SEATTLE -- Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams returned to the team Friday after attending his father's funeral in Puerto Rico and said he's still miles away mentally.

	Williams

"I'll play. That's about all I can expect," said Williams, who arrived late Thursday in Seattle, where the Yankees are playing a three-game series against the Mariners.

Williams wound up hitting a single in the fourth inning for his lone hit as the Yankees pounded 19 hits in a 14-10 victory Friday night.

Bernabe Williams Sr. died Sunday in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, of a heart attack. He was 73.

Bernie Williams left New York after hearing of the heart attack, but arrived in Puerto Rico about an hour after his father's death. The funeral was Wednesday.

Williams missed 10 games last month to visit his father, who had pulmonary fibrosis.

"We all thought he was doing better," Williams said. "All of a sudden there was a turn of events and he got worse. He was just suffering. ... It's one of those things you prepare (for), but actually you're never ready for it when it happens. It comes as sort of a shock."

Williams said he was fortunate that the Yankees' front office allowed him to visit his father in April, when they had a long talk. His father couldn't say much because he was on a respirator, but they were able to write back and forth.

The conversation included the son telling the father how proud he was of him -- because he "never complained and took it like a man. That was motivation for us."

"He literally dedicated his life to us, his family," Williams said. "I certainly wouldn't be here if it were not for him and the time he spent with us."

His mother, 69-year-old Rufina, is in good health, Williams said. She has diabetes.

Williams, the Yankees' starting center fielder, has hit just .221 with three homers and 14 RBI this season.

It could take some time before his mind is completely back on baseball, he said.

"It's just going to be a day-by-day thing for me," Williams said. "Things are going to feel out of place for the next ... for a while. I know he wanted me to do my best. I'm going to try to concentrate and stay focused and do my best here."

Yankees manager Joe Torre said it's hard to know how Williams will perform in his first several games back because "he's so unpredictable."

"He swung the bat pretty good in" batting practice, Torre said before Friday's game against the Mariners. "A certain part of you would want to occupy your mind while you go through this."