Time definitely not on Yankees' side

NEW YORK -- Last October, they were denied what they consider their rightful place in the World Series by the greatest comeback/collapse in the history of the game.

Now, with just 21 games left on the schedule, the Yankees are facing the real possibility of missing out on the postseason altogether for the first time in a decade.

''This is our playoffs," manager Joe Torre said after the Red Sox and Curt Schilling stuffed the Bombers, 9-2, setting the Yankees four games back in the AL East race, with their deficit in the wild-card race at 1 1/2 games after the Indians beat the Twins last night. ''We need to fight our way to the postseason."

The Yankees have won the division seven straight seasons. To do so again would have been made more plausible by a sweep this weekend. Instead, with Shawn Chacon taken deep twice in the first four innings by Manny Ramirez and John Olerud, and Hideki Matsui dropping a fly ball and reliever Felix Rodriguez botching an easy double play in Boston's six-run fourth, the Yankees will need much more than Randy Johnson's Sunday best to overtake the Sox.

''A bad day to have a bad day," said Chacon, who had flamed out with the Colorado Rockies but until yesterday had joined Aaron Small as the implausible saviors of the Yankees' starting rotation.

Schilling, meanwhile, enjoyed what was easily his finest day, shutting down a Yankee lineup missing Gary Sheffield (thigh) and Jorge Posada (shoulder, the result of the previous night's collision with Jason Varitek) on one hit through the first six innings, Jason Giambi's 28th home run with the bases empty in the fourth.

The Yanks had two on and two out in the seventh when Schilling struck out Posada's stand-in, John Flaherty, to end the inning, and with a run in, two on, and nobody out in the eighth, set down the heart of the Yankees' lineup -- Giambi, Alex Rodriguez, and Matsui.

Eleven months after the bloody sock epic on this very greensward, Schilling for the first time offered evidence that he might be able to reinforce his standing as one of this generation's greatest big-game pitchers, and one of the best October pitchers of all-time.

''I thought he had good life all game," Flaherty said. ''We'd heard some stuff. You just watch on TV and pay attention. But whenever you face him, you're going to have your hands full. He had good stuff today."

Torre just wished the Yankees had been able to push Schilling a little harder, which was out of the question once the Sox opened an 8-0 advantage. Asked if Schilling had exceeded the picture presented by the Yanks' advance scout team, Torre said: ''That's tough to read only because of the big lead he had. We really didn't make him work hard enough.

''But no, his numbers were about the same. We were told his velocity and all that stuff. You know what he has, you know that his experience above anything else is the best thing he has going for him. Whether he throws 97 or 92, he knows how to pitch and he knows how to compete.

''But when you allow him to go out there and not make him work hard, then it makes it tougher on us. That's what we always said when we played Pedro [Martinez]. You've got to have somebody to pitch with him. And it's pretty much the same with [Schilling]."

Here's the task facing the Yankees, who tomorrow must go to Florida to meet the Devil Rays, who have perfected the spoiler role against the Bombers, beating them in 11 of 16 meetings, including two of three in the Bronx last week. If Boston plays a game over .500 the rest of the way (11-10), the Yankees would have to go 15-6 just to force a tie.

''We're running out of games, no question," Torre said. ''But especially with Randy pitching, and playing at home, we certainly have to feel that [today's] game is our game to lose. But you have to go out and win it. Nobody's going to give it to you.

''They're a very, very tough team.

''We're a little beat up, they're a little beat up, but it comes down to pitching."

Sheffield's absence looms large, and Torre said he probably won't be able to do anything but pinch hit this afternoon. When the Yanks took three of four from the Sox back in July, Sheffield hit as if he were intent on knocking down the Monster singlehandedly, collecting eight hits in 16 at-bats, including four doubles and two home runs. His replacement, Matt Lawton, recently acquired from the Cubs (via Pittsburgh), is hitless in seven at-bats this weekend and has not gotten the ball out of the infield. And he is no bargain defensively, either, which is why he has become the focal point of New York fan frustration.

Johnson? He's 3-0 vs. the Sox this season, though hardly the Big Unit of yore, as a 4.62 ERA would attest. He's shown flashes lately of his dominant self, but in his last start, against the Devil Rays, he had a 3-0 lead and couldn't hold it.

''We've been playing the last month like every game is huge," said Flaherty, who has caught Johnson all season. ''Obviously, losing two out of three to Tampa Bay hurt. Playing a good ballgame [Friday] night but not following up is disappointing, too, but with Randy on the mound, we feel we have a good chance to win. Hopefully, we'll play better defense and get good hitting, though [Tim] Wakefield has been tough on us."

A Sox win this afternoon, and let the countdown begin.