Marte fills key role in Yankees' pen

PHILADELPHIA -- When the White Sox were breezing through the 2005 postseason, left-hander Damaso Marte didn't get much attention in a bullpen that featured an emerging Bobby Jenks, setup men Neal Cotts and Cliff Politte and even interloper Mark Buehrle.

Marte? He flew under the radar, unless he was doing something to irritate manager Ozzie Guillen.

Less than two months after pitching 1 2/3 scoreless innings to earn the Game 3 victory in the 2005 World Series -- a 7-5, 14-inning affair that required Buehrle to get the save -- Marte was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Rob Mackowiak.

It would have been easy to forget about Marte, but here he is, back in the World Series, and considered a key part of New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi's bridge to closer Mariano Rivera.

''He's very tough on left-handers -- he's got angle, he's got deception, and we missed him at times this year,'' Girardi said Sunday, a day after Marte pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning, striking out sluggers Ryan Howard and Jayson Werth in Game 3. ''Phil Coke did a tremendous job for us, but there are times during the course of a game where you'd love to have two left-handers.''

By the way, the last Yankees pitchers to earn a World Series ring? That would be Marte.

The Yankees got Marte from the Pirates in July 2008 deal that sent Xavier Nady to New York. Last offseason, Marte got the kind of contract only the Yankees would offer a 34-year-old middle reliever, -- a three-year, $12 million deal.

Then Marte went down with a shoulder injury in April and missed nearly four months. In his 21 outings for the Yankees during the regular season, he had a 9.45 ERA -- numbers that usually get you lopped off postseason rosters.

But Girardi never lost faith.

''Once we signed him and added the extension, we thought he could be a very big player in our bullpen,'' Girardi said. ''It took some time to get him back. He went through a lot of rehab to get to this point. But he's had match-ups against these guys before, being in the National League, being in Pittsburgh, he's familiar with this ballpark in a sense, the hitters here, and we thought he could play a very important role.''

Howard had struck out in each of his four career at-bats against Marte entering Game 4 on Sunday, another reason Girardi sees Marte as a valuable weapon during this World Series.

''I feel good,'' Marte said. ''[Girardi's] giving me the chance to show how good I am, and I'm going to give it all on the field.''

His first day back in the lineup after a Game 2 benching, Yankees right fielder Nick Swisher rewarded Girardi by hitting a rally-igniting double in the three-run fifth inning and adding a solo home run in the sixth inning of the Yankees' 8-5 victory in Game 3.

Swisher, who opened last season as the White Sox' leadoff hitter, said he widened his stance and got immediate results. He was back in the starting lineup for Game 4. His leadoff walk in the fifth inning set the table for a two-run inning that gave the Yankees a 4-2 lead.

''Obviously, this postseason has been kind of a struggle for me,'' said Swisher, who was in a 4-for-35 funk, with 12 strikeouts, before his benching. ''It's different. When you're in the postseason and you're in New York, it's completely different than anywhere else I've ever been.''

Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels -- the 2008 World Series MVP who has a 7.58 ERA and has allowed seven home runs in four postseason starts in 2009 -- turned heads with his comments after Game 3 saying he just wants the season to be over.

''I can't wait for it to end,'' Hamels said of his disappointing 2009 season. ''It's been mentally draining ... It's one of those things, a year in, you just can't wait for a fresh start.''

This caught manager Charlie Manuel by surprise -- especially because the Phils are counting on Hamels to pitch a potential Game 7.

''I was surprised when I heard that ... I don't really understand exactly how he meant that,'' Manuel said. ''This is all new to him, and that's something that he will get through it and probably be even better. From what I've seen of him, I mean, he's a competitor, and he's definitely mentally tough.''

Girardi and Phillies rookie left-hander J.A. Happ -- both products of the Northwestern baseball program -- posed for a picture together before Game 4 at Citizens Bank Park.