New York Nick slumps on bench

Girardi finally sits attention-craving Swisher

NEW YORK -- At least his Mohawk still looked sharp. Nick Swisher always has craved attention, but he was getting the wrong kind of scrutiny Thursday before Game 2 of the World Series.

In the first official sign the big, bad New York Yankees were flinching, manager Joe Girardi shook up his lineup, making the long-overdue move of benching Swisher and starting Jerry Hairston Jr. in right field against Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Pedro Martinez.

If you're a White Sox fan, you've seen this move before.

Girardi's swap put Swisher, who was essentially driven out of Chicago last offseason by White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, in the cross hairs of the media. Usually a camera-seeking missile, Swisher originally tried to dodge the mob of reporters waiting for him at the top step of the Yankees' dugout.

Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon and even Alex Rodriguez made their way through the crowd of media. Swisher? He took a detour. After taking his hacks during batting practice, Swisher couldn't escape reporters any longer.

Shocked by the benching?

''Obviously, you're frustrated and upset, but, hey, this is part of the game,'' Swisher said. ''It's a team game. We've gotten here by playing everybody we have. And Jerry is ready, and he will go out and do a good job.

''I don't feel bad. It's just finding holes, that's it. I just use today as a work day and keep fresh and be ready to go tomorrow.''

After less than a minute with reporters, Swisher pulled himself away -- moving directly to an all-smiles session with ''Access Hollywood.'' The ''AH'' reporter had no idea Swisher was just the victim of a high-profile benching. She wanted to know about his Mohawk and his reaction to an ''Access Hollywood'' poll that found Andy Pettitte to be the ''hottest Yankee.''

This was Swisher's kind of interview.

Inside the media room, Girardi was much more serious explaining his move. Swisher, who happens to be occupying the same position as the Yankees' Mr. October, Reggie Jackson, was hitting .114 (4-for-35) with 12 strikeouts and one RBI, which came in the American League Division Series sweep of the Minnesota Twins.

During the AL Championship Series against the Los Angeles Angels, Swisher stood out for making two outs in one inning to help kill a key rally.

''They've pitched him tough,'' Girardi said. ''A lot of his at-bats have been long at-bats, but, inevitably, they've gotten him out.''

Swisher was known mostly for his goofball antics during a forgettable 2008 season in Chicago. He mugged for the cameras early -- rubbing his teammates the wrong way -- then sulked when he was benched down the stretch, killing his relationship with Guillen. In between, he was the reputed mastermind behind the Sox' ill-fated blowup-doll disaster in Toronto.

Given a chance to kick Swisher while he was down, Guillen took the high road at Yankee Stadium, where he's analyzing the Series for Fox.

''Nick is the type of guy who's very cold or very hot,'' Guillen said. ''Right now, he's going through a tough time at the plate, and maybe he's trying to do too much. He has to remember he has teammates behind him who will help him. In the meanwhile, you ask anybody on the White Sox if you want to be him right now, they would switch places.''

Swisher wilted with the White Sox after complaining about being ripped for the first time in his career. He especially bristled when the Sun-Times called him a goofball after the blowup-doll episode.

Remarkably, he has avoided the wrath of the New York media this season.

''No,'' one veteran New York Post columnist said when asked if Swisher has been ripped, ''but he thinks he has.''

That's Swisher, always worrying about his image for the wrong reasons. After his brief exchange with the non-''Access Hollywood'' media, Swisher had his own questions.

''What?'' Swisher said to me at the end of the interview. ''Did you expect me to say something bad?''

Only if it would get him the kind of attention he usually craves.