The Red Sox are 3-3 at Yankee Stadium this year.

Depending on what happens between Mike Mussina and Justin Verlander tonight, the Boston Red Sox will enter Yankee Stadium tomorrow either 7 or 8 games ahead of New York in the AL East race. This extra cushion could prove invaluable, as New York is sending their three “good” starters to the hill in this series. Let’s take a look at each pitching matchup:

Tuesday: Daisuke Matsuzaka (170 IP, 3.76 ERA, 9.11 K/9) vs Andy Pettitte (173 IP, 3.69 ERA, 5.93 K/9

On paper, the best pitching matchup the series (although not the most interesting one). Dice-K is seemingly a better pitcher now than he was in April/May, when the Yankees knocked him around a bit for 10 runs in 2 starts. Since the end of May, Daisuke has a 2.97 ERA over 97.1 innings. Andy Pettitte has been on a tear himself, with 5 wins and a 2.06 ERA in August. However, he has had some trouble with Boston, giving up a .323 batting average to the Sox in 5 games this season. It’s close, but the home field advantage tilts the odds in the direction of the lefty.

Advantage: Pettitte

Wednesday: Josh Beckett (160 IP, 3.21 ERA, 8.55 K/9) vs Roger Clemens (83 IP, 4.34 ERA, 6.51 K/9)

This will be the big ticket of the series, as the two Texan fireballers lock horns in a battle of generations. Despite the glitz and glamor of this matchup, it’s heavily in Beckett’s favor. Clemens averages only 5+ innings per start, and was hit hard in his last start against Detroit. He’ll have the adrenaline going, in his first start against the Sox since Game Seven on the 2003 ALCS…

Advantage: Beckett

Thursday: Curt Schilling (118.3 IP, 4.11 ERA, 6.27 K/9) vs Chien-Ming Wang (159.3 IP, 3.95 ERA, 4.58 K/9)

Curt, who has been wildly inconsistent this season, hasn’t had very much success against New York at all, being tagged for 29 hits and a 7.00 ERA in 18 innings of work. Wang has been inconsistent recently, with a 5.40 ERA in his last 7 starts, although he did spin a gem in his last outing.

Advantage: Wang

Of course, the overall offensive matchup is clearly in favor of the Yankees, who average about 6 runs per game, by far the best rate in baseball (the Sox are third in the AL, with 5.33 runs per game). Both teams have relatively strong bullpens, but the edge there goes to Boston for their depth.

As you can see, the two teams match up very well. It always seems to work out that way, doesn’t it?

For all intents and purposes, the playoffs begin Tuesday night.