April 8 Gamer

Note: This is called a "gamer." It tells what happened during the game without going into too much play-by-play. This gamer, which I submitted under deadline, was edited by my recruiter.


NEW YORK — Maybe it happened to make fans forget about Kei Igawa's first Major League start. Maybe it happened because he's tired of boos. Or maybe it happened because he's Alex Rodriguez.

It doesn't matter why it happened — A-Rod's walk-off grand slam in the ninth inning on Saturday was simply destiny.

"Somehow, I knew it was going to come down to me," Rodriguez said.

And when it did, the All-Star third baseman sent the Orioles back to a suddenly hollow hotel in New York with a 10-7 loss.

Rodriguez doesn't remember where Orioles closer Chris Ray threw the pitch. But he did know it was a fastball that caught too much of the plate. The next thing A-Rod recalled was stumbling over third base, nearly knocking over Larry Bowa as a backdrop of roaring fans pushed him toward home plate with cheers.

A-Rod knew the fans needed that homer. He had disappointed them in a similar situation less than 48 hours ago.

"They've been wanting to explode for three days, and it was rocking right then," Rodriguez said.

Igawa came away with a no-decision after giving up eight hits — two of them homers — and seven earned runs in five innings. He struck out two and walked three in his 97-pitch effort.

With masses of U.S. and Japanese media ready to tell of his debut to the world, Igawa settled into his locker next to interpreter Yumi Watanabe.

The left-hander said his slider wasn't at its best. Same goes for his changeup. And when the crowd of 50,510 started booing, he didn't know it was directed at him. But once he did find out, he didn't seem to mind.

"It's always been the same," Igawa said. "I've been booed in Japan."

He wasn't happy with his start, but like several players after a pride-kicker, he knew another day would come — one that would reflect him as the pitcher he knows he is.

But, as much of a milestone as his start was, Igawa's first outing in the bigs didn't matter anymore. Jason Giambi, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter and a whole cast of Yankees made sure of it. They were tools in the hands of destiny.

Giambi belted a three-run homer in the eighth to bring the Yankees within a run, and Mariano Rivera struck out Freddie Bynum in a scoreless ninth to set the stage for the Yanks in the bottom half.

With two outs and nobody on in the final inning, Cano lined a single up the middle. Jeter then worked the count and appeared to get hit by Ray's pitch. But the home plate umpire called him back, saying he swung at the pitch. Yankees manager Joe Torre walked out of the dugout and had a short conversation with the umpire. Nothing heated. Torre walked straight back to the dugout and Jeter dug his left cleat into the batters box.

He worked a walk, putting runners at first and second. Bobby Abreu came up and got nailed by Ray's 0-1 offering. Bases loaded.

A-Rod up to the plate.

Count goes to 1-2.

Ray throws a fastball.

Destiny grabs the ball and carries it into the black in center field.

After teammates mobbed Rodriguez and started filing back into the dugout, Jeter knew something had yet to be done.

The Yankees shortstop pushed A-Rod back onto the field, showing New York its third baseman, its $252 million dollar man, its savior for at least one day.

"The fans were calling for him," Jeter said. "That's a great way to end the game right there."