Postseason provides new opportunities

CINCINNATI -- There's no denying that some players love to play in the postseason.

Others, not so much.

For some stars, it's a bitter struggle, and for relative unknowns, it can make a career.

Alfonso Soriano, for example, was seen as such a liability -- both offensively and defensively -- because of his postseason play in New York, that the Yankees traded him to Texas.

And his .233 lifetime playoff average -- with 45 strikeouts in 146 at-bats and 7 extra basehits in 38 games -- has followed him wherever he has gone.

But now that he's the $136 million man in Chicago, paid a king's ransom to lead the Cubs to the Promised Land, he's going to be under even more pressure to perform.

"You know, (Barry) Bonds was criticized a lot for his postseason record before he got hot one year,'' Cubs GM Jim Hendry said. "Willie Mays (.247) didn't hit much either, but look at the kinds of players you're talking about.

"Who knows why? There's dozens of factors. Why does Alex Rodriguez hit line drives right at people, but they fall in for Mark Bellhorn or Gene Tenace?

"It's great theater, but there's no easy answers. I don't think it's guys pressing as much as it is who's hitting behind them and how they're swinging and how pitchers are approaching them.

"There are a lot of reasons, and I think you look at a guy like Soriano and we don't get in without him. If he doesn't hit in October, do we forget about the other six months? It doesn't mean he's a bad player.''

For his postseason career, Soriano has 4 home runs in 38 games with 18 RBI and a .623 OPS, despite a career .841 OPS. But Hendry says that once the postseason begins, you throw everything out the window.

"In '04, Boston was looking to deal Derrek Lowe at the trade deadline and no one wanted him,'' Hendry remembers. "And then all of a sudden he turns it on and he's their best pitcher in the playoffs. They don't win the World Series without him.

"I just don't think you can predict.''

After hitting .268 in 2001 with 18 homers and 73 RBI, Soriano had his first rough postseason, including a 6-for-25 (.240) World Series with a homer and 2 RBI against Arizona.

"Some of it is we had an idea of what we wanted to do with him, and some of it is he's going be Alfonso and approach the game the way he approaches the game no matter when it is,'' said Cubs broadcaster Bob Brenly, who was Arizona's manager when the Diamondbacks won the World Series.

"He's going to swing like he swings regardless of the situation, and if you get the ball in the wrong place, he's going to hit it a long way.''

With the score tied at 1-1 in the Game 7 of the '01 Series, Soriano began the eighth inning with a home run off Curt Schilling.

"That pitch has to be in the dirt there, and if it is, he swings and misses,'' Brenly remembered. "But it was 2 inches off the dirt and he hits it out.

"The thing is, the scouts are watching very closely and by this time of year they know everyone's weakness. You also have some very good pitchers in the postseason, obviously, and they know how to read a scouting report, which is why some guys really struggle.''

Soriano says he has grown up a lot since his Yankees days, and that he's not worried about his postseason struggles.

"I'm a better player now, and I don't worry about that,'' Soriano said. "I know what I can do on the field and I will do a good job (in the playoffs).''

Recently signed to a $91 million extension, there also will be enormous pressure on Carlos Zambrano to be the ace he's supposed to be. But with Zambrano, you never know which pitcher you're going to get.

"That's the time everybody wants to be there,'' Zambrano said of October. "I have to do my job good, and I'm not worried about it. I like it.''

Most people remember Zambrano pitching a brilliant Game 5 against Florida in the 2003 NLCS, but Hendry said that illustrates his point.

"It's perception, I think, as much as reality,'' Hendry said. "You didn't remember that Carlos as a 22-year-old kid got hit hard in Game 1 of that series.

"Aramis (Ramirez) was pretty good for us (.250, 4 homers, 10 RBI in 12 games), but his hits were big, and Derrek Lee got some very big hits against us and the Yanks and won a ring, but his batting average (.208) wasn't great.

"You can't write a script for it. You never know how it's going to play out. It's different. We've seen that.

"So we've done the work and now you just watch and let it happen.''

Manager Lou Piniella played in four World Series, winning twice, and hit .300 in 140 career postseason at-bats. He also managed the Reds to a World Series title in 1990. And Piniella doesn't discount for a second that there are money players and postseason flops.

"Look, some guys just raise their game for some reason or another, and I can't tell you why they do it,'' he said. "I think it has something to do with the stage and concentrating more and saving their best for the most important time.

"There's no denying that it happens. Let's hope we have some guys who do it for us. We'll find out soon enough.''

brozner@dailyherald.com