A spectator at Fenway Park in Boston took to the field and interrupted the game during last night's Red Sox-Yankees rubber match. With the game still tied 1-1 at the bottom of the 7th inning, Boston first baseman Eric Hinske was leading off for the Sox and was the first batter to face pitcher Joba Chamberlain, who relieved Roger Clemens. Hinske managed a double to left field after facing a full count at the......

Note to baseball stadium visitors: Not only do you have to beware of foul balls, you may need to watch out for drunks and others who may fall from the upper levels and injure you. Last week, a baseball fan from Seattle on an East Coast baseball pilgrimage (Yankee Stadium, the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, and Fenway Park) was injured at last weekend's Angels game, when a fan fell on top of him. According......

Pitcher Roger Clemens, who was coaxed out of retirement with a deal worth $28 million, was supposed to be the savior of the floundering Yankees. The Bronx team's pitching staff has been plagued with injuries and Joe Torre and Ron Guidry have been forced to call up ever-younger prospects from the organization's farm system. Fans were momentarily relieved and distracted from the Yankees' on-field woes during the 7th inning stretch of a game in early......

Yankees 9, Red Sox 5: Now the Yankees only trail their rivals in the American League East by 12 1/2 games. They rocked Tim Wakefield -- again -- and then held on for a 9-5 win in the first of three games at Fenway Park this weekend. A four-run sixth, including a three-run double by Jorge Posada, didn't hurt. Wakefield has been great against the American League this season but not against the Yankees, against......

Red Sox 7, Yankees 6: Alex Rodriguez had two home runs, the Yankees had a four-run lead and everything looked rosy. Then the Red Sox rallied for a five-run eighth and took Mariano Rivera to town. Joe Torre didn't help the cause with some questionable bullpen calls, though no one should have a problem with Rivera's pitching in the eighth inning. Torre might also want to consider not running for Jason Giambi for no reason.......

-Yankees 12, Red Sox 4, Yankees 14, Red Sox 11 : In a long day of baseball at Fenway Park -- including the longest nine-inning game ever -- the Yankees came away with a sweep of the doubleheader to start their five-game series in Boston. Each team started a pitcher Friday that has no business on Major League contender: Jason Johnson for the Red Sox (who was designated for assignment after the opener) and Sidney......

-Yankees 7, White Sox 6: Randy Johnson threw six no-hit innings, and the Yankees didn't blow a six-run lead to take the second game from Chicago. Bobby Abreu hit a homer, and, besides Kyle Farnsworth's allowing four runs, Johnny Damon's leaving the game with a groin injury was the Yankees' only bad news. Boston lost again to Kansas City, so the Yanks are up by three over the Red Sox. If they can carry that......

-Yankees 4, Braves 3: With his team trailing by a run, Derek Jeter grounded out to start the bottom of the 12th inning. But Jason Giambi walked and Alex Rodriguez hit a game-winning, two-run homer to let the Yankees escape with a series win over the stumbling Braves. Rodriguez's hit may silence critics who say his performance has declined in critical situations. For those who aren't sure clutch hitting exists, Rodriguez's homer could mean less,......

After dropping the season series to the Devil Rays in 2005, it was important for the Yankees to get off to a good start against them in 2006. Tampa didn’t field their usual lineup and Mike Mussina shut them down giving up one run over six plus innings in the Yankees 9-1 victory. Derek Jeter was the offensive star of the game, starting things off with a two-run homer while going 3-for-5 with 3 RBI’s.......

Now all the Yankees have to do is stay there. Their 2-1 win Wednesday combined with Boston's come-from-ahead 7-4 loss at Tampa Bay leaves New York half a game up on Boston with under two weeks to play. The Yankees' starting rotation may not look strong, but it's as strong as it's going to get. Randy Johnson pitched well enough so a Yankee fan didn't have to cringe when thinking of his contract. Mike Mussina......

The Boston Red Sox took advantage of their mastery of Yankee pitcher Jose Contreras last night for a 9-6 win in legendary Fenway Park. The victory gave the Sox a 2-1 series win but still left them 7.5 games behind the Yankees in the standings. The Yanks gave Contreras a 2-0 lead in the first but the beleaguered pitcher could not take advantage. "He wasn't good from the get go," Joe Torre said of the......

Ben McGrath, The New Yorker...