Yankees Pound Red Sox, 22-1

Now these looked more like the real New York Yankees--from the days of Murderers’ Row, that is.

The struggling two-time World Series champions handed the Boston Red Sox their most-lopsided home loss ever, hitting five home runs Monday night in a 22-1 romp.

“You just can’t figure this game,” Yankee Manager Joe Torre said. “You never want to beat somebody up like that, but you can’t control it.”

Shane Spencer hit a three-run shot in a nine-run eighth inning and Scott Brosius added a three-run drive in a seven-run ninth.

“It was embarrassing. It doesn’t matter if it’s the hometown Little League,” Boston catcher Jason Varitek said. “It’s embarrassing for every one of us.”

It was the Yankees’ highest-scoring game since Aug. 12, 1953, when they beat the Washington Senators by the same 22-1 margin. Only once have the Yankees scored more runs in a game--on May 24, 1936, when they beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 25-2.

Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and Felix Jose also homered as the Yankees bounced back in a big way from a humiliating four-game sweep at home by the Chicago White Sox.

“You’re not going to see us get 22 runs very often, just like you probably won’t see Boston give up 22 runs again,” Jeter said.

It was the highest-scoring game against the Red Sox since Chicago beat them, 22-13, on May 31, 1970. Boston’s worst loss was 27-3 at Cleveland on July 7, 1923.

“Not a lot to say,” Red Sox Manager Jimy Williams said. “You can’t put this game under a microscope.”

Ramiro Mendoza restored a sense of calm to the Yankees by pitching seven sharp innings. A day earlier, the White Sox scored nine times in the opening inning on their way to a 17-4 rout, part of a weekend in which they outscored New York 42-17.

“I was just trying to do my job,” he said through an interpreter.

The Yankees began a season-long 13-game trip by moving half a game ahead of Boston in the American League East. More than the standings, however, Torre hoped for a neatly played game.

Owner George Steinbrenner met with team executives during the day at the spring-training complex in Tampa, Fla., and was expected in Boston later in this four-game series.

Mendoza (6-3) shut down the Red Sox until the seventh, yielding six hits and walking none. It was his first start since May 30, having been scratched once because of a stiff right shoulder.