Veteran Mike Mussina rose to the challenge in game one of the ALCS. Curt Schilling did not. Mussina was perfect for six innings, which turned out to be enough to give his mates a major boost as the Yankees jumped out to leads of 6-0 and 8-0 before the 35-year old right-hander’s knuckle curve flattened out and became eminently hittable. The final score was 10-7. Schilling’s performance has to worry the Sox, who must win game two behind Pedro “Daddy” Martinez or risk falling behind the hated Yanks two games to none.
Much is made in the media of post-season experience. Too much, at times. But this Yankee club is filled with veterans who have been through it all before several times and one has to assume that familiarity with pressure rather than some sort of pinstripe mystique does make a difference. Mussina’s performance is one example. Mariano Rivera’s is a prime one. The star closer hurried back to New York via private jet from a family funeral in Panama and literally arrived just in the nick of time to close the door on a Red Sox rally. His ability to put aside obvious personal grief and focus on a game distinguishes Rivera as a professional athlete not to mention remarkable human being. His was more than a gutsy performance; it was a time-capsule instance of a veteran who can shut out the noise from 60,000 plus fans, the emotions of personal tragedy and the tension of the game situation and perform his job at an optimum level. No single image will reside in our collective memories, but what Rivera accomplished last night was, in its own right, as memorable as what Willie Mays did in 1954.
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