David Cone woke up with something that has been missing for some time: butterflies that accompany a big game.

The one-time Yankee ace received a mostly positive reception last night on his return to the Stadium in a Red Sox uniform. Most of the crowd of 44,108 that braved the bad weather were hoping he would pitch just well enough to lose.

“The reception was amazing on a tough night weather-wise,” said Cone, who took the loss in the Yankees’ 7-3 victory. “I was impressed to see such a great turnout.

“When I walked out to warm up for the first inning, it sounded mixed to me. It sounded like a mixed reception.

“It was great to be back at Yankee Stadium pitching.”

Emotionally, it wasn’t sad to see Cone pitching in a Red Sox uniform. It was sad to see Tim Wakefield warming up in the fifth inning while Cone worked in a 2-1 game.

Cone pitched well in his second outing of the season, but a lack of run support led to his exit at the start of the sixth inning, with the Red Sox trailing 3-1. Because he is coming back from an inflamed shoulder, Boston manager Jimy Williams opted to rest Cone in favor of Wakefield, the knuckleballer.

Nevertheless, Williams gave Cone high marks after the 38-year-old right-hander allowed six hits, three runs and struck out five.

“He had good definition on his breaking ball,” Williams said. “To me, it just seemed like he felt good about himself out there.”

Cone was asked about how it felt to face his former teammates. Some fared poorly like Chuck Knoblauch, who went 0-for-3 with a strikeout. Derek Jeter, on the other hand, banged three hits off Cone on the way to a five-hit night.

“Once the game started, it was business as usual,” Cone said. “I did notice when Derek stepped in at the first inning. He looked out at me and smiled.

“I felt a little disarmed,” said Cone. “That’s to be expected I guess.”

Cone was a clubhouse leader during four Yankee world championship teams, and yet some among the Stadium crowd booed him last night. Cone was philosophical after giving the city so much in the parts of six seasons he spent in The Bronx.

“I could hear a little bit of both [cheers and boos],” he said. “I thought it was a great reception.

“It’s pretty much what I expected. There are some die-hard Yankees fans that will look at me in a Red Sox uniform, and that’s going to change everything.

“For the most part, it was a classic reaction by some passionate fans who want to win the game.”

Cone allowed a two-run homer to Bernie Williams with two outs in the third. He didn’t walk anybody, although he hit two batters. He left after 85 pitches (58 strikes).

“It definitely wasn’t the same-old, same-old,” Cone said of the roller-coaster evening. “It was a feeling I hadn’t felt in a while.

“I was a little apprehensive as to how I’d react emotionally. It was a good feeling.

“It was nice to have that old feeling back. The feeling that this means something. It’s something that I’ll never forget.”