Some initiation for the newest members of the Red Sox, in the only meeting with the Yankees this spring, an affair that ended 5-4, Yankees, before a satisfied 10,334 at Legends Field.
''Actually," Sox manager Terry Francona said, when asked what he made of the parade of hit batsmen, ''I wasn't too pleased about it. Derek got hit with a split. We knew it, they knew it."
Sturtze, approached by reporters, said, ''I don't care about what they get upset about. They can get upset about whatever. I was trying to come in with a fastball . . . and it just got away. I'm struggling with my location and just missed."
Diplomatic Yankees manager Joe Torre shook his head and said, ''We're still trying to get in shape . . . spring training."
The good news: No one was injured. Snow, hit with the slowest of the three pitches, said, ''Hit me on the triceps. I'm fine." Lowell said he got it ''on my fat. Right on my [rear]. I don't make anything of it. He's just protecting Jeter. They thought we hit him. Not a big deal. Sorry I don't have anything juicy for you."
Still, it was a juicy night, a nice table setter for the May 1 visit the Yankees make to Fenway in what will be Johnny Damon's initial return as a Yankee. Damon hit leadoff last night and was followed in an insanely thick lineup by Jeter, Hideki Matsui, Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, and Jason Giambi.
''It's nice," Torre said, when asked before the game about Damon's presence atop that lineup against the Sox. ''Nice, and strange."
It was undeniably odd, to see Damon leading off and going 1 for 4, grounding out, singling, and striking out twice -- looking at a Jonathan Papelbon slider and swinging at a diving Mike Timlin pitch with two men in scoring position and two outs in the sixth inning of a END tie game.
