New York places Red Sox in familiar territory

BOSTON — A Boston newspaper has a display ad on the concourse wall not far from the visitors’ clubhouse that reads: “Covering the Red Sox for 100 years has taught us one thing — this could be the year.”

It won’t be.

These Red Sox were put together to erase 86 years of frustration, but are one game from elimination after being blown out 19-8 by the Yankees Saturday night in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series at Fenway Park.

The Yankees are 27 outs from their 40th World Series appearance after taking a 3-0 series lead.

Who they play in the Fall Classic doesn’t matter to them at this point. They came to Boston with typical tunnel vision.

“I don’t care,” Derek Jeter said. “As long as we get there, it means we’re in the World Series. I can’t worry about who we’re going to play in the next round. We have to get past Boston first.”

No team has rebounded after losing the first three games; 12 of 61 teams have rallied after losing the first two games to win a seven-game series.

“There’s a big difference,” Yankees manager Joe Torre said between 3-0 and 2-1. “You want to put yourself in a very powerful position rather than have a one-game cushion.”

Orlando Hernandez, who saved the Yankees’ rotation at midseason when he was activated from the disabled list after Mike Mussina and Kevin Brown were down and won his first eight decisions, will make his first start of the postseason tonight with the chance to give his team a week off before the start of the World Series.

The Yankees won the first two games behind the brilliant pitching of Mussina and Jon Lieber, but won the third behind a record-setting offensive onslaught highlighted by a home-run barrage from Hideki Matsui — who had two homers and five runs batted in — Alex Rodriguez and Gary Sheffield.

Their 19 runs set a League Championship Series record. They tied a postseason record with eight doubles. Rodriguez set an LCS record with five runs scored.

Another factor was Javier Vazquez, who spoke admirably of Mussina’s relief effort last year in Game 7, and vowed, “I will be ready if they need me out of the bullpen.”

Vazquez relieved Brown to start the third, gave up two runs, but settled down to hold down the Red Sox until the seventh.