Yankees make familiar statement, clinch series

MINNEAPOLIS -- The New York Yankees sure got back to their postseason best in a hurry.

The Yankees hit four doubles in a six-run fourth inning Sunday, giving David Wells a big lead and breezing into the AL championship series with an 8-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.

After a sloppy loss in the opener that brought back memories of last year's first-round flop against Anaheim, New York beat the Twins three straight times to clinch the AL division series 3-1.

A rested Yankees team will open the ALCS on Wednesday night at home against Oakland or Boston.

Wells improved to 9-2 lifetime in the postseason by going 7 2/3 innings for the Yankees, who sent 12 batters to the plate in the fourth and knocked out Twins starter Johan Santana.

Bernie Williams and Hideki Matsui each hit an RBI double, and Nick Johnson added a two-run double. Alfonso Soriano's two-run single made it 6-0.

Derek Jeter later homered for the Yankees. After losing Game 1 at home 3-1, New York outscored Minnesota 14-3.

The big-budget Yankees are under increasing pressure to win it all this year after going consecutive seasons without a World Series title. They put themselves in a great situation by finishing off Minnesota on Sunday.

They'll have two days off to rest before Game 1 of the ALCS, while the Red Sox and Athletics play a decisive Game 5 tonight after making a cross-country trip to Oakland.

Pedro Martinez pitches for Boston against Barry Zito, so neither ace would be ready to face the Yankees on Wednesday.

The Twins, who beat Oakland in the first round last year, will have to settle for two straight AL Central titles after back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since 1969-70.

A leg cramp limited Santana's Game 1 outing to four shutout innings. After retiring 10 of his first 11 batters, Santana's success came to a screeching end with one out in the fourth. A stunned, silenced crowd of 55,875 watched the Yankees bash balls all over the field.

They hit four doubles in the inning, a division series record, and hung the Twins' best pitcher with six runs. Santana gave up six hits and a walk in 3 2-3 innings, striking out three.

Jason Giambi and Williams hit back-to-back doubles, Jorge Posada singled and Matsui doubled to score Williams. With two outs, Juan Rivera was intentionally walked to load the bases.

Johnson, batting ninth and stuck in an 0-for-26 slide, ripped a two-run double to make it 4-0. Juan Rincon relieved and gave up a two-run single to Soriano and walks to Jeter and Giambi.

Rincon was removed -- and booed -- as former Yankees first-round draft pick Eric Milton entered.

Twins manager Ron Gardenhire made a couple of lineup changes, hoping to jump-start a stagnant offense. It didn't do much to help. Leadoff man Shannon Stewart (.400) and Torii Hunter (.429), who was moved to the cleanup spot, were the only ones who hit the ball much in the series.

In six regular-season starts with the Yankees against Minnesota, Wells is 6-0 with a 0.68 ERA -- including a perfect game. That's four earned runs in 52 2-3 innings, meaning he was merely four outs from throwing complete games in all of them.

He gave up two-out singles to Doug Mientkiewicz and Hunter in the eighth and was replaced by Gabe White. Wells gave up eight hits and struck out five without allowing a walk.

LaTroy Hawkins threw Rivera's bunt away for his second throwing error of the series in the eighth, allowing Aaron Boone to score and make it 7-1. Jeter homered off Eddie Guardado in the ninth.

Notes: Stewart saved the Twins from further damage with two outs in the sixth, stealing a two-run homer from Jeter with a grab at the wall in left. ... Stewart made a tremendous catch in the eighth, reaching out to take an extra-base hit from Johnson and throwing to second to double up Rivera. ... Minnesota's 88-year-old owner, Carl Pohlad, threw out the ceremonial first pitch with help from his sons. Pohlad arrived on a golf cart and tossed the ball about 40 feet from the plate. ... Cleveland (2001) and Cincinnati (1995) shared the previous division series record for doubles in an inning with three. ... Wells pitched a perfect game against the Twins on May 17, 1998. ... Lippy late-night talk show host Craig Kilborn, who grew up in Minnesota, led the seventh-inning stretch.