Yankees 5

Cardinals 2

It was fitting that Roger Clemens had to work for his 300th win last night, because the common thread running through his Hall of Fame career is a work ethic second to none.

A laugher would have been easier. But Clemens doesn’t do laughter on the mound.

So on a rainy Bronx night against a strange team in front of packed Yankee Stadium, Clemens was Clemens. He grunted. Beads of sweat joined raindrops dripping off his stubbled face. He glared at plate umpire Gary Darling’s postage stamp-sized strike zone.

And, after three failed attempts at history, he won – beating the Cardinals 5-2 in front of 55,214 soggy Rocket boosters.

“I couldn’t have drawn it up any better,” said Clemens, who not only became the 21st pitcher to win 300 but the third pitcher to notch 4,000 strikeouts.

“Two milestones on the same night, it couldn’t have worked out better. Four thousand and 300 put me with some great men. I am glad to have the opportunity to catch these guys. It’s been 20 years and the winning percentage that I have, it’s been a lot of hard work and it’s paid off.”

Not until Raul Mondesi’s two-run homer in the seventh that upped the lead to 5-2 could the Yankees exhale. Until then it was a one-run contest, and after Clemens’ three failed attempts at joining the 300 Win Club, there was apprehension in the air.

A six-run lead vanished in Detroit. Juan Acevedo flushed a one-run advantage a week ago today in Wrigley Field. So, one skinny run against a dangerous Cardinal team certainly wasn’t secure.

Holding a 2-1 lead going into the fourth, Clemens gave up singles to Scott Rolen and Edgar Renteria, who was the 4,000th K victim in the second.

With runners on first and third, Tino Martinez lofted a fly ball to left that scored Rolen and tied the score, 2-2. Renteria went to second when Juan Rivera foolishly threw home. Clemens responded by fanning Mike Matheny and getting No. 9 hitter Kerry Robinson on a grounder to the right side.

The fifth also was tense when J.D. Drew walked and Albert Pujols singled with one out. But Clemens fanned Jim Edmonds, who had homered in the second, and Rolen on filthy splitters.

“I was battling the elements, it was rainy and my hand was wet,” said Clemens, who went 62/3 innings, allowed two runs and fanned 10. “I had to be careful because it was a close game.”

Following a perfect sixth the stress meter climbed in the seventh when Joe Torre decided Chris Hammond against Drew with two outs and the bases empty was a better bet than Clemens, who had thrown 120 pitches.

Torre was booed on the way to and from the mound. In between, the soldout crowd roared for Clemens. The move didn’t look so good when Drew dropped a bunt down the third-base line and Pujols singled to right.

“The bunt surprised me because Drew is a home run hitter,” Hammond said. “I didn’t feel pressure until [Drew] got on second base. Then there was a lot of pressure. I don’t remember what I did.”

He got Edmonds, a .205 hitter versus lefties, to ground out to Alfonso Soriano.

Mondesi’s 12th homer made it 5-2. Antonio Osuna worked a perfect eighth and Mariano Rivera did the same in the ninth for his eighth save.

“I have the equalizer in Mo,” said Clemens (7-4), who hugged every teammate, coach and family member on the field as the crowd roared it’s delight. “It’s pretty cool to get to [300]. I had to work awfully hard to get to that number.”