N.Y. makes Alfonzo a tough out - The Giants' new third baseman credits his Mets years for his focus at bat.

www.sacbee.com By Nick Peters -- Bee Staff Writer Published 2:15 a.m. PST Tuesday, March 11, 2003

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Many baseball players dread visiting New York, much less playing there, and regard it as intimidating and distracting. New Giants third baseman Edgardo Alfonzo isn't among them.

In fact, playing for the New York Mets his entire career sharpened Alfonzo's focus and made him thrive under intense media and fan scrutiny. In the Shea Stadium pressure cooker, he became one of the most feared clutch hitters in the National League.

Alfonzo, 29, likely will bat fifth in the Giants' order, ostensibly to provide protection for Barry Bonds and to do a reasonable impersonation of Jeff Kent, the RBI machine who usually batted behind him the last six years.

According to manager Felipe Alou, Alfonzo is "a very cold-blooded hitter" who is particularly tough in the late innings. He may not produce Kent's annual 100-plus RBIs, but game-winning hits may flow.

"Edgardo is really patient, and he makes contact," said fellow Venezuelan Andres Galarraga. "I always hated to see him up in game-winning situations because I thought he was more dangerous than (Mike) Piazza. He always put the ball in play."

Alfonzo has the numbers to verify prowess under pressure. In six years as a Mets regular, he always batted higher with runners in scoring position than otherwise. In that span from 1997 through 2002, his RISP average was .327. Overall, it was .296.

"The key is his plate coverage," new Giants batting coach Joe Lefebvre said. "He can hit any pitch with a short, compact swing -- and that makes him dangerous. Playing in New York definitely toughens you up. He can handle anything."

Alfonzo agreed.

"The New York pressure never got to me. The fans and media back there can be tough when you're going bad and great when you're doing good. But it really was no different than playing winter ball.

"When you play in Venezuela, it's very intense from the first pitch to the last, so it makes you very aggressive. And when you play in New York, you have to learn to handle things. There are a lot of distractions and a lot of competition, including the Yankees."

Alfonzo can't explain why he's so successful under pressure, one reason the Giants gave him a four-year, $26 million contract without much competition for his services following two injury-scarred seasons.

"I really don't think about it," he said. "I just try to select a pitch to hit. I've always been able to focus. It's always been part of my game to make contact. I've always hit line drives and used all fields."

The Giants can attest to that. He's a .303 lifetime hitter against them, flourishing in the 2000 playoffs when the wild-card Mets jolted the Giants. He batted .278 in that series, but that doesn't begin to tell the story.

In Game 2, his two-run homer off Felix Rodríguez created a 4-1 lead in a game the Mets won 5-4 in 10 innings. In Game 3 at Shea, his run-scoring double off Robb Nen produced a 2-2 tie in the eighth, and the Mets won 3-2 in 13 innings. In the decisive Game 4, Alfonzo supported Bobby Jones' one-hitter with a two-run, fifth-inning double off Mark Gardner that concluded the scoring in a 4-0 win.

"He never swings at a bad pitch, and his bat doesn't have many holes," Rodríguez said.

Performance of that caliber made "Fonz" a fan favorite in New York, and he thanked the fans with an extremely classy act: spending $15,000 for taxi roof advertisements that show a big red heart and his photo wearing a FDNY cap.

Alfonzo, with the Mets' organization since 1991, plans to remain involved with his supporters in New York. He will continue to reside in Little Neck, Long Island, not far from Shea, during the offseason.

"I love New York," he said. "I did a lot of things with the Hispanic community. You can help people emotionally and spiritually, not just economically. I was involved back there, and it hurt a lot when the Mets didn't bring me back.

"I wanted to be there all my life. But then I understood. Things don't always happen the way you want. San Francisco was the last place I thought about. It was too far from New York. I told my agent to find something close, like Baltimore or Boston.

"I really didn't have any great offers until the Giants called, and I was made to feel at home right away. On my first day in camp, I had guys come up to me and say, 'Thank God we don't have to face you anymore.' That made me feel good."