Pitching, homers power Bosox

Boston also got a reversed call from an umpire that resulted in a homer to beat New York, 5-2.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Tim Wakefield's knuckleball fluttered by the New York Yankees, and home runs by David Ortiz, Todd Walker and Manny Ramirez soared over their heads.
Pitching and power led the Boston Red Sox to a 5-2 victory in the opener of the AL championship series Wednesday night, putting aside all that talk of curses and evil empires.
Instead, the focus was on Wakefield's dancing deliveries and the umpires -- New York's Mike Mussina thought he was being squeezed by Tim McClelland, who also reversed a call and awarded Walker a disputed home run.
"I think we're still running on adrenaline now," said Wakefield, thinking back on a five-day span that had seen Boston overcome a 2-0 first-round deficit to beat Oakland, make a pair of cross-country flights and open the ALCS with a big win against its dominating and domineering rival.
Off-kilter from start
The Yankees were off-kilter from the start -- even the bald eagle Challenger went off course, causing manager Joe Torre to duck as the bird circled the infield during the pre-game ceremonies.
Wakefield then befuddled the batters with his knuckleball, taking a five-run lead into the seventh before he got wild. Boston's beleaguered bullpen completed the three-hitter.
"He had a good one," the Yankees' Derek Jeter said. "Nobody knew where it was going."
Wakefield retired the first four batters then allowed one-out singles to Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui in the second. But Wakefield got the next two outs to end the inning and start a stretch of retiring 14 straight batters.
In the seventh, he walked the first two hitters, Jason Giambi and Bernie Williams. With two lefties coming up, he was replaced by left-hander Alan Embree after striking out two and walking two.
A long top of the seventh and a long seventh-inning stretch may have affected Wakefield.
"He had a lot of down time," catcher Doug Mirabelli said. "He got stiff."
Threat ended
Embree allowed a double to Posada that scored Giambi, and a sacrifice fly to Matsui that brought home Williams, making it 5-2. The threat ended when Aaron Boone and Nick Johnson both flied to center.
Ortiz, who had been 0-for-20 against Mussina, started Boston's offense with a two-run upper-deck homer in the fourth. Walker and Ramirez added solo shots in the fifth.
"When they get a good pitch, they hit it hard," Mussina said. "They have a lot of guys who hit .320."
Wakefield retired 14 straight batters starting in the second. After the game, he was ready to crash.
"I told all my friends don't call me because I'm going to be sleeping in," he said.
The Red Sox rapped out 13 hits, including four by Ramirez, who grew up close to Yankee Stadium. And the Red Sox did it on the 47th anniversary of one of the most famous games in the ballpark's history -- Don Larsen's perfect game against Brooklyn in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series.
Umpire overruled
Walker's homer was one of those wacky plays that seem to occur at Yankee Stadium every October. While right-field umpire Angel Hernandez signaled the drive was foul, he was immediately overruled by McClelland -- also behind the plate 20 years ago when he took a home run away from George Brett, a call later reversed by AL president Lee MacPhail.
Replays appeared to show it hit the pole. Torre came out to speak to the umps but couldn't change their minds, and Walker had his fourth postseason homer -- nearly one-third of his regular-season total of 13.
"I don't think I can explain it," Walker said, "and I don't think I want to."
Kevin Millar added an RBI single off Jeff Nelson in the seventh, New York scored twice in the bottom half on Jorge Posada's RBI double and Hideki Matsui's sacrifice fly off Alan Embree. Mike Timlin and Scott Williamson finished, with Williamson getting the save.
Jeter already was looking forward to Thursday.
"It's a short series and we have to come back out here tomorrow and get back in it," he said.
BOSTONNEW YORK
abrhbiabrhbi
TWalkr 2b5121ASrano 2b4000
DJcksn 2b0000Jeter ss4000
Mueller 3b5010JaGbi dh3100
Grcprr ss5000BWllms cf3100
MRmrz lf5341Posada c4021
DOrtiz dh3112Matsui lf2011
Millar 1b5021ABoone 3b3000
Nixon rf3020NJhnsn 1b3000
Mrbelli c4010JRivra rf2000
Kapler cf4000Sierra rf1000
Totals395135Totals29232
Boston000220100--5
New York000000200--2
LOB--Boston 10, New York 3. 2B--Posada (1). HR--TWalker (1), MRamirez (1), DOrtiz (1). CS--DJackson (1). SF--Matsui.
IPHRERBBSO
Boston
Wakefield W,1-0622222
Embree110000
Timlin100001
Williamson S,1100002
New York
Mussina L,0-15 2-384424
Heredia2-300000
Nelson1-321100
GWhite1 1-320000
Contreras110003
Wakefield pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. HBP--by Nelson (DOrtiz). WP--Contreras. Umpires--Home, Tim McClelland; First, Terry Craft; Second, Alfonso Marquez; Third, Derryl Cousins; Left, Joe West; Right, Angel Hernandez. T--3:20. A--56,281.
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