A good friend of mine* describes baseball as a soap opera for men. Really he means "for people who don't watch soap operas," because there are plenty of women out there, too, who are just as captivated as the guys by the ups and downs of the season, the long, slow buildup of games, and the rise and fall of characters and rivalries that characterize baseball.

Today's episode of As The Ball Turns was particularly riveting. Two nights in a row the contraction-threatened Twins have spanked/crushed/humiliated the Cleveland Indians, who had been off to a 10-1 start. Their National League brethren, the orphaned Expos, beat the rebuilt, new-look Mets for the second day in a row, as well.

Meanwhile, in the Bronx, we had the latest rollercoaster thrill ride from the Yankees, starring:

Ted Lilly, as the young warrior taking up the fallen sword of fellow lefty Andy Pettitte (sore elbow)!

Roy Halladay, as the villainous oppressor!

Bernie Williams, as the resurrected hero!

Enrique Wilson, as the walk-on cameo who makes the scene!

Eric Hinske, as the golden boy!

and

Jason Giambi, as the whipping boy!

The game began gloomily enough, with an almost two hour rain delay. The previous night's game had also been delayed, but despite the Jays getting to Mariano Rivera (deja vu back to the World Series, with some bloops and a throwing error by Rivera, talk about drama...) the Yankees had managed a win in the bottom of the ninth. With Lilly taking the hill in place of Pettitte, confidence was not high among Yankees fans. Lilly has shown streaks of brilliance, but also streaks of wildness, often within the same game. Most starts by Lilly last year were nail-biters, where Lilly would load the bases and then get the big strikeout, that type of thing. But here he is, one year older, wiser, and, one hopes, better.

His first inning was uneventful. In fact, most innings he pitched were uneventful, even though worries surfaced when he put two men on in the second (walk, hit by pitch) and in the third (two singles), and in the fifth (one hit by pitch). Not bad, when you consider that those were the only five men who were on base against him the entire day.

Perhaps it seemed so tense because the Yankees had staked him to a one run lead--thanks to a home run by Bernie Williams in the first. Bernie was appearing in his second game since returning from Alabama, where the infamous Doctor Stuart gave him cortisone shots in both shoulders. Bernie had gotten off to an uncharacteristically hot start in the first week of the season, then slumped with twenty one hitless at bats. During Bernie's slump, the Yankees lost seven of eight games, and Bernie decided he was hurting the team by trying to play through the pain. He said he was "afraid to pull the trigger" to hit the ball because of how much it hurt. He showed no fear batting in the two hole against Toronto's ace Roy Halladay, and hit one over the wall into the gap between the right field bleachers and the main stands.

That same inning, Jason Giambi, who has been suffering through a lot of booing at Yankee Stadium, hit the ball hard, hit it a good 400 feet, but to the deep part of the ballpark where the center fielder Jose Cruz Jr. caught it easily. Last night, Alfonso Soriano was the hero with the game-winning hit in the ninth, and came into the game leading the majors in hits. But Halladay owned him, striking him out three times.

After the Bernie homer, the Yankees could not muster anything against Halladay, who lived up to his ace label. Derek Jeter was held hitless, as was Giambi.

Lilly was matching Halladay, pitch for pitch, inning for inning, walking only one, striking out nine, and allowing only three hits, the two singles before, and one heartbreaker, to the last batter he faced. According to Jim Kaat, Lilly had never before pitched seven full innings in a start. He got the first two outs quickly, on a nice dive by Jeter, and a strikeout. The final batter he was to face to end his day was backup catcher Tom Wilson. Toronto Manager Buck Martinez had put Wilson in and benched slumping catcher Darrin Fletcher. Lilly delivered a pitch to Wilson and immediately shouted "No!" upon the crack of the bat. He knew he had just made his first and worst mistake of the day. Shane Spencer ran back to the wall at the Yankee Stadium "short porch" and leaped, but the ball was a few feet higher than he could reach. Lilly left the game with the score tied 1-1 and no chance to figure in the decision.

Shane Spencer epitomized the up and down nature of the Yankees' April. Four days ago he was benched by Joe Torre after starting every day in right field and not hitting a single homer nor driving in a single run. The very next day he entered the game late as a defensive replacement, and went on a tear in which he hit two home runs, two doubles, and was walked twice before he made another out. Yesterday, though, he struck out three times, and yet he was the difference in the game. He had reached base on a routine ground ball that he legged out and was safe on a throwing error, then went to third on a double and scored with some heads up baserunning, when the throw got away from the cutoff man. He also made a great diving catch to save a run. Given that the Yankees had won the game 6-5, without Shane's performance they might have lost it 5-4. So Joe Torre put him out there again, despite the hat trick of three K's. The first two at bats for Spencer in this game were also strikeouts, but in the seventh Halladay began to tire. With two out he walked Ron Coomer, and Enrique Wilson came in to pinch run. (Remember this cameo.) Spencer then singled to put men on the corners, but it was for naught. Jorge Posada pinch hit for Alberto Castillo, and grounded out to end the inning.

So with the score tied 1-1 on the two home runs, and both starters out of the game, it suddenly became a two inning game. Sadly for Yankees fans, the saga of the bullpen continued. Steve Karsay, a native New Yorker trying to plug the hole that was never filled all last year, gave up a hit on his first pitch of the eighth. Then rookie Eric Hinske (remember this name, too...) pinch hit for 3B Dave Berg, because he was a lefty hitter. Joe Torre left Karsay in, while lefty Mike Stanton warmed up. Hinske hit a hard ground ball between first and second. Alfonso Soriano's personal odyssey of fielding woes then recurred, as he spun his wheels a bit on the wet infield, and dove for the ball, but it went beyond the reach of his glove. Karsay got slugger Raul Mondesi to pop out to right, and left the game with men on first and second.

On came Stanton. Again a hard ground ball to second, this time as Soriano went to his glove side his spikes hung up in the dirt and he tripped, stopping the ball, but unable to make a play. Scored a hit and an RBI as one man came in to score. Next batter, Jose Cruz Jr. hit a pop up to second, but because the infield was playing in, Soriano could not get back fast enough on the outfield grass and the ball dropped between him, Bernie Williams, and Shane Spencer. Scored a hit, and an RBI. So there were still two men on and only one out, two men in, and Stanton still on the mound. He got another ground ball, this one right to Nick Johnson near the line. Johnson stepped on first for the sure out, then threw high to Jeter, trapping Cruz in a run down. Meanwhile another run was crossing the plate. The rundown went 3-6-4-3-6-1--I think. Basically every infielder and the pitcher had to get involved in the back and forth rundown that only ended when Cruz finally tripped and fell and Stanton almost fell on top of him with the ball. Should Johnson have thrown first to Jeter and started a 3-6-3 double play to prevent the run from scoring? The way the infield was playing, I think he didn't want to take that chance--plus his throw was high, so who knows if they might have gotten neither runner and the inning would have dragged on? When all the damage was done, the Jays had plated three and had a 4-1 lead.

Toronto brought in Kelvim Escobar, their closer, for a two inning save, but because the great Mariano, the greatest closer in the game, had proved to be human last November, all closers are now suspect, as if Mariano's failure had somehow weakened the fabric of the universe. The night before, Mo had given up a run on a leadoff hit, a sac, a throwing error, and a ground out. It reawakened the spirits whispering "there's no such thing as a sure thing," "it ain't over til it's over" and "the closer is only human."

Escobar did not look human in the eighth. Soriano struck out for the fourth time in the game, but reached base when Wilson couldn't hang onto the wild pitch he swung at. For naught. Bernie struck out, Jeter popped up, and Jason Giambi looked at a third strike.

Poor Giambi. He's a tough kid, so he didn't allow his heart to be broken on Opening Day when he was booed roundly (as well as cheered). He understands that Yankees fans boo so loud because they WANT to be cheering. They want to love him. They want to have a torrid lover affair with him and his good hitting eye and his powerful left-handed swing. But he hasn't really made it over the threshold yet. Yeah, he had a homer at Yankee Stadium a couple of nights ago. Yeah he went four for four one day in Boston, but the team lost. He had two homers in one day against the Jays at the Skydome, but the Yankees lost that game, too. Giambi's big Yankee moment had not yet come and here he went oh-for-four.

In the ninth, Ramiro Mendoza mowed down the Jays one-two-three, setting up the drama of the bottom of the ninth.

Those November spirits were still whispering. Rondell White and Nick Johnson grounded out, and it looked like Escobar was going to make quick work of the Yankees and laugh all over their feeble offensive effort and their pitiful emergency starter. Enrique Wilson came to the plate, only in the game because he had run for Coomer in the seventh. And with two strikes on him, what did he do? Think Tino Martinez. Think Scott Brosius. He hit a home run and kept the Yankees alive.

What followed was the kind of rally that the Yankees practically own the patent on. Struggling Shane Spencer came to the plate, ran the count full, and then walked. Jorge Posada, the tying run, then also ran the count full and walked. To the brink of disaster and defeat, and then, the reprieve of ball four. That brought Soriano to the plate with four strikeouts and two men on. On the first pitch he hit a ball hard right up the middle, scoring Spencer. Bernie Williams then came up and he lined a single into the outfield, plating Jorge, and tying the score.

So Derek Jeter, 0-for-3 with a walk, came up with Bernie and Sori on. With one ball on the count already, Escobar tried to throw him a tricky splitter or slider or something, and threw into the dirt--and the runners moved up. They proceeded to intentionally walk Jeter rather than allow him to beat them with a clutch hit. That was Escobar's last batter.

In came lefty Dan Plesac to face Jason Giambi with the bases loaded and two out. A grand slam would not be necessary to hand the Yankees the win. A bloop would do. A wild pitch would do. Giambi waved his stick, his tongue wagging as he concentrated hard. Would this be his big Yankee moment, as Tino Martinez' was, that night in Baltimore when he hit the grand slam to sink to O's in April? Would the dam finally burst and would he be showered the all the adulation the fans have been saving up for him all winter?

No. Plesac burned a tantalizing, high, outside fastball--and Giambi swung right through it. Strike three, inning over. The Yankees had tied the game, and batted around, but with the chance to win the game, Giambi came up short. There were boos, and crushed hopes, and many soggy fans (the rain and drizzle had come back a few times during the game) headed for the exits.

Many stayed. What they saw was Ramiro Mendoza strike out Shannon Stewart looking sharp, and then facing Eric Hinske, the rookie third baseman who had pinch hit in the eighth. Hinske had come to the Jays from the A's system. He hit 25 home runs at Triple-A Sacramento last year, but had not yet hit a home run in the majors. Not yet, until this game. The ball flew into the screen in left center by the handicapped seats and the retired numbers. Opposite field homer, the Jays up by one in the tenth.

Everything that came after did not matter. Shane Spencer made a great play to scoop a ball between him and Bernie to keep it from going to the wall and then a great throw to nail a jogging Carlos Delgado at second base. But in the bottom half of the inning, still facing Plesac, the Yankees could not muster another rally. White grounded out. Nick Johnson went down swinging at the same high outside heater that sank Giambi. And Enrique Wilson, batting righty, after taking the first low outside pitch for a ball, was called out on the next three consecutive pitches, all in the same low outside spot, all called for strikes. Game over.

The rest of the soggy fans went home kicking the ground and muttering about their lot.

Those of us who were watching at home, though, know that another exciting episode is coming our way tomorrow. It's only April, and who knows what twists and turns the plot may take before the finale?

(*Leigh Grossman, editor of "The Red Sox Fan Handbook: Everything You Need To Know To Be A Red Sox Fan or To Marry One", published by Swordsmith Productions)