Edging Closer

They didn't need to win this game, but the Yankees were certainly pleased to take the opener of a four-game set in Boston. The Yankees trailed 4-0 after one inning, but they rallied several times before taking the lead on Alex Rodriguez's go-ahead home run in the ninth of new Red Sox closer Curt Schilling. The Yankees trail Boston by only a game and a half after sleep-walking through the season's first half. One day out of the All-Star Break, neither the Yankees nor the Red Sox resemble their 2004 squads.

Thursday's win was the good news for the Yankees on a day when they received horrendous news about their starter Chien-Ming Wang. The Taiwanese rookie was placed on the 15-day disabled list, and could be out for the rest of the season. Wang has been a pleasant surprise for the Yankees' erratic starting staff. The Yankees will miss him in their staff, if only because he is one of the only Yankee pitchers who doesn't give up a home run each start. The rest of the Boston series will be dicey for the Yankees, who have Tim Redding starting Friday. The uncertainty surrounding their pitching staff made yesterday's win against the all the more important.

Photo by AP/Winslow Townson via ESPN