"This group is this group, they're a little nutsy," Francona said. "They are a little unique."
The Yankees, by contrast, were dispassionate, professional, almost detached. In their bitter history with the Red Sox, a history of brawls and pitches thrown at chins, they had always come out on top, and there was no reason to think they wouldn't this time, either. But for all of their cool self-assurance, the Yankees were actually subject to a mysterious jinx themselves -- a hitting slump. In Games 5 and 6, they ended 22 of 26 innings with a man stranded on base.
Danny Arelo, right, of Pawtucket, R.I., leaps up from his seat with the other fans at a Boston watering hole after the Red Sox scored in the first inning of their American League Championship Series win over the New York Yankees.
(Steven Senne -- AP)
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| _____ From The Post _____
• The Red Sox come back from three games down to shock the Yankees and advance to the World Series.
• Boston ends years of frustration by ousting the Yankees.
• Thomas Boswell: Red Sox fans have waited generations for this.
• It's been a wild swing of emotions for Boston fans.
_____ On Our Site _____
• Game 7 box score
• ALCS, NLCS Photos
• Highlights of the Sox-Yanks rivalry
• How Red Sox, Yankees compare
• Talk about the ALCS.
_____ Live Online _____
• The Post's Jorge Arangure Jr. on the rivalry. Read the transcript.
_____ Schedule, Results _____
• Game 1: Yankees 10, Red Sox 7
• Game 2: Yankees 3, Red Sox 1
• Game 3: Yankees 19, Red Sox 8
• Game 4: Red Sox 6, Yanks 4 (12)
• Game 5: Red Sox 5, Yanks 4 (14)
• Game 6: Red Sox 4, Yankees 2
• Game 7: Red Sox 10, Yankees 3
• Red Sox win series, 4-3
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Before the series began, Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling said he couldn't imagine anything sweeter than "to shut up 55,000 New Yorkers." On Tuesday night, Schilling indeed silenced the New Yorkers when he pitched seven heroic innings on a bad ankle that will require tendon surgery in the offseason. With blood seeping into his sock from sutures, Schilling allowed only four hits and no walks. He shut up the crowd and shut down the Yankees in aiding his team to a 4-2 victory, forcing this unprecedented Game 7.
New Yorkers bit their nails all day. Even the tabloid headlines had an air of anxiety. "Seven Help Us!" the New York Daily News exclaimed. The New York Post had a picture of Babe Ruth with a caption that said, "Put Me In."
On the eve of the game, outside Yankee Stadium, throngs milled around in team jerseys, hundreds of Jeters, Rodriguezes and Matsuis. They stood in line for Italian sausages and held up signs with belligerent legends. "You Don't Come in OUR HOUSE and push us around!" read one. Another read, "If History Teaches Us Anything, They Lose."
A lone man moved through the crowd wearing a rare collectible jersey. He didn't need a sign. The lettering on the back of the jersey spoke for itself:
RUTH
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But Ruth wasn't in the house. Only minutes into the action, the Red Sox declared what kind of game it was going to be. First, Damon singled and then stole second. When Red Sox left fielder Manny Ramirez smacked a single, Damon raced around third base and, maniacally intent on scoring, slid into home plate. He was tagged out on a stunning relay from left fielder Hideki Matsui to shortstop Derek Jeter to home.
But while the enormous roar of approval still hung into the air, David Ortiz stepped the plate. On the first pitch from Brown, Ortiz homered. As the ball sailed into the right field stands, the roar died. Ramirez crossed the plate, and then came Ortiz, for a 2-0 lead. Together, Ortiz and Ramirez pointed their fingers to the sky.
Presumably, not at Babe Ruth.
"Whoever came up with the idea of 'Keep the Faith,' I think those are the best words ever created," Ortiz said.
