8:31: Johnny Damon really doesn’t look good with that hair and beard. And what was a really nice first batter by Brown turned into a seeing-eye single for Boston. I feel like they have had more success with two strikes than any team I can remember. I would love to hear a stat about how they have done with two strikes this series.

8:37: This is not the first inning I wanted. Couldn’t we have had a six pitch, three ground-out inning? I really think this could be one of those career-defining moments for Kevin Brown or Derek Lowe. Both are capable of brilliant games or total shellings.

8:39: YOU ARE OUT! YES! Matsui, Jeter and Posada make the first statement of the game!

8:40: David Ortiz makes the second statement of the game. It was very emphatic. Uh oh.

8:48: I really wanted Jeter to lead off with a homer. Or at least a single.

8:52: Wow… Yankees looked rather feeble in that first inning.

9:03: Brown does not look sharp. Vasquez is already warming up. This game really is going to be about who brings the magic.

9:07: Brown walks the bases loaded. Torre pulls the trigger. Brown is out. Vasquez is in. And the ooky feeling in the pit of my stomach just got worse.

9:09: My friend Eric’s bank account just grew again. He’s the bald guy that the customer climbs on in the new AOL commercial. It just showed for the first time tonight. Think he’s happy that this commercial has been on seemingly every inning of this series? He’s got more money to wager in poker, that’s for sure.

9:11: Johnny Damon hits a grand salami, and I’m taking a break from blogging. But before I go, I’ll just say that I think Torre may have outmanaged himself this series by not having enough faith in pitchers at various points in the series. (Tom Gordon being the best example.) This may have been another example of that.

10:42: My last comment — Jeter is the only Yankee who has come to play tonight. He is still hustling. No matter what, he is a fitting Yankee captain.