NEW YORK -- When the Yankees signed Roger Clemens for his latest reunion tour, the Boston Red Sox were quick to dismiss the significance of the move. "We don't need him,"said Curt Schilling, their ever-opinionated ace. The Red Sox could well need Clemens at some point, but not to beat the Yankees.
No. 5 starter Julian Tavarez handles that job just fine. If the Yankees are to gain any ground on the Red Sox this week, it will be only a small step instead of a giant leap.
Tavarez pitched effectively into the sixth inning Tuesday night as the Red Sox beat the Yankees 7-3 before a sellout crowd of 54,739 at the Stadium. Now 10 games back again, the Yankees will try and win the series tonight with Andy Pettitte facing Schilling. The Yankees are 2-6 against their rivals.
Tavarez allowed two runs on only three hits in 5 2/3 innings. He is 2-0 with a 4.22 ERA in two starts against the Yankees this season.
In his other six starts, Tavarez is 1-4 with a 5.63 ERA. The weak link of the Boston staff, Tavarez has been strong when it matters.
The Yankees didn't get their first hit until the fourth inning when Hideki Matsui singled with one out. He moved to third on a single by Jorge Posada and scored on a wild pitch. As several relievers warmed up, Tavarez took a 4-1 lead into the fifth inning.
A double by Robinson Cano preceded walks by Doug Mientkiewicz and Johnny Damon as the Yankees loaded the bases with one out. Boston manager Terry Francona stuck with Tavarez and it paid off. Derek Jeter grounded into a force play to drive in a run.
But with a chance to bring the Yankees closer, Hideki Matsui grounded to shortstop. Julio Lugo stepped on second to force Jeter and end the inning. The Yankees talked confidently before the game about having revived their offense.
They had scored 19 runs in the previous three games and collected 17 extra-base hits, eight of them home runs. "I think you're going to see us get going now," Johnny Damon said. "Everything is starting to click.
" Mike Mussina, a pitcher with a much loftier reputation when compared to Tavarez, looked more like the last man in the rotation. He gave up seven runs on 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Mussina (2-3) spent 21 days on the disabled list with a hamstring strain earlier this season but looked sharp when he returned.
In two starts against the Texas Rangers, he allowed only three runs in 11 innings. Mussina won both games and impressed manager Joe Torre with his velocity, which reached 92 mph, and command. In the two starts since, Mussina has been dreadful, allowing 12 runs on 18 hits over 12 innings.
The Yankees are 2-4 in games he has started this season. Mussina excited the crowd at the start of the game when he struck out Julio Lugo. But Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz had sharp singles before Manny Ramirez homered deep into the stands in left field.
It was the seventh home run of the season for Ramirez, his third against the Yankees. He has 51 career home runs against the Yankees. Only Hall of Famers Jimmie Foxx (70), Ted Williams (62), Hank Greenberg (53) and Carl Yastrzemski (52) have more.
Mike Lowell gave the Red Sox a 4-0 lead with a home run to left in the fourth inning. Boston tacked on three more in the seventh, all with two outs. Lugo and Youkilis had RBI singles off Mussina and Ortiz a run-scoring single off Mike Myers.
The Yankees loaded the bases with one out against Hideki Okajima in the eighth inning. But they managed only one run as Jorge Posada and Bobby Abreu grounded into outs.
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