Jim Souhan: No palace, Yankee Stadium is the home of greatness

NEW YORK -- Yankee Stadium is not quaint or cozy. It will never be described as a "lyric little bandbox," to quote John Updike on Fenway Park, or the "friendly confines," the nickname granted Wrigley Field.

The Stadium, as it is known in New York, is battleship gray on the outside and subdued blue within, and daunting and monolithic from any vantage point. It is not a great ballpark because of architecture, like Camden Yards, or its ability to capture and refract light, like Fenway on a summer evening. It is a great ballpark because great things happen here.

The Twins witnessed too much of this phenomenon this week. The Yankees won three of four games, and the Twins' only consolation was their proximity to two of baseball's greatest pitchers.

Roger Clemens threw the first pitch of the series, on Monday night, and won his 350th career game, becoming the first pitcher to attain that milestone in 44 years. Mariano Rivera threw the last pitch of the series, on Thursday afternoon, and recorded his 424th career save, tying him with former Met John Franco for third on the all-time list.

Clemens started it and Rivera finished it. The Twins are hardly the first to be victimized by that combination. "That's a lot of history, and a lot of saves," Twins center fielder Torii Hunter said of Rivera's milestone. "The guy is going to be a Hall of Famer, and he's still got the goods. He's throwing 94, 95, with a cutter and a sinker. Nobody likes to see him come in."

Rivera, 37, no longer dominates. He is 2-3 with a 3.94 ERA, and has allowed 32 hits in 32 innings. When he entered the game Thursday, with the Yankees holding a 7-5 lead, he produced his usual ratio of standing ovations and broken bats.

"That is pretty neat, when you go against those guys," said Twins catcher Joe Mauer. "Last year, it was pretty cool to go against Clemens and Randy Johnson, who have been great pitchers for a long time. But you still want to beat them, and that's not an easy thing to do."

The Twins gave themselves a chance on Thursday. Luis Rodriguez led off the ninth with a single to right. Jason Kubel, pinch-hitting for Nick Punto, nubbed a soft liner up the middle that spun away from Derek Jeter for an unlikely hit, sending Rodriguez to third.

Jason Tyner pinch-ran for Kubel and stold second as Jason Bartlett struck out on a high fastball, after lining the first pitch, foul, down the right field line. Mauer grounded to shortstop, scoring Rodriguez, and then Michael Cuddyer struck out.

"It's no fun, I'll tell you that," Bartlett said. "But you go out there knowing what he has. You can't give him a strike. He's that nasty. You've got to go up there ready to be aggressive, and that's what we did, and we almost got to him."

Jeter said Rivera came into the big leagues throwing a four-seam (or straight) fastball and then became a dominant closer because of his "cut" fastball, which rides in on lefthanded hitters. In a concession to age, Rivera has added a "two-seam," sinking fastball.

"That's how nasty he was -- he didn't even need that pitch before," Bartlett said.

"That's fun to watch," said Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson. "He throws an effortless 94, and he's just so under control of himself and the situation. He's so deliberate with his delivery, and then the ball is on you. He throws the cutter, and now he's got the sinker, so good luck."

Rivera was rushing out of the clubhouse Thursday afternoon when asked about Franco. "What happened to him?" Rivera asked.

Told he had tied Franco on the saves list, Rivera, friendly but hurried, credited his teammates and left.

"Mo, as far as I'm concerned, is the best," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "I've been spoiled here, knowing I can call on him."

Clemens threw the first pitch of the series, and Rivera the last, and even a lousy Yankees team proved it can make history at The Stadium.

Jim Souhan can be heard Sundays from 10 a.m.-noon on AM-1500 KSTP. • jsouhan@startribune.com