"Was that you booing me Thursday?" said Pavano with a laugh.

Said Cashman, "No, I was booing in the seventh inning."

When Pavano was introduced along with his Indians teammates before Thursday's home opener at new Yankee Stadium, he was roundly and loudly booed by the crowd of more than 48,000. Cashman boos were prompted by the Indians scoring nine runs against his ball club in the seventh on the way to a 10-2 victory.

Pavano will start Sunday against the Yankees and his former Florida Marlins teammate, A.J. Burnett. He's expecting the same kind of reception from the fans.

"I'm sorry they feel that way," said Pavano.

Pavano said he wasn't thinking about getting booed until he had a conversation with a teammate.

"This is our third Opening Day," said Pavano. "We had our names announced in Cleveland, obviously, but they weren't announced in Texas where we opened the season. So it didn't cross my mind until my buddy Cliff Lee told me, 'Aren't you worried that they're going to boo the heck out of you?' Then I started thinking about it.

"But I spent four years here. I knew what was coming."

Pavano made only 26 starts as a Yankee because of injuries. The New York tabloids called him American Idle. According to former Yankees manager Joe Torre's recent book, some of Pavano's teammates didn't think too highly of him.

"I wish I could have given the fans something more to cheer about," said Pavano. "I was disappointed a lot of the time, too."

Still, he recommended that Burnett sign with the Yankees during the off-season.

"A.J. likes the big stage," said Pavano. "It brings out the best in him. My experience in New York was ruined by injuries.

"This is a good place to play. A good city to play in. You can feel the passion of the fans. I know the players like that."

Maybe today: Jhonny Peralta took a few swings Friday, but his left elbow didn't feel that great so he was scratched from the Indians lineup. Peralta, who played 154 games last year, strained the forearm muscle on the inside of his elbow when he slid head first into home plate in the fourth inning Thursday.

Peralta, trying to tag the plate with his left hand, instead hit catcher Jorge Posada's shin guard and it twisted his arm.

"That's another reason to always slide feet first and hard into home plate," said Wedge.

Wedge said Peralta has not yet had X-rays on the elbow.

Scout's eyes: A scout who watched the Indians lose to the Yankees on Friday thought they were going to catch closer Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning.

"I thought Grady [Sizemore] was going to get him," said the scout. "Grady swung at a bad pitch. Rivera isn't getting the ball down like he used to."

Ben Francisco, with the Tribe trailing, 6-5, started the ninth with a long drive to left center. Center fielder Brett Gardner ran it down.

"I thought it was in the gap," said Francisco, "but there's still a lot of room out there in left-center."

Tony Graffanino and Asdrubal Cabrera followed with singles. Sizemore swung and missed a pitch up and out of the strike zone. Plate umpire Phil Cuzzi had called out Mark DeRosa on the same pitch much to DeRosa's dismay.

"That pitch was up," said the scout. "It was a ball."

It was Rivera's third save of the season and the 26th of his career against the Indians .

Happy birthday: Wedge wished his 3-year-old daughter, Ava, happy birthday before Friday's game by Webcam.

"It's amazing," said Wedge, of the Webcam. "She told me, 'OK, Daddy, go play with the boys.' "

Finally: In 1996, tickets behind home plate at Yankee Stadium cost season-ticket holders $25 a game. This year those same seats cost season-ticket holders $2,500 a game.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: phoynes@plaind.com, 216-999-5158