Peņa aching after long, adventurous night

NEW YORK -- When Wily Mo Peña pulled into first base on his ninth-inning single with a tight right quadriceps, it seemed to be the inevitable conclusion of a very long and frustrating night for the left fielder.

Though his second-inning error in the nightcap of yesterday's doubleheader was erased by the official scorer after the game -- because Peña had lost Jorge Posada's double in the lights -- the day's four strikeouts, one double-play grounder, and two misplays in the outfield were far harder to erase.

``It was feeling a little tight," Peña said after the Sox lost, 7-5, in the nightcap. ``After [Jason ] Giambi hit that ball, I had to run like hell trying to catch that ball. I felt it there, but I didn't say nothing because I wanted to play."

Peña was replaced in the ninth by pinch runner David Murphy when first base coach Bill Haselman realized the problem.

The Giambi hit, a double in the seventh, resulted in an error for Peña, when he lofted an off-target throw that allowed the designated hitter to reach third. Because of his positioning, Peña was far from the ball as it sailed.

The Posada ball ticked off his glove. Neither was an example of graceful fielding.

``They were hitting everything back to left field," Peña said. ``All the lefties were hitting there. It was a little difficult. I was just trying to get it."

Murphy had a pair of hits in Game 1, his first start in the Bronx.

``It was more of a jittery, special feeling," Murphy said. ``When I stepped out of the tunnel into the dugout, which was cool, it was almost surreal. Once I started getting going and loose, I was ready to go when I stepped in the box.

``It was just awesome. You see Yankee Stadium on TV so much, it's been around for so long. But it was just one of those things where you have to treat it like every other game."

Murphy led off the third inning with a single, then tied the game at 2-2 in the fourth with an RBI double to left. ``He swung the bat good," manager Terry Francona said. ``I'm sure he had a little bit of a heartbeat going, and I'm also sure it's good for him and his development to be a part of a game like that, an atmosphere like this, and then to get some hits to help us win is really good for his development. Besides the fact it helped us win."

The Sox named Kevin Jarvis the starter for tonight's second game. Kason Gabbard, who was under consideration, may not pitch again in 2006 because of tightness in his lat muscle . . . David Ortiz remained on the bench when he could have batted as the potential tying run in both the eighth and ninth innings. Francona said he was waiting for that one extra body on base. ``The whole ninth inning, eighth inning also, under any other circumstances, we would hit him to tie the game," Francona said. ``But with 18 innings of pitching, I thought we needed to try and win. Even if he hits a home run, we tie it, we're looking at more pitching. I just didn't think it was our best chance to win." . . . Derek Jeter extended his hitting streak to 25 games with a single up the middle in his second at-bat in last night's game, making it the longest hitting streak for a Yankee since Joe Gordon in 1942.

As expected, Ortiz was roundly booed as he stepped to the plate for his first at-bat, with one out and one on in the top of the first inning of the opener. That was followed, almost immediately, by a ``De-rek Jeter" chant. The reception was prompted by comments Ortiz made last week to the Globe regarding his belief that he -- or any of the big home run/RBI players -- should be first in line for the Most Valuable Player award, comments the New York media picked up as an insult to Jeter (whom Ortiz did mention by name). ``I've heard worse," Johnny Damon assessed. A few cheers erupted in parts of the park, though, when Ortiz promptly doubled down the right-field line. Ortiz did get a discreet slap on the back from Jeter as the Yankees shortstop left the field with Ortiz stranded on second base in the third inning, after Ortiz's second double of the game . . . Mariano Rivera threw 26 pitches in a bullpen session, the first time since Aug. 31 the Yankees closer worked off a mound. Rivera, out with a muscle strain in his right elbow, is scheduled to have another bullpen session Tuesday and may be back by Friday. ``Everything is good," Rivera said. ``I'm right where the plan is supposed to be."

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.