in handcuffs yesterday at Shea Stadium.
But because he had two chances – one against Perez in the fourth and another versus Billy Wagner in the ninth – and didn’t deliver, Rodriguez shouldered the blame for a 3-1 loss that allowed the Mets to win four of six Subway Series games.
“If I come up with a hit in either opportunity maybe we win the game,” Rodriguez said.
With Derek Jeter on second and one out in the fourth, Perez fell behind Rodriguez, 3-0, watched him crush a long foul, got the count to 3-2 and beat Rodriguez with a 92 mph fastball for a strikeout.
“His best against my best,” Rodriguez said.
After starting the seventh with a pop to David Wright, Rodriguez surfaced in the ninth with a chance to tie the score against Wagner.
Jeter was on second again, via a leadoff single and a wild pitch. Wagner fell behind, 1-0, and the Met fans groaned while the Yankee fans stirred. The next pitch was a 94-mph fastball that Rodriguez hit to left. The Yankees got excited about nothing because the ball died in Endy Chavez’ glove short of the warning track.
“I thought I had a chance,” Rodriguez said about the swing he put on Wagner’s 94-mph heater. “It was the pitch I was looking for and the swing I was looking for.”
Rodriguez, who has struggled all season in the clutch, has four hits in the last 18 at-bats (.222) with runners in scoring position. For the season he is batting .243 (17-for-70) in the clutch compared with .322 overall.