BOSTON – On a day dripping with schmaltz and bling beforehand, the irony should not be lost on anyone that in yesterday’s actual baseball game, the Red Sox beat the Yankees, 8-1, first and foremost because of a high-quality effort from starting pitcher Tim Wakefield.

What a concept: Good pitching beating good hitting. It’s the national pastime’s ultimate truism, yet it’s been practically heresy around these parts for decades. Forget the fairy tale about the ghost of the fat guy who left here and has been haunting the franchise ever since: The Red Sox could not win a title for 86 years because, generally speaking, their management’s approach to roster construction began and ended with slugging (not to mention their Neanderthal approach to race).

Last year, when they won it all, it was no accident that the Red Sox had a pair of aces – Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez – at the top of the rotation and a bona fide closer, Keith Foulke, in the bullpen. But with Schilling still recovering from his legendary ankle injury, Pedro throwing gems in Queens, and playoff hero Derek Lowe wearing Dodger blue, this merry band of idiots all of a sudden looks much less imposing.

Starting pitching was, of course, the key reason why the Red Sox could throw themselves a deserved and massive celebration at Fenway Park yesterday. On a sunny beautiful day that had more than an October-like nip in the air, the Red Sox had a hoot and a holler handing out their World Series rings to themselves. Video tributes, specially commissioned ballads, James Taylor on the guitar, enormous satin banners unfurled over the Green Monster, a standing ovation for a grinning Mariano Rivera, a moment of silence for ex-Red Sox Dick Radatz interrupted by an “A-Rod, you suck!”, F-16 flyovers, Carl Yastrzemski, Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio, Rich Gedman – the greats and near-greats of the Red Sox past all showed their faces in pre-game ceremonies that lasted more than hour and were politely tolerated by the Yankees, gathered en masse in their dugout.

Lowe, whose regular-season contributions last season were negligible but whose postseason was truly inspiring, made an admirable effort to be at Fenway Park. When he walked out in his Red Sox jersey to accept his ring, his presence, along with the absence of Martinez, was a glaring reminder of what the Red Sox are missing this season.

The Red Sox have ostensibly replaced Martinez and Lowe with David Wells and Matt Clement, and the early returns on the newcomers have not been good. Wells was pounded by the Yankees on Opening Night in the Bronx, then suffered a similar fate against the Blue Jays; he has an 0-2 record with a portly 8.44 ERA and a .396 opponents batting average. Clement has no record yet, but the eight walks he has allowed in 10 1/3 innings over two starts have done little to make a positive impression.

It may well be folly to make too much of what looks to be a suspect Red Sox rotation a mere seven games into the season. After all, Schilling has yet to throw a major-league pitch and will return tomorrow night in Game 5 of the 2005 series against these Yankees (the teams have now split the first four games). His return means the world to these Red Sox, not because of their 3-4 start but because he is simply their one and only ace now.

Schilling’s tenacity, will power, and stuff should never be underestimated, given what he and his sutured ankle tendon were able to do during the 2004 ALCS against the Yankees and the World Series against the Cardinals. But he is 38 years old and coming off an injury, though he says he’s ready to go.

If he falters, who will replace him?

The book on Wells and Clement is still open but so far, they have not submitted page-turning prose. Bronson Arroyo made a nice first start, going six innings and picking up a win, but he is supposed to become a long reliever once Wade Miller, battling back from a rotator cuff injury, returns later this month or in early May.

Miller may well turn into a prize pickup if he pitches as he is capable of – he went 31-12 in 2001 and 2002 combined, and sports a solid 3.87 career ERA. But when it comes to aces and their shoulders, skepticism is the proper first response, followed closely by wait-and-see.

As for Wakefield, he is a classic, effective no. 4 starter, though he has been much better than that against the Yankees. Rather than crumble like many would after giving up the 2003 ALCS-winning home run to Aaron Boone at Yankee Stadium, Wakefield went 1-0 with a 0.68 ERA against them in three regular-season starts last year. This year, he is 1-0 with a 1.32 ERA after two starts.

Of course, the mere fact that a knuckleballer looks like the Red Sox’ best bet at this point in the season is cause for concern across New England. The Red Sox had their reasons not to make Martinez an offer he could not refuse when they had their chance last November; those reasons started to look a lot less compelling once the Yankees dug deep to add Randy Johnson, Carl Pavano, and Jaret Wright to their rotation.

When the Yankees and Red Sox meet again this October, the teams will discover all over again whose rotation, and thus whose team, is the best. For now, though, it looks like the Red Sox’ next ring bash might be a long way off.

Mr. Silverman covers the Red Sox for the Boston Herald.