Hamilton picked as MVP of ALCS

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Josh Hamilton had spooked the New York Yankees so much by Game 6, they threw the ball to the backstop when trying to issue him an intentional walk.

That's the kind of impact an MVP makes.

Hamilton was picked as the Most Valuable Player of the AL championship series Friday night after the Texas Rangers beat the Yankees 6-1.

Hamilton hit four home runs and had seven RBIs. He batted .350 (7 for 20) with eight walks and scored six runs, leading the Texas Rangers to their first World Series appearance.

"I love my teammates. I love them so much. Any of these guys could have gotten this," Hamilton said. "I don't want to talk about myself. I want to talk about them. We are here as a group. This group is here because they don't know how to fail."

The tattooed slugger whose career was derailed early by alcohol and drug abuse was doused on the field by his teammates with ginger ale after Alex Rodriguez struck out to end it.

Hamilton pumped both fists in center field and raced in for the celebration by the mound.

"I'll be honest, in the ninth A-Rod was up and I'm tearing up out there, holding back in case he hit the ball to me," he said. "I'm so excited, so blessed."

Hamilton hit a three-run homer in his first at-bat in Game 1 and just kept hurting the Yankees - expect when he was intentionally walked. New York gave him an intentional pass an ALCS-record five times, three on Friday night.

The No. 1 pick overall in the 1999 draft by Tampa Bay, Hamilton didn't make his big league debut until 2007, with Cincinnati. He is a leading regular-season MVP candidate after hitting .359 with 32 homers and 100 RBIs even though he missed 24 games in September with broken ribs.

Hamilton returned Oct. 1, and had only 11 at-bats of preparation for the postseason. And he hit .111 (2 for 18) with one RBI - a run-scoring groundout - in the division series against the Rays. There were fears the sore ribs had sapped the pop in his bat.

But the fuss over the injury is long forgotten.

After being walked four times in Game 2 in Texas, Hamilton hit a two-run shot just over the short porch in right field in Game 3 off Andy Pettitte - a game that was 2-0 until Texas broke it open in the ninth. Hamilton homered twice more in Game 4.

Hamilton was the star of the All-Star Home Run Derby in 2008 at old Yankee Stadium. His home runs in the last week-plus brought him to a whole new level.