Steinbrenner wins 7th title as Yankees owner

By JAY COHEN,

NEW YORK (AP) Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees said throughout the postseason they wanted to win another title for George Steinbrenner.

The frail owner was in Tampa, Florida when New York beat Philadelphia 7-3 on Wednesday night to win the World Series, but there's no doubt the outcome brought a smile to his face.

"He's the reason we're here," Jeter said. "First of all, we wouldn't be in this stadium if it wasn't for him. We wouldn't have this group together if it wasn't for him. This is a special moment. We all tried to win it for him. He deserves it."

It was the 79-year-old Steinbrenner's seventh crown since he bought the team in 1973 and first since turning over the day-to-day operation of the team to his son, Hal, last November.

"Dad, I know you're at home watching with mom," Hal Steinbrenner said after he accepted the championship trophy. "This one is for you."

George Steinbrenner has made few public appearances since his health deteriorated in recent years. He attended the first two games against the Phillies, returning to the new Yankee Stadium for the first time since opening day.

Hal and his brother Hank talked to their father during the clinching game.

"He's happy now," Hank Steinbrenner said. "Like I said, he was just, I say teary-eyed, emotional, very emotional."

Long after the players filed off the field, there was a picture of the trophy and the message "BOSS, THIS IS FOR YOU" displayed on the massive videoboard in center.

"He built this ballpark for us," Game 6 winner Andy Pettitte said. "He put this team together. He set a standard for us to uphold. These guys embraced it, and that makes it even sweeter to accomplish what we did."

RECORDS: Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira was hit by a pitch in the third inning Wednesday, tying two World Series records.

Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez each were plunked three times against the Phillies, joining Pittsburgh's Max Carey in 1925 as the only players to be hit three times in a single Series.

The 2009 Yankees, 1909 Pirates and 2001 Diamondbacks are the only clubs with six HBPs as a team in a Series.

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE: Ryan Howard broke out of his World Series slump, but it wasn't enough for the Phillies to force a Game 7.

Howard hit an opposite-field, two-run homer to left off Andy Pettitte in the sixth inning to cut New York's lead to 7-3, but that was it for the Philadelphia offense. The big first baseman batted just .174 (4 for 23) against the Yankees with a Series-record 13 strikeouts.

"I feel cool. The only thing I can do now is go home and relax and come back for spring training," Howard said. "That's just the game. Sometimes you got it. Sometimes, it's not."

Howard, who was MVP of the Phillies' NL championship series victory over Los Angeles, finished with 17 RBIs in the postseason, tying the National League record set by San Francisco's Rich Aurilia in 2002 and equaled by Florida's Ivan Rodriguez in 2003.

ONE SPECIAL GUEST: Injured Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher wishes he was with his team preparing to face the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL on Sunday, but he wouldn't turn down a World Series.

Urlacher was a guest of Yankees manager Joe Girardi for Game 6. The two got to know each other when Girardi played for the Cubs.

"I just like to watch sports," said Urlacher, who dislocated his right wrist in the Bears' season opener at Green Bay on Sept. 13 and is out for the season. "They're great athletes, and I'm excited to see it up close like this."

Urlacher played baseball growing up - "Everything but right field," he said with a grin - and wasn't worried about catching any flack from Jets or Giants fans while in New York. He also paid tribute to his buddy Girardi, who led the Yankees to their 27th World Series title.

"He's very even-keeled. He doesn't really get too high or too low," he said before the Yankees beat the Phillies 7-3 in the final game of the year.

FIRST FAN: Pennsylvania's first fan, Gov. Ed Rendell, took some time away from helping find a resolution to the Philadelphia transit strike to attend Game 6.

Rendell was visiting the new Yankee Stadium for the first time since it opened this year. He was impressed with the $1.5 billion palace but had hoped it would more closely resemble the ballpark he remembered from growing up in New York City.

"It's nice," he said. "I thought it was a more accurate of a recreation of the old stadium. It really isn't, particularly with that monster video board, but it's still a very nice stadium."

The second-term Democrat and former mayor of Philadelphia was hoping the Phillies would rally to win their second consecutive World Series title, but the Yankees won 7-3 to clinch the crown.

AP Sports Writer Howie Rumberg contributed to this report.

Updated November 5, 2009