Damon streaks along, but is stopped at finish

When Johnny Damon walked to the plate in the eighth inning, there was more on the line than the outcome of the game, which the Sox trailed, 5-1. Damon's 28-game hitting streak also was in a precarious spot.

His first three trips -- strikeouts in the first and third innings and a soft liner to second in the fifth -- were quite forgettable. But when he ripped a Tanyon Sturtze pitch to the wall in front of the Red Sox bullpen, the fans, and maybe even Damon, held their breath.

Yankees right fielder Gary Sheffield gave chase but couldn't get there in time. The ball, just shy of a home run, grazed the fence as Sheffield scrambled to recover, and Damon wound up at second with a double. That's where he stayed, though, as Edgar Renteria and David Ortiz both popped out against reliever Tom Gordon to end the inning.

Extending the streak to 29 offered little consolation to Damon.

''Right there, obviously you just want to get on base and score a run, and get closer in the ballgame," he said. ''I actually haven't felt like I've been right during the whole [streak]. I'm just getting lucky, getting the hits that I need to try to contribute more."

Still, Damon has fashioned the fourth-longest hitting streak in club history. And, for awhile, it seemed that would be the only excitement during a dismal night at the Fens.

That was until Manny Ramirez's leadoff homer in the ninth made it 5-2, and the fans got ready for a rally. Their hopes would soon fizzle, though, in the hands of Damon.

With the score 5-3, and runners on second and third with two out, Damon couldn't get it done. He went for Mariano Rivera's first pitch, a cutter, and tapped a weak grounder to second baseman Robinson Cano to end the game.

''I was looking for that cutter again," Damon said. ''I wish I could have hit it harder, get it through that hole. In that situation, you can never think home run off Mariano. I'm trying to hit the ball to right field because he's definitely pitching in. I just didn't get the job done."

Manager Terry Francona said before the game that Damon hasn't let the streak deter from his main mission -- winning games.

''What is more impressive about it than anything is Johnny does it in a way that goes with the game," Francona said. ''This streak has been done with respect to the way the game is played."

Paul Molitor, who had a 39-game hitting streak with the Brewers in 1987, knows what Damon is going through.

''You get a guy who's a leadoff guy, who's a contact hitter and sprays the ball, and he can run," Molitor said. ''[Guys like that] get the extra at-bat at the top of the order more times than not. To me, Johnny is a better player now than he's ever been. And he's been pretty darn good along the way. He just seems to keep improving. He's a lot stronger, he's plugged up some holes at the plate. He used to be a little vulnerable inside."

Francona also said he thinks Damon, who is hitting .342 with 26 doubles, 5 triples, and 4 home runs, is finally getting over a sore shoulder that has plagued him all season.

''I think he's starting to feel a little better. I hope he is starting to turn that corner now and can start becoming more aggressive with his swings," Francona said. ''He was finding ways to get hits, but he wasn't able to make adjustments to pitches like he normally can. That was probably the biggest thing I saw [when his shoulder was really hurting]."