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(Sports Network) - The New York Yankees drew first blood in the latest edition of baseball's most intense rivalry. Now the Boston Red Sox will attempt to rebound behind their ace when the clubs continue their three-game set this afternoon at Fenway Park.

New York received a stellar outing out of starting pitcher Chien-Ming Wang to record a 4-1 victory over the hated Sox in last night's opener of this highly- anticipated set. The right-hander fired a two-hitter for his fourth career complete game to lead the Yanks to their ninth win in their last 11 matchups with Boston.

Wang (3-0) threw just 93 pitches to win his third straight start to begin this campaign and lowered his season earned run average to an impressive 1.23. The 28-year-old would have had a no-hitter entering the ninth inning if not for a J.D. Drew solo homer in the fifth that barely escaped over the glove of New York right fielder Bobby Abreu.

Jason Giambi snapped a 1-1 tie with a solo home run off Mike Timlin, activated by the Red Sox prior to the contest, in the top of the seventh. Jose Molina, Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui each collected a pair hits for New York, with Molina knocking in one run with one of his two doubles on the night.

The Yankees played for the fourth straight game without shortstop Derek Jeter, who is dealing with a strained left quadriceps and is doubtful to return to the lineup today.

Timlin came in for rookie Clay Buchholz, who held New York to just one run and four hits over the first six frames before reaching his pitch count, and was charged with two runs while retiring just one batter.

The Red Sox have lost five of their last seven games and are struggling with slugger David Ortiz in a slump. He went 0-for-3 with a strikeout and is hitless in his last 13 at-bats, and is mired in a 1-for-25 skid since homering on April 2 at Oakland.

Boston will attempt to even things up behind stopper Josh Beckett, who aims for an upgrade over his first official outing of 2008. The All-Star hurler suffered a loss at Toronto this past Sunday after an up-and-down showing in which he surrendered just three hits and struck out six in 4 2/3 innings, but also walked four Blue Jays and was charged with five runs allowed.

Beckett was removed with the contest tied at 2-2 and the bases loaded, but reliever Manny Delcarmen promptly served up a grand slam to the Jays' Frank Thomas that broke open the game.

The standout right-hander, who won a career-high 20 games for Boston a year ago and finished second in voting for the AL Cy Young Award, had missed a portion of spring training with back spasms that pushed back his season debut.

Beckett has recorded an uncharacteristic 7.56 ERA in eight career regular- season starts against the Yankees, although he has posted a 4-3 record in those games. The 27-year-old is best remembered, however, for his performance against New York in Game 6 of the 2003 World Series, when Beckett fired a dominating five-hit shutout to clinch a championship for the Florida Marlins.

The Yankees counter today with veteran Mike Mussina, who is coming off an outstanding effort against Tampa Bay on Monday that resulted in his 251st career victory. The 39-year-old baffled the Rays through six innings, allowing just one run and two hits, to lead New York to a 6-1 win.

That showing was a noticeable improvement from Mussina's first start of the year. Against Toronto on April 2, he was reached for four runs (three earned) on eight hits over 5 2/3 frames in a 5-2 Yankees' loss.

Mussina is 19-15 with a 3.66 ERA in 52 lifetime starts versus Boston, but the cerebral right-hander struggled in a pair of games against the 2007 world champions last year. He was lit up for 19 hits -- including four home runs -- and 12 runs in just 11 1/3 innings during those two appearances, receiving a loss in one and a no decision in the other.

The Yankees won 10 of 18 from the Red Sox last season and have gone 12-7 at Fenway Park since the beginning of the 2006 campaign.