Quotes From The Battlefield. Bronson Arroyo: "I threw a sinker in there. ... It got him on the elbow pad. If I had thrown a strict four-seamer and hit him in the ribs, maybe it looks obvious. But the guy dives out over the plate and hits balls 500 feet to right-center, so I'm going to try to get in on him. ... I don't have good enough stuff to stay on the outer half all day, especially with a team like this."

Alex Rodriguez: "Usually I don't get that angry about anything. I get hit a lot, but I smelled something funny that I didn't like. ... I thought it was a little out of the ordinary to get back-to-back pitches inside like that."

Jason Varitek: "He was yelling at the pitcher, yelling a few things at Bronson. I told him, in a few choice words, to get to first base. Then it changed from him yelling at Bronson to us yelling at each other and then things got out of hand."

Rodriguez: "I don't remember what I said. I don't remember what I said to Arroyo, either."

David Ortiz: "I look up and I see Sturtze choking the (expletive) out of my guy. If the league is fair, they'll see I was trying to break it up, because I had a lot of chances to knock the (expletive) out of him."

Gabe Kapler, asked if he had a history with Tanyon Sturtze: "We do now."

Theo Epstein: "It had more intensity than most postseason games. This win and the way it happened should prove to be very important to us. It's hard to have a more meaningful regular-season victory. We've been kind of waiting to have this feeling all year."

Manny Ramirez: "That was the craziest game I've ever been a part of."

Bill Mueller: "I don't know if I've ever hit one out of the infield off (Rivera). It's a win against the Yankees, which is always nice."

Varitek was in the clubhouse: "I've never been that nervous watching a game. I almost jumped to the ceiling when Bill Mueller hit the home run."

The Gerbil, watching the game in Cooperstown: "All I looked for was Pedro. I never saw him. He was probably up in the clubhouse. That figures."

Sam Borden of the Daily News notes: "When the Yankees and Mariners fought in 1999, Rodriguez, then with Seattle, hung on the outskirts of the donnybrook, joking with Derek Jeter while punches were thrown around them."

What Else? The Red Sox acquired RH reliever Terry Adams from Toronto. He may be with the team tonight and will likely replace Baked Malaska in the pen. ... Scott Williamson will make a rehab appearance for Pawtucket today and Lenny DiNardo is currently rehabbing in Fort Myers. ... Derek Lowe says he is unfazed by the rumors of a possible trade to the Phillies. Still bothered by a blister on his right thumb, Lowe faces Contreras at 8:05 pm tonight.