NEW YORK - It appears Jay-Z and the Yankees have something in common: None of them perform in the rain.

Sorry. Felt like I had to lighten the mood a little for the locals up here.

The vibe in Gotham was dark and depressing last night - it was almost as nasty as the weather, actually. Fightin's fans who made the trip up to the Bronx really seemed to enjoy watching Chase Utley - by the way, his slicked-back hair is getting a little Pat Riley-ish - as he bashed two homers and the Phils took Game 1 of the World Series. The New Yorkers on hand didn't seem to dig it quite so much.

I don't know what went wrong for them. They were in such good spirits before the game. A few hours before the first pitch, I went out to Monument Park in center field. The place was jammed with Yankees fans, and every one of them was grinning like they'd just sucked down too much nitrous oxide at the dentist's office.

I struck up a conversation with an older gentleman. He was standing next to the exit and double-fisting beers. His name was Jim. He told me he was just holding one of the Budweisers for a buddy - but his pal never materialized and he kept drinking out of both cups, so you tell me.

"The Phils have no chance," Budweiser Jimmy said. "None."

None? They won't win a game?

"Nope," he said. Then he added, maybe as a consolation to make me feel better, that the Fightin's are "OK for a Philly team."

That seemed to be the prevailing wisdom in the Bronx among the fans and a lot of other people, too. Former Yankees Seinfeld star Paul O'Neill picked New York to win the series in four, and Keith Olbermann said the Phils wouldn't be able to handle CC Sabathia. So much for all that.

I'm pretty sure some New Yorkers thought Mayor Nutter was dispatching a team of backwater rubes to hand-deliver the Yanks' 27th title to Sophistication City. A former New York Times writer now working for CBS Sports called the series "Wal-Mart vs. Wall Street." They know Philly has running water and indoor plumbing, right?

One final anecdote: I talked to a Fightin's fan in the concourse a few minutes before the game. He was wearing a red Phils cap (complete with Jimmy Rollins/Elmer Fudd ear flaps) and a Phillies jacket. I asked whether anyone had given him heat, and he said no. He said most people were pretty nice to him. We were trying to figure out why, when the guy came up with an interesting theory that sounded right.

"They think the Yankees can't lose," he said.

The New York salute

A friend watching at home sent me a sweet screen shot of a Yankees fan gesturing to the TV camera after Utley bashed the second homer. We can't reprint the picture in the newspaper, but I'll give you a hint: It involved one hand and one finger.

A great look for anime

Someone needs to tell Johnny Damon that he's not Growing Up Gotti. I know the electrocution haircut he's rockin' these days is all the rage among aspiring New York mobsters, but it's even worse than the caveman look he had in Boston.

Bronx Butchers

First time for me at NYS (New Yankee Stadium). I was flabbergasted to learn it has a steakhouse (unusual, but kind of cool) and a butcher (just unusual). The butcher stands behind a thick piece of glass while a bunch of slack-jawed New Yorkers gawk at him from the concourse. It's almost like they've never seen a guy in a white coat clavering a piece of pork shoulder at a baseball game before.

Now, that's comedy

Lots of jokes about Mets fans being tossed around up here, by both fan bases. Best one I've heard yet: Two Mets fans are talking and one says, "Don't worry about the Phillies and the Yankees. There's always next year." The other guys says, "I know - don't remind me."

Alec Baldwin was wearing an awfully nice suit and tie in the rain last night. Jack Donaghy would not approve of ruining such fine clothing - or mixing with the common folk, for that matter. . . . Mark Messier, Jeff Gordon, Maria Menounos, and Kurt Russell were all at the game. Sadly, I didn't see Minka Kelly - and believe me, I looked everywhere. . . . The (not so) Secret Service was stationed all over the stadium - including a few snipers beyond the outfield walls. If you're attending Game 2, don't make any sudden moves. . . . During the pregame introductions, Pedro Martinez kept his back to the Yankees players the whole time. Hard not to like that guy. Can't wait to see how the crowd greets him tonight.

Contact columnist John Gonzalez at 215-854-2813 or gonzalez@phillynews.com.