FORT MYERS, Fla. -- By the end of the month, it's possible that one of the two relievers brought out of the bullpen Tuesday by manager Joe Torre will have cemented the last available spot in the New York Yankees rotation.

Of the three Yankee pitchers used, Jeff Weaver was most impressive, limiting the Boston Red Sox to just one hit over three innings while striking out four. Lefty Sterling Hitchcock wasn't far behind, giving up a run on two hits.

	Jose Contreras has a 10.38 ERA in 13 innings pitched this spring.

But all the attention on Tuesday was focused on starter Jose Contreras, if for no other reason than the fierce bidding war conducted by the Yanks and Sox in Nicargaua last December, ultimately won by the Yankees.

The whole episode read like something out of an overwritten spy novel, with the Red Sox renting out an entire hotel to keep rival suitors from having easy access to Contreras. When the Yankees won the bidding, it prompted Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino to label the Yanks "the Evil Empire,'' and eventually resulted in a cease-and-desist order from commissioner Bud Selig.

All of that, remember, took place in December.

So Contreras' presence on the mound at City of Palms Park on Tuesday merely stoked the rivalry. As if something new was needed.

By the end of the afternoon, another rocky outing from Contreras (three runs on four hits in three innings of work) merely put everything back into perspective. After all, this is spring training.

Call it additional gamesmanship, but some members of the Red Sox were decidedly underwhelmed by the Cuban defector.

"I wasn't impressed,'' said third baseman Shea Hillenbrand. "Everybody's been hyping him up to be this big thing. Today, he threw average. He kept throwing his breaking ball in the zone. I don't care how good he is, unless you're Barry Zito or Mike Mussina, if you do that, you're going to be in trouble ... I thought (Jeff) Weaver (who pitched the next three innings) was much better.''

Contreras gave up a long homer to Manny Ramirez in the first and a hard two-run double to center to Nomar Garciaparra in the second.

"He was all right,'' shrugged Torre. "It looks like he's still struggling with his stuff. I don't think he's happy with his sharpness.''

To be fair, Contreras had a valid excuse for being less than 100 percent. His ailing 80-year-old father underwent surgery in his native Cuba on Monday.

"(Monday), I was very worried,'' Contreras said. "But once I get on the mound, all I ever focus on is the game at hand.''

He was forced to do that with less than a full arsenal. Though scouting reports have Contreras' fastball regularly clocked in the mid-90s, he hit just 94 mph just once and was routinely 90-91 Tuesday. Both Ramirez and Garciaparra launched fastballs.

	“	I don't think I have anything to do with the rivalry (between the Yankees and Red Sox). That's been going on a long time. I'm a new arrival. I look at the Red Sox as any other team. The Red Sox showed a lot of interest in me. My agent handled most of the negotiations and at the end, the Yankees had a better offer. In addition, I wanted to play for the Yankees. ”
		— Jose Contreras, Yankees pitcher

"I threw more breaking balls today,'' said Contreras, who noticed in his bullpen session that his velocity was off. "I didn't feel I had my strong fastball. After the first inning, I noticed (the Red Sox) were waiting for my breaking ball, but I had to continue with my strategy.''

Contreras relied more on a splitter (which he sometimes carelessly left up in the strike zone), a changeup, and a slider, which one scout described as "not very sharp -- yet.'' "Except for the velocity,'' said another scout, "he was about what I expected. The ball came out of his hand nice and easy. But he can throw better than he did.''

While some thought it was more than a coincidence that Contreras was tabbed to start one of just two games between the Red Sox and Yankees this month, the Cuban was quick to distance himself from the controversy generated by his signing.

"I don't think I have anything to do with the rivalry (between the Yankees and Red Sox),'' he said. "That's been going on a long time. I'm a new arrival. I look at the Red Sox as any other team. The Red Sox showed a lot of interest in me. My agent handled most of the negotiations and at the end, the Yankees had a better offer. In addition, I wanted to play for the Yankees.''

"I'm glad we got a chance to see him down here,'' said outfielder Johnny Damon who struck out in the first and doubled in the third against Contreras. "Now we have an idea about him. By the time we see him (the clubs don't meet in the regular season until late May), we'll get some up-to-date scouting reports.''

Damon said at no point did he think about how close the Sox came to landing Contreras and how that may have changed the dynamic of the AL East race.

"It never crossed my mind,'' he said. "I see him as a Yankee now. We have five very competitive guys in our rotation to get the job done.''

John Burkett, penciled in as Boston's No. 5, actually did far better than Contreras as he pitched three shutout innings. The real test will come over the course of the season, where the Yankees' depth in the rotation is clearly superior. For now, it's only spring training.

But the long lines forming early Tuesday morning for a handful of standing room tickets and the largest crowd of City Of Palms Park history were reminders, once more, that when it comes to the Red Sox and Yankees, it always counts.

Sean McAdam of the Providence (R.I.) Journal covers baseball for ESPN.com.