MLB

ON DECK: RED SOX AT YANKEES

Don’t be fooled by the five-game losing streak the Red Sox bring to Yankee Stadium tonight.

And don’t assume the 18 runs the Yankees scored last night mean they have permanently put their offensive woes behind them.

A series between the Yankees and Red Sox has a way of washing away whatever came before it, good or bad.

It will be comforting for Yankees fans to see Andy Pettitte (9-5, 3.98 ERA) deliver the first pitch of the four-game series tonight (7:05, YES, WCBS). Pettitte understands the dynamics of the rivalry as well as anyone, and certainly better than Jon Lester (6-3, 3.48 ERA), who will start for the Red Sox.

Left-handed Lester is having an excellent season — he threw a no-hitter May 19 versus the Royals — and Yankees hitters have not done well against even mediocre lefties. That puts the pressure squarely on Pettitte and his experience in big games, which tonight’s certainly is.

The Yankees (45-40) are in third place and the Red Sox (50-37) are second in the AL East behind the Rays (52-32), who just swept the Red Sox. The Orioles, shockingly, are a game behind the Yankees at 43-40 and are still alive in the wild-card race.

The rise of the Rays to the top of the division makes this Yankees-Red Sox series even more important for the Yankees because they cannot afford to split (or worse) with the Red Sox and fall even further behind.

For the first time in a while, the pitching matchups in a Yankees-Red Sox series favor the Yankees. Josh Beckett outclasses Darrell Rasner tomorrow, but Mike Mussina has the edge over Justin Masterson on Saturday, and so does Joba Chamberlain over Tim Wakefield on Sunday.

Lester and Pettitte are similar pitchers, and it should be interesting to watch the rookie try to match wits with the veteran, and the veteran try to keep pace with the rookie.

David Ortiz is on the disabled list, and it seems odd to discuss a Yankees-Red Sox series being for second place. But once Pettitte releases his first pitch, it will be classic Yankees-Red Sox.

It’s worth noting the Red Sox are 16-13 since Ortiz was placed on the DL, but when these two teams meet, all that matters is right now.