NEW YORK -- Somewhere between the curious, the unusual and the downright bizarre, Ian Kennedy found his niche.
The newest Yankee -- though at 22 years and counting, not quite the youngest -- was the only Yankee who seemed immune to the three-ring circus masquerading as a baseball field on Saturday afternoon. He ignored the errors. He brushed off the delays. And while the Yankees and Devil Rays were both unraveling around him, Kennedy remained calm.
He was unfazed, yet amazed, and that was a combination deserving of one Major League win -- a 9-6 decision over the Rays -- and perhaps a chance at many more.
"It felt like it was an out-of-body experience," Kennedy said. "My adrenaline was pumping so much."
And for good reason. Kennedy retired the first four Major League hitters he faced in rapid succession, before two singles -- one of which was made possible only after Alex Rodriguez dropped a lazy foul pop fly -- and a double scored two runs. He stood at 63 pitches through three innings, seemingly destined to greet the Major Leagues as an anonymous rookie with an unremarkable debut.
Yet seven more pitches in the fourth produced three outs, and another 11 got him through the fifth. By the time B.J. Upton homered with one out in the sixth, Kennedy had tugged the game back under his control, and he steamrolled the final five Devil Rays he faced on a total of eight pitches.
Seven innings had come and gone by that point, and Kennedy had allowed just one earned run. He struck out six, walked two and earned not only the win, but countless high-fives and a giant bear hug from pitching coach Ron Guidry.
"I think we're all surrogate parents," said manager Joe Torre. "You want him to do well and you're just hoping that everything goes well."
It did for Kennedy, but not quite as well for everyone else. Aside from the errors -- the Yankees made two, the Devil Rays three -- Kennedy's debut was marred by a confusing episode early in the game, first Akinori Iwamura's bat, and then A-Rod's, was confiscated by umpires.
For several minutes of a game that easily surpassed three hours, chaos reigned. Most of the players had little idea what was happening, while Kennedy stood bewildered on the mound in the midst of a rally that was threatening to become his undoing.
Then, as oddly as it began, the commotion ceased. And one pitch later, Kennedy struck out Iwamura to end the threat.
Turns out Torre's decision to talk with umpires on the field may have had a healthy effect.
"I had no idea what was going on," Kennedy said of Torre's argument on the field. "I'm glad he did. I was throwing way too many pitches that inning."
The Yankees' offense teed off early on a carousel of Rays pitchers, with A-Rod's four RBIs making a quick memory of his early error. With 10 hits in all, the Yankees scored enough so that when Jose Vizcaino later allowed three runs in two-thirds of an inning -- forcing Torre to use Mariano Rivera for the final four outs -- that damage couldn't spoil the rookie's afternoon.
And for Kennedy, Saturday marked more than a win. Saturday was an audition, and Torre was quick to note that his young rookie passed. After snatching up Mike Mussina's slot in the rotation, Kennedy will almost certainly pitch a second time, and from there, the possibilities only increase.
But with Kennedy in that spot, seemingly nothing had changed. The rookie's audition was a success because he played the part of Mussina perfectly -- right down to his trademark hunched back while pitching out of the stretch.
Mussina may yet regain his form, but for now, this new version of the old pitcher will work just fine.
"It comes back to his poise," Torre said. "He just seemed very prepared to pitch this game."
Now, Kennedy has earned the opportunity to be even better. He can take tips from Roger Clemens, he can schmooze with Andy Pettitte. He can even take some pointers from Joba Chamberlain, a Minor League buddy who's been there, done that.
"I try not to be in awe of those guys," Kennedy said. "I knew that as soon as I started looking up to those guys, I didn't want to be shell-shocked at all. I just wanted to act like I belong."
If it was indeed an act, then he fooled just about everyone. On Saturday, he did belong here, and he may just belong here for a long time. One glance at his freckled face and crooked smile summons visions of a boy who isn't meant to succeed in a game won by men. And then another look at his almost eerie composure proves that first glances don't amount to much.
So in one sense, it was all an act. An awfully tough act to follow.
"I got the chills [once the win was secured]," Kennedy said with the win finally secure. "Everybody came up and shook my hands, all the coaches. It came out great, and that's all I was hoping for."
