Yankees Earns Two Straight Wins in Opponent`s Field

The New York Yankees moves forward the fourth consecutive World Series champion with a light step.

After having escaped from the edge to be eliminated by the Oakland Athletics in the division series, the New York Yankees defeated at 3-2 again the Seattle Mariners, which recorded the best winning percentage in the regular season, in the American League Championship Series game two at Safeco Field. With this win, the Yankees took the advantage to advance the World Series. The Yankees recorded the fifth consecutive win in the postseason.

After Tino Martinez`s single and Jorge Posada`s base-on-balls, Scott Brosius hit a two-run double in the second inning to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead. And as Chuck Knoblauch singled to add a run, the Yankees began to play the game smoothly.

The counterattack turned out to be incompetent to reverse the game in spite of Stan Javier`s two-run homer. Yankee starter Mike Mussina mastered the Mariners allowing four hits and two runs, and best closer Mariano Rivera shut out 5 hitters including 3 strikeouts from the eighth inning with one out in order to save the 3-2 leading game.

Rivera recorded his fourth save of the playoffs and Thursday`s save marked the 22nd consecutive playoff save for Rivera.

Meanwhile, Japanese hitter of the Seattle Suzuki Ichiro reached safely on the base three times, combining a single, a centerfielder`s error and an intentional walk, to extend the postseason hitting streak to 7 games.

The game three will be held at 5:20 am on 21st (Korean Time), in which `a man of postseason` Orlando Hernandez (9 wins 1 loss) starts for Yankees, facing Mariners Jamie Moyer who recorded 20 wins in the regular season.

Zang Hwan-Soo zangpabo@donga.com