Game 6 of the ALCS took place on a cold and misty evening. Johnny Damon led off the game with a strikeout, though he required Mike Mussina to throw ten pitches to obtain the out. Mussina then plunked Bill Mueller just above the back of his right knee. However, Boston was unable to make use of the baserunner.

With Curt Schilling's ability to pitch through his ankle troubles a question mark, New York logically should have been trying to run up his pitch count early. As he took the mound, cameras focused on his right ankle, where what appeared to be a bloody stain spread out across the sock below the red stirrup of his uniform. Derek Jeter swung at Schilling's first pitch, hitting a fly ball into right field for an easy out. Clemens went on to pitch a perfect inning.

In the top of the second, Kevin Millar hit a line drive into right for a single, Jason Varitek laid down a bunt single, and Orlando Cabrera loaded the bases with a line drive single into left. However, Boston failed to score as Mark Bellhorn grounded into a double play to end the inning. Although Schilling did not look relaxed on the mound, he put up another perfect inning in the second. In the bottom of the third, Schilling grimaced as Miguel Cairo sent a ball soaring toward left center, but rather than flying over the fence for a homer, the ball bounced on the warning track and hopped over the wall for an automatic double. Cairo remained stranded at second when the inning ended.

Two outs into the top of the fourth, Millar dropped a flyball into the left field corner for a double. During Jason Varitek's at-bat, a ball bounced in the dirt behind home plate and got away from Jorge Posada, allowing Millar to advance to third. Millar subsequently scored when Varitek hit a line drive single into centerfield. Cabrera followed with a flyball dropped into shallow left for a single, giving the Red Sox runners at first and second. Bellhorn then launched a ball toward the left field fence. Left field umpire Jim Joyce originally ruled that the ball hit off the top of the wall and bounced back into play, allowing both the runners to score but leaving Bellhorn with a double. Boston Manager Terry Francona jogged onto the field to request the umpires confer as to whether the call on the field should stand. FOX broadcast replays of the ball clearly hitting off the belly of a front row fan in a hooded black jacket, though the fan did not move to interfere with the ball. Fortunately, after conferring on the field, the umpiring crew reversed the call, correctly ruling that the hit was a home run, which made the score 4-0 Red Sox.

After the Yankees stranded men at second and third in the bottom of the fourth, both Schilling and Jon Lieber were perfect in the fifth and sixth. In the bottom of the seventh, Bernie Williams hit a solo shot into the upper deck down the right field line to put New York on the board.

One out into the top of the eighth, Manny Ramirez hit a flyball down the right field line for a single, prompting the Yankees to send Felix Heredia to replace Lieber. After retiring David Ortiz, Heredia was relieved by Paul Quantrill. Pinch-hitter Gabe Kapler hit Quantrill's first pitch, sending a hard grounder to the left side of the infield. Jeter made a diving stop but lost the ball while trying to get it out of his glove, allowing Kapler to reach first safely. The mistake did not allow Boston to add to their lead, as Millar grounded out to end the inning.

Bronson Arroyo went out to the mound in place of Schilling in the bottom of the eighth. Arroyo struck out leadoff batter Tony Clark, however Miguel Cairo hit a line drive down the right field line for a double, and Jeter drove in Cairo with a line drive single into left field. ARod worked the count to 2-2 before hitting a soft ground ball down the first base line. Arroyo came over from the mound, fielding the ball about two-thirds of the way down the line. No one was covering first because Doug Mientkiewicz had run in to field the ball and Bellhorn had not come over to cover the bag, so Arroyo ran over to tag Rodriguez. As Arroyo reached over to tag him, Rodriguez brought down his left arm to slap away the glove of Arroyo. The ball rolled out of Arroyo's glove, giving Jeter time to run home while Rodriguez advanced to second. Francona came out onto the field and again the umpires gathered to confer. While the crew deliberated, FOX televised replays from numerous angles, which indicated dirty play on the part of Rodriguez. After a few minutes, the huddle of umpires broke up, called Rodriguez out on interference, and ordered Jeter back to first base. Joe Torre came out to argue the reversal, and Rodriguez made a lame attempt to indicate that he impacted Arroyo while running and pumping his arms normally. Francona had his players leave the field during the argument as the Yankees Stadium crowd began throwing things on the field. When play resumed, Gary Sheffield popped out in foul territory, leaving Jeter stranded at first.

Varitek led off the ninth with a groundball single up the middle into centerfield. Cabrera then hit a groundball to Cairo, who tossed to second to get Varitek, but Cabrera safely reached first before New York could turn two. At that point, the Yankees called for Tanyon Sturtze to relieve Quantrill. As the broadcast returned from the commercial break accompanying the pitching change, umpires were shown talking to security personnel and eventually New York city police in riot gear came out onto the field and crouched in front of the rolled up tarp on the right side of the field and the camera pit along on the left side of the field. Bellhorn walked, but Sturtze retired Johnny Damon and Bill Mueller to prevent the Red Sox from increasing their lead. When the inning ended, the police force filed back under the stadium, leaving the field clear for the bottom of the ninth.

Keith Foulke took the mound for Boston, supplanting Arroyo. Hideki Matsui led off with a walk, Williams struck out, Posada popped out, Ruben Sierra walked, and Clark struck out to end the game. With the 4-2 win, Boston became the first team in baseball history to force a Game 7 after being down 0-3 in a seven game series.

After the game, the Red Sox revealed that in order to stabilize Schilling's ankle physicians performed a procedure that to their knowledge had not been tested outside of one pre-surgery experiment on a cadaver. In short, doctors created a stabilizing wall for Schilling's problematic tendon by sewing his ankle skin to the underlying deep tissue. Blood and fluid leaked through his sock, providing the gruesome visual on which FOX's cameras focused and prompting doctors to remove the stitches after the game to protect against infection. However, if Boston reaches the World Series, the procedure can and likely will be repeated.