When you're born with a name like Theodore Roosevelt Lilly, you find ways to distinguish yourself at an early age. After all, if you're named after a famous American, you need to work that much harder to establish your own identity. On Sunday, young Ted Lilly took serious strides toward making a name for himself. The 25-year-old southpaw spoke softly and sported a big arm, striking out 10 Boston batters in his season debut. Let's not make room for him on Mount Rushmore just yet -- Lilly left the field with a no-decision, but the Yanks came back to win 4-3 in extra innings.

"I'm proud of this victory. The kid pitched wonderfully," Joe Torre said. "I thought he was very aggressive, I thought he went after people. I'm very happy with his outing." So was the man of the moment. Lilly, who was acquired from Montreal in the Hideki Irabu trade, said he was satisfied with his first start of the season. Since the Yankees are still searching for someone to fill the fifth starting slot, Lilly realized that he had to pitch well to keep himself in contention. "It had crossed my mind. I felt pressure, but I also felt confident," Lilly admitted after the game. "I wanted to come in here and help this team win games. I expected myself to come out and do what I had to do." He did just that on Sunday, starting with the very first batter. Lilly said that he went over the Boston lineup with Andy Pettitte before the game, and the extra prep work was immediately evident. The rookie struck out two of the first three hitters that he faced, setting the tone for the rest of the game. As a matter of fact, Lilly had six strikeouts after only three innings. That shows that he was not only holding his own, he was holding Boston's bats underwater. "After the first inning, you could see that he felt comfortable," said catcher Jorge Posada, who had the best seat in the house to size up the Yankee starter. "He was throwing harder than I thought he would. If he can do what he did today, we're going to be in good shape." Lilly met his match in the second inning, when Manny Ramirez led off for Boston. Ramirez took Lilly deep over the 408-foot sign, giving Boston a one-run lead. Unfortunately for the Yankees, Ramirez was just getting started. In the sixth inning, he victimized Lilly once again, driving a pitch deep into the left-field bullpen. The Yankees didn't read anything into those two runs, which were the only ones Lilly would allow. After all, Ramirez has been destroying American League pitching for several seasons. He saves the same malice for rookies that he does for Cy Young Award winners. In short, Ramirez is an equal opportunity destroyer. "Manny hits two home runs off of you, that's nothing to be embarrassed about," Torre said. "(Lilly's) going to get another start. We're just not sure if it's going to be Friday or Saturday." Whenever it is, it won't be soon enough for Lilly. This was not his first taste of Major League action, but it had to be the most rewarding. Lilly pitched in nine games for Les Expos in '99 and seven games for the Yankees last year. This was his first co-starring role, his first chance to sop up the capacity crowd's appreciation for a job well done. When Lilly left the field with two outs in the sixth and his team down 2-1, the entire audience rose and voiced their approval for the young man's effort. Attendance was listed at 55,278 -- but it had to sound like so much more for Theodore Roosevelt Lilly. "Walking off, hearing the crowd, it gave me chills," said Lilly, who tipped his cap in recognition of the ovation. "I don't think you can ever get that feeling again. It was awesome. "I'm a fan of the game, too," Lilly said in a separate but related quote. "That had to be fun to watch." It certainly was, and not only for the fans. Lilly's own teammates had a good time watching the young pitcher thrive under pressure, especially since they were able to pull out a win. Paul O'Neill, who homered in the 10th inning to tie the game at 3-3, said all of the players could appreciate Lilly's coming of age. "It's always fun to see somebody that's under pressure like that, to see them come through," said O'Neill, a 14-year veteran. "It's a long way to get here. When you get here, it's so much fun to excel and play well." On Sunday, Lilly figured that out first-hand. Now, all he needs to do is find a way to repeat that performance.