First things first, says catcher Posada

The New York Yankees say they have more to worry about than a Game 3 match-up against Texas Rangers ace Cliff Lee.

"Let's think about CJ Wilson first," Jorge Posada, the catcher, said. "We've got to concentrate on Game 1. We can't go ahead and think about Game 3."

Wilson, who will start the series opener tonight for the Rangers, pitched six-and-a-third shutout innings in his only play-off start.

"Their pitching is very good, very solid," said Mark Teixeira, the New York first baseman. "And if we pitch the way we're capable of and they pitch the way they're capable of, there may not be a lot of runs scored."

Left-handers batted only .144 average - with no home runs - against Wilson this season.

Lee almost wound up on the other side of this series. The Yankees and Seattle had agreed to a tentative deal in July that would have sent Lee to New York for three minor-league prospects. But the Mariners decided not to go through with it, then dealt Lee to the Rangers.

CC Sabathia, who will be New York's starting pitcher in Game 1, is a former teammate of Lee's in Cleveland.

"You want your friends to pitch well and to play well - but not so much in Game 3," Sabathia said.

* Associated Press