As the 2001 calendar flipped over to September, the Yankees were riding high in the standings. They entered Fenway Park with a six-game lead over their bitter rivals, and a successful series in Boston would take them ever closer to sealing their fourth-straight division title.
Having won the first two games of the series, Mike Mussina was handed the ball to finish off the sweep. The Yankees’ big-ticket free agent signing the previous winter was as good as advertised in his first season in pinstripes. Entering the Sunday night contest 13-11 with a 3.55 ERA, Moose was by many metrics the best pitcher in the AL, leading all starters in FIP, K-BB%, and fWAR (though not the Cy Young favorite on account of teammate Roger Clemens’ 18-1 record).