The mound pile-on is under way, after the final out of the ALCS is recorded.

Box score
ALCS press conferences: Video | Audio

Game highlights: 56k | 300k | More video >
Photo gallery: Game 5

Postgame press conference transcripts:
Pettitte | Sele | Torre | Piniella

NEW YORK -- They're back.

The New York Yankees, inspired by the city and a little mystique, advanced to the World Series for the fourth straight year as the first team ever to win the League Championship Series four consecutive times.

The Yankees beat the Seattle Mariners, 12-3, Monday night to win their 38th AL pennant and become the first team in either league to win four League Championship Series in a row. New York beat Seattle, 4-1 in games, in the best-of-seven series, ousting the M's in the ALCS for the second consecutive year.

The 26-time World Champions will try for No. 27, beginning Saturday against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Bank One Ballpark.

Bernie Williams hit a two-run homer, his third in as many games, Tino Martinez hit a three-run blast and Paul O'Neill added a solo shot for the Yankees, prompting a resounding cheer from the 56,370 at Yankee Stadium and all of New York, even Mets fans.

"The Yankees and the 'NY' that we wear on our cap when we play, we feel we're representing more than the Yankees now. We feel inspired by what's gone on. I don't think it would be fair for me to say that that's been our motivation because we've done it before, before this tragedy, and we've always been a highly motivated team."

--Yankees Manager Joe Torre

The city of New York has been trying to cope with the devastation and disruption created by the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 and seemed to need this. The Yankees may actually be sentimental favorites in the World Series.

"The Yankees and the 'NY' that we wear on our cap when we play, we feel we're representing more than the Yankees now," New York manager Joe Torre said. "We feel inspired by what's gone on. I don't think it would be fair for me to say that that's been our motivation because we've done it before, before this tragedy, and we've always been a highly motivated team.

"But for sure, (the victims) are in our thoughts regularly," Torre said.

Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, a devoted Yankee fan, was among the first to hug the manager after Mike Cameron flew out to Shane Spencer in right field for the final out. The mayor then joined the players at the mound in a huge hug fest.

"As much as we've won and everyone loves to hate us now, we're aware of (the support across the country)," said Yankee starter Andy Pettitte, voted the ALCS Most Valuable Player. "I think a lot of fans will rally behind us."

When the fans got revved up in the eighth and repeated their chant, "No Game 6," Seattle manager Lou Piniella said he could understand the emotional release.

"The one thought that did come to mind, strangely enough, was, 'Boy, this city has suffered enough' and tonight they let out their emotions," Piniella said. "I felt good for them in that way. Not because we were getting beat or getting beat up -- and that's a strange thought coming from a manager who's getting his ass kicked."

Now, the National League champion Diamondbacks will have to deal with the Yankee mystique which Piniella tried to squash during this series. Piniella knows all about the power of the pinstripes. He played for and managed the Yanks, but he believed in his Mariners and vowed there would be a Game 6 in Seattle.

ADVERTISEMENT

"First of all, I won't say it again. I won't," Piniella said. "You live and learn, you know. If they say it in New York it's OK, but if you say it in another part of the country it's not. I just had confidence in my team."

Anyone with a ticket for Game 6 or 7 should get in line for a refund. Maybe next year?

Seattle entered the series with the best record ever in the American League, 116-46, and high hopes to extend their season. They'll spend a rainy winter thinking about what might have been.

"Today (the 116 wins) mean nothing," Seattle starter Aaron Sele said. "It doesn't matter if you won 85 to get in the playoffs or 185 to get in the playoffs, it's how you finish."

Pettitte (2-1) gave up three runs on eight hits -- five of those coming in the seventh -- over 6 1/3 innings for the win. He's now 10-5 in 22 career postseason starts.

Sele (0-3) wanted just one win but instead remained 0-for-7 for his career in the playoffs. He gave up five runs -- only one earned -- on four hits and one walk over four innings. He's been to the postseason now four times and has been eliminated all four by the Yankees.

After losing the first two games of the series, Piniella guaranteed there would be a Game 6 and as soon as Bret Boone hit an eighth inning home run Sunday night to take a 1-0 lead, the skipper was looking forward to returning to SAFECO Field.

"Well, (Sunday) night we were over Detroit on our way to Minneapolis," Piniella said before Monday's game. "And right now, we're back at La Guardia (Airport in New York)." On Tuesday, they can unpack their bags for the season.

	Derek Jeter celebrates his latest trip to the World Series.

"Whatever happens, I'm proud of what our organization has accomplished this year and I'm proud of my players," Piniella said of the M's who led the West Division from start to finish. "We've got nothing to be ashamed of."

They also had nothing to show for their trip east except their expense reports.

Yankee fans read the tabloids and started their "No Game 6" chant when Piniella made a pitching change in the sixth. Majority rules.

The Yankees got started in the third. Scott Brosius reached on an error by his counterpart, third baseman David Bell. Game 4 hero Alfonso Soriano, who was greeted by a standing ovation, then singled to center and both runners advanced on Chuck Knoblauch's sacrifice. Brosius scored on Derek Jeter's sacrifice fly and David Justice doubled to right, scoring Soriano to make it 2-0.

Williams followed, launching a 3-2 pitch from Sele over the left center-field wall for his 16th career postseason homer to go ahead 4-0.

It was Williams' 16 career postseason home run and he is now in sole possession of fourth place on the all-time list, moving ahead of Babe Ruth. Jim Thome is next at 17 and Reggie Jackson and Mickey Mantle are tied with 18.

The sellout crowd beckoned Williams with shouts of "Bernie, Bernie" and he responded with a curtain call wave from the top of the dugout steps.

Then it was O'Neill's turn. With one out in the fourth, he drove a 2-2 pitch into the right field seats to make it 5-0. And he also doffed his cap.

New York loaded the bases in the sixth against John Halama and scored on a wild pitch by Joel Pineiro, a bloop single by Chuck Knoblauch, a walk by Jeter and a single by David Justice.

Martinez added his homer in the eighth but it wasn't necessary. The Yankees scored first for the sixth time in the postseason and are 5-1 in those games.

Seattle, which struggled the entire series against the strong Yankee pitching, did tally in the seventh as five of the first six batters reached on singles. David Bell hit a two-run single and Ichiro Suzuki drove in a run with a base hit to chase Pettitte.

"You know, they play human all summer and then in postseason, they turn it on a notch," Piniella said of the Yankees. "But they can be beaten."

Not this time. Since 1996, the Yankees are 53-18 in postseason games and there's one more round to go.

The Yankees didn't want to fly back to Seattle but must still head west, southwest to Arizona.

"We're not necessarily the favorite every year," Torre said, "but we seem to get the job done."

They sure do.

Carrie Muskat is reporter for MLB.com.

Box score American League Championship Series
Yankees 12, Mariners 3 at Yankee Stadium
FINAL	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Mariners	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	3	9	1
Yankees	0	0	4	1	0	4	0	3	0	12	13	1

MARINERS	POS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K	LOB	AVG.
Ichiro Suzuki	LF-RF	5	0	1	1	0	0	1	.421
Mike Cameron	CF	5	0	2	0	0	0	4	.226
Bret Boone	2B	4	0	0	0	0	1	4	.200
Edgar Martinez	DH	4	0	0	0	0	0	3	.222
Jay Buhner	RF	2	1	1	0	1	1	0	.222
a-Stan Javier	PH-LF	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.227
John Olerud	1B	3	1	1	0	1	0	1	.194
Dan Wilson	C	4	0	0	0	0	0	3	.179
Carlos Guillen	SS	4	1	2	0	0	0	0	.286
David Bell	3B	2	0	1	2	0	0	0	.250
b-Mark McLemore	PH	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	.156
Totals		35	3	9	3	2	2	16	-
a-lined to third for Buhner in the 8th.
Batting: 2B - Cameron (5, Pettitte). S - Bell. RBI - Bell 2 (6), Suzuki (3). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - E Martinez 1, Cameron 1, Boone 1. Team LOB - 8.
Fielding: E - Bell (1, ground ball).

YANKEES	POS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K	LOB	AVG.
Chuck Knoblauch	LF	4	0	1	1	0	0	3	.300
Derek Jeter	SS	3	0	0	2	1	0	1	.286
David Justice	DH	5	2	3	2	0	0	0	.258
Bernie Williams	CF	4	2	1	2	1	2	3	.229
Tino Martinez	1B	5	2	2	3	0	1	3	.184
Jorge Posada	C	4	1	2	0	1	2	0	.344
Paul O'Neill	RF	3	1	2	1	0	0	1	.261
Shane Spencer	PR-RF	2	1	0	0	0	1	1	.267
Scott Brosius	3B	4	1	1	0	0	1	3	.121
Alfonso Soriano	2B	2	2	1	0	1	1	2	.303
Totals		36	12	13	11	4	8	17	-
Batting: 2B - Justice (1, Sele); Brosius (2, Pineiro). HR - B Williams (3, 3rd inning off Sele 1 on, 2 out); Oneill (2, 4th inning off Sele 0 on, 1 out); T Martinez (2, 8th inning off Paniagua 2 on, 1 out). S - Knoblauch. SF - Jeter. RBI - Jeter 2 (3), Justice 2 (5), B Williams 2 (10), Oneill (3), Knoblauch (4), T Martinez 3 (5). 2-out RBI - Justice, B Williams 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - T Martinez 2, Knoblauch 2. Team LOB - 7.
Fielding: E - Soriano (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (T Martinez).

MARINERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	PIT	B-S	BF	HR	ERA
Aaron Sele (L, 0-3)	4	4	5	1	1	2	71	31-40	19	2	4.50
John Halama	1	3	3	3	0	0	18	7-11	6	0	5.40
Joel Pineiro	2	4	1	1	2	5	58	22-36	12	0	4.50
Jose Paniagua	1	2	3	3	1	1	25	8-17	6	1	17.47
Halama pitched to 3 batters in the 6th. Pitching: WP - Pineiro, Paniagua. HBP - Soriano (by Sele). Ground balls-fly balls: Sele 5-5; Halama 1-2; Pineiro 1-0; Paniagua 1-1.

YANKEES	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	PIT	B-S	BF	HR	ERA
Andy Pettitte (W, 2-1)	6.1	8	3	3	1	1	85	31-54	28	0	2.18
Ramiro Mendoza	1	0	0	0	0	1	9	3-6	3	0	0.93
Mike Stanton	0.2	0	0	0	1	0	7	4-3	3	0	4.76
Mariano Rivera	1	1	0	0	0	0	12	4-8	4	0	0.93
Pitching: Ground balls-fly balls: Pettitte 7-10; Mendoza 1-1; Stanton 0-2; Rivera 2-1.

Umpires: John Shulock (HP) Tim Welke (1B) Ed Montague (2B) Wally Bell (3B) Gary Cederstrom (LF) Charlie Reliford (RF)

Time: 3:18

Attendance: 56,370

Weather: 63 and cloudy. Wind: 5 mph, left to right.

BOX SCORE COURTESY OF SPORTSTICKER ENTERPRISES, L.P. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED