NEW YORK -- Scott Brosius knows October glory.

	Scott Brosius drives a Mike Morgan offering to left field, giving the Yanks a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning.

He knows about getting the big hit and making the big play in the field.

He just hasn't known it this October.

The Yankees third baseman, the MVP of the 1998 Fall Classic, has struggled at the plate and in the field this postseason, hitting just .143 (6-for-42) in 13 playoff games. His failure to smoothly turn a double play in Game 2 helped prolong the inning that Matt Williams highlighted with a three-run homer.

When he stepped to the plate in the bottom of the sixth inning with the score tied 1-1 and runners at first and second and two outs, the crowd had momentarily been quieted after Diamondbacks reliever Mike Morgan fanned pinch-hitter David Justice on four pitches, getting him swinging on a drifting changeup.

Before the crowd even had a chance to work itself into another frenzy, Brosius swung at the first offering from the 42-year-old Morgan, who is known more for wearing 12 different big-league uniforms than for being the guy you want on the mound in a crucial moment of the World Series.

One crazy at-bat

Alfonso Soriano's at-bat in the bottom of the fourth didn't turn out to be key, but it sure was fun to watch. The game was tied 1-1 when he came up with runners at first and second, two outs, against Brian Anderson: 1. Called strike, changeup. 2. Called strike, changeup. 3. Fastball, fouled off. 4. Ball, changeup away. 5. Fastball, fouled into net. 6. Pop in front of plate, Damian Miller misplays, Shane Spencer hustles in from second, but the ball rolls foul. 7. Fouled back. 8. Ball, low. 9. Fastball, fouled back. 10. Fouled down right-field line. 11. Low changeup, fouled back. 12. Ball, just off the plate. 13. Flyout to center field. Just another routine F-8 in the scorebook.

Brosius didn't hit the ball hard, as he broke his bat. The ball drifted on a slow loop to medium-deep left field, about 10 feet from the foul line. Arizona left fielder Luis Gonzalez got a bad jump on the play and appeared to circle after it a bit instead of taking a direct route. It landed several feet in front of him. Bernie Williams easily scored from second base to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead.

"This was a game we wanted to win," Brosius said. "This was a game we had to have. They did a great job of holding us down again."

The game-winning rally had started with Bernie Williams' infield hit to shortstop off starter Brian Anderson. After Tino Martinez flew out to right field (after a second life in which catcher Damian Miller and first baseman Mark Grace had collided to drop his foul pop), Williams advanced to second on a wild pitch. Jorge Posada then walked on four pitches, which ended Anderson's night.

Interestingly, right as Morgan struck out Justice, Miguel Batista started warming up in the bullpen, which all but announced that Curt Schilling would be starting Game 4 for Arizona.

Perhaps Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly knew that if the game is close in the late innings, the Yankees will find a way to get the big hit.