One bad break could again decide Yankees-Red Sox series

John Olerud walks off the field during the 2004 ALCS.BOSTON — Small sample sizes allow for small moments that turn huge, and the passage of time can integrate perceptions into facts.

Exhibit A: John Olerud and the 2004 American League Championship Series.

“Tony Clark’s ball bouncing over the wall, that was huge. Also John Olerud breaking his ankle,” former Red Sox first baseman Kevin Millar, now a broadcaster with the MLB Network, said in a phone interview on Thursday. “This guy squared every ball up.”

“Olerud’s injury killed us,” former Yankees catcher and current YES Network analyst John Flaherty said.

Olerud, the stellar if not quite Hall of Fame caliber first baseman who played primarily…