A-Rod’s greatest hits have Yankees dancing

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There’s no question Alex Rodriguez has buried talk that he can’t perform in the playoffs, batting .348 with 12 runs, six homers and a franchise-record-tying 15 RBIs this fall, taking the Yankees to within a win of their first World Series title since 2000.

But as striking as those numbers are, in Rodriguez’s case, the sum isn’t nearly as impressive as the individual parts.

Here, then, is a chronology of A-Rod’s greatest postseason 2009 hits:

Oct. 9: His game-tying two-run home run off Minnesota closer Joe Nathan in the ninth inning takes Game 2 of the American League Division Series into extra innings, where the Yankees win.

Oct. 11: His game-tying home run in the seventh inning sparks a comeback that ends with the Yankees sweeping the Twins in the ALDS.

Oct. 17: His game-tying 11th-inning home run off the Angels’ Brian Fuentes, the major league saves leader, allows the Yankees to go on to win Game 2 of the American League Championship Series in the 13th.

Oct 20: Rodriguez goes 3 for 4 with a homer and scores the Yankees’ first run in a 10-1 rout of the Angels in Game 4 of the ALCS..

Oct. 25: Rodriguez goes 2 for 2 as the Yankees beat the Angels to reach the World Series for the first time since A-Rod came to New York before the 2004 season.

Oct. 31: Rodriguez’s first World Series hit is a two-run home run that gets the Yankees on the board and starts New York on its way to a Game 3 win in Philadelphia, giving them a 2-1 Series lead.

Nov. 1: A two-out ninth-inning double breaks a tie and helps the Yankees to a 7-4 win, leaving them a victory from their 27th championship.

-- Kevin Baxter