Tony DeMarco

The start of another Yankees-Red Sox season series comes amid important developments on both fronts:

This three-game set among the 18-game, season-long unfolding drama will take place in Fenway Park beginning Friday night. But the bigger stadium story is coming out of the Bronx.

That short right-field porch in the old stadium was one thing; this is another: 26 home runs in the first six games — the majority of which flew out to right?

That's the most home runs hit in the first six games at any new venue since Kansas City's Municipal Stadium opened 54 years ago. And only two major-league teams haven't moved into a new stadium since then.

Of course it's way too small of a sample — six out of 81 home games. And runs are up in the American League so far, witness the Yankees' 6.07 team earned-run average being only the 10th worst among the 14 teams.

But if that home-run rate continues, Yankees manager and former Rockies catcher Joe Girardi is going to think he has flashed back to the opening of Coors Field in 1995 — long before anybody thought to store baseballs in a humidor.

“It's something we're going to have to keep our eye on because clearly, the numbers don't lie," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said in an interview this week.

The long-term negative implication on the staff would be dramatic. Maybe there would have been no hitters' park small enough to keep C.C. Sabathia from signing a $161 million deal last winter.

But then again, the reaction wasn't exactly friendly when Sabathia (1-1, 4.81 ERA) left the mound with seven runs on the board for the visiting Oakland Athletics in the seventh inning on Wednesday, and after having given up two leads.

And that Yankees staff ERA through 15 games really is scary. Which brings us to the next huge pitching issue — what's gone dramatically wrong with Chien-Ming Wang?

Instead of taking his turn in this series, Wang (0-3, 34.50 ERA) temporarily went back to extended spring training in Tampa, trying to recapture the mechanics and stuff that pushed his career record to 54-20 entering this season.

There also will be no Alex Rodriguez for this series, of course. But a return from hip surgery by the next time these two teams meet — May 4-5 in Yankee Stadium — is a distinct possibility. (And it can't come soon enough for Girardi, as A-Rod's replacements — Cody Ransom and Ramiro Pena — are a combined 10 for 60 with no homers, five RBI and 16 strikeouts.)

But the Yankees lineup will include Mark Teixeira — and the Red Sox's won't. And you can be sure Red Sox fans will note that difference. 'Heavy boos' is the greeting Teixeira says he expects all weekend.

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His first two weeks in pinstripes haven't been overwhelming, either — .222 batting average, .467 slugging percentage, three homers, nine RBI in 45 at-bats.

A week ago, the Red Sox stood 2-6 amid a series of question marks of their own. But seven victories in a row have alleviated many of those concerns.

Concern No. 1 was the offense — or lack thereof. In their slow start (which included six games in West Coast pitchers' parks), the Red Sox batted .217 and scored 37 runs. But the winning streak has included three games in which they reached double figures, and a 31-6 run advantage over the last four games.

Mike Lowell's hip? Apparently not an issue. Entering the Yankees series, he's batting .315 with three homers and a team-leading 16 RBI from the seventh spot in the batting order.

Nobody said much about Nick Green when it came to the shortstop issue this spring. But in between Jed Lowrie's wrist injury that required surgery after his 1-for-18 start, and the impending return of Julio Lugo (as soon as Monday, as he is on a rehab assignment), Green has been a productive fill-in.

That leaves David Ortiz's lack of power. He still hasn't gone deep in 59 at-bats, and his 30-homer days likely are behind him at 33. But five of his 13 hits have gone for extra bases, and the inside-out shot off the Monster is becoming a more-frequent occurrence again.

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Daisuke Matsuzaka also will be a notable absentee in this series — thank you very little, World Baseball Classic. With the No. 5 spot already in some upheaval, the timing of Matsuzaka's absence couldn't be worse. For now, Justin Masterson has moved into the rotation, and who knows, maybe he'll have to stay there for awhile.

Brad Penny threw six solid innings in a 7-3 win that was part of a doubleheader sweep of the Twins on Wednesday. But that came after getting hit very hard in his previous outing.

At least the Sox know they still can rely on Tim Wakefield near the back of the rotation. The 42-year-old knuckleballer threw a seven-inning complete game in a 10-1 win on Wednesday to become the oldest to throw back-to-back complete games since 44-year-old Charlie Hough did it for the White Sox in 1992.

So no Wang. No A-Rod. No Lugo. No Dice-K ... and no matter. It's Yankees-Red Sox — and there is no better barometer for either team, no matter what time of the season the rivalry continues.

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