Yankees ace couldn't come up big

In most circumstances, he would be The Show. At 6 feet 10 inches, Randy Johnson with his five Cy Young Awards is enough to merit billing as the main act when he takes the mound.

But when the Red Sox and Yankees are playing -- in April or October -- and an evening of controversial calls by the umpire, an incident with a fan, and assorted other showstopping acts are part of the scene, Johnson was overshadowed in the Yankees' 8-5 loss to the Red Sox last night at Fenway Park.

Johnson allowed five hits in seven innings, but three were home runs, leading to five runs and a no-decision for the Big Unit.

And that was not good enough for Johnson, who is three starts into his Yankee career and has yet to hit his stride.

"Any day I pitch, I expect to win," said Johnson, who is 1-0 in four starts with a 4.74 ERA.

Normally, five runs would be enough for Johnson. "I'll take five runs any time," said Yankees manager Joe Torre. "And with Randy, you may not need that many. He didn't give up many hits. But, unfortunately, the hits were home runs. It's one of those things. I thought he had good stuff, but again he made pitches, not where he wanted them, and they cost him dearly."

Johnson said some of the pitches the Red Sox plunked into the Monster seats were bad, but some weren't.

"I hung a slider to [Edgar] Renteria," said Johnson, talking about the two-run homer he gave up to Red Sox shortstop in the third inning that gave the Sox a 4-1 lead. "The other two weren't that bad." The other two were Jay Payton's two-run homer to center in the second and Jason Varitek's solo blast to left in the fourth.

The Red Sox were grateful with anything they could get against Johnson, who had worked six innings and allowed five hits and one run in a 9-2 win over Boston on Opening Night in Yankee Stadium two weeks ago.

"He's one of the best," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona, who was ejected in the fourth. "We certainly didn't knock him around, but we worked him."

Johnson said he is eager for his next start after two no-decisions.

"The last two games I pitched, it took me a while to get going," said Johnson, who as a Diamondback gave up three home runs in a start for the first time since Aug. 15, 2003, when he was pinned with a 10-4 loss to the Atlanta Braves. In 35 starts last season with the Diamondbacks, he gave up two home runs in a game only once.

As for the added hype to a Yankee-Red Sox series, Johnson said simply being with the Yankees creates extra buzz. "Any time the Yankees play anywhere it's big news," said Johnson, who was still fuming over an 8-5 win over the Orioles last Saturday at Yankee Stadium in which he walked away with a no-decision after six innings, eight hits, and four earned runs.

For the 41-year-old Johnson, who has 247 career wins in 16-plus seasons, three 20-win seasons, and more strikeouts than any active pitcher other than Roger Clemens, a pitching line that reads 7 innings, 5 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks, 9 Ks, and 3 HRs simply is not good enough.