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Kerry Wood won his 50th career game Saturday. (Stephen J. Carrera/AP)

Kerry Wood struck out 11 to outduel Clemens and power the Cubs to a 5-2 victory Saturday over the New York Yankees.

"I think that today was the one of the greatest games that I've ever played in my life," Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa said.

Wood outduels Clemens

• Interleague extravaganza: Special section dedicated to Yanks-Cubs • Wrapup: Cubs 5, Yanks 2 • Back to the Bronx for Clemens • Torre stands by decision • Cubs' Choi hurt in fourth inning • Acevedo shoulders responsibility • Bauman: Almost perfect • All in a day's work for Remlinger • Prior almost a Yank  Kerry Wood | Dusty Baker | Joe Torre  Remlinger fans Giambi  Eric Karros' HR: 56K | 300K  Hee Seop Choi injury: 56K | 300K • Fans treated to a classic • Sweepstakes winners 'amazed' Photo Gallery  • The Clemens-Wood duel -- with all of its memorable story lines -- will be available for viewing on computers everywhere, all right here. Our full-game MLB archives are available through a subscription to MLB.TV, Total Ticket or MLB.com Broadband. See the broadcasts the way they aired live. Archived games are not subject to local-viewing-area blackouts of any kind. More >

If you weren't one of the 39,363 crammed into Wrigley Field on a picture-perfect day or glued to the television watching the two Texas fireballers fire strike after strike, you missed a good one.

"Anybody watching saw two of the premier pitchers throwing," Cubs manager Dusty Baker said. "It was great that Woody beat one of his childhood heroes. You don't often get a chance to do that. Now Roger and the Yankees can go get his 300th someplace else."

Clemens (6-4) had a 1-0 lead and was eight outs away from his 300th win in his third try at the milestone. The Yankees right-hander gave up two hits and fanned five over 6 1/3 innings but was pulled with one out and two runners on in the Cubs' seventh.

Enter Juan Acevedo. Exit his first pitch, as Eric Karros drove Acevedo's fastball into the left-field seats to give the Cubs a 3-1 lead. Clemens, who was pulled after 84 pitches, apparently started despite an upper respiratory infection.

"He's one of the best in my book. He still is," Sosa said of Clemens. "The performance he got today was unbelievable.

"But Kerry Wood, he was untouchable," Sosa said. "There's something he showed me today with a game like that. Going against a Hall of Famer in Roger Clemens, he deserves all the credit in the world. Today was about pitching."

Wood (5-4) scattered three hits over 7 2/3 innings and raised his National League-leading strikeout total to 111. He accomplished a milestone of his own, his 50th career win, which came on his seventh try. This was Wood's first win since April 29.

"I'm glad it's out of the way," Wood said. "I don't think you get any accolades for winning 50 games. I have a long way to go, but it's nice to get it out of the way."

But the excitement of the game was tempered because of an injury to Cubs rookie Hee Seop Choi.

Choi had to be taken from the field in an ambulance after hitting the back of his head hard on the dirt base path in the fourth. Choi and Wood collided chasing a popup by Jason Giambi. Wood hit Choi and then Choi fell backward, hitting his head flush on the dirt along the third-base line.

"It was ugly," said Cubs catcher Damian Miller, who lost the ball in the sun. "His eyes were rolling back in his head. I literally got sick to my stomach."

The rookie first baseman lied motionless, and the game was delayed 17 minutes as medical staff attended to him. Fans chanted Choi's name as the Cubs recorded the final out.

Wood was visibly shaken, and reliever Mike Remlinger went out to talk to him.

"I told him as good as he was going, if he needed a reason to focus, it was to finish the job for Hee Seop because he would want nothing else but that," Remlinger said.

Kerry Wood   /   P
	Height: 6'5" Weight: 220 Bats/Throws: R/R More info: Player page Stats Splits Cubs site

"I just tried to stay as focused as I could," said Wood, who was more concerned after the game about being able to visit with Choi than beating Clemens. "I was in a pretty good rhythm most of the day. I felt I was getting ahead of guys and throwing strikes, so I just tried as best I could to get back in that rhythm. Fortunately for us it worked out."

The Yankees were impressed by Wood.

"This was the first time I've seen him close up," Yankee manager Joe Torre said. "He just looks like a pitcher. He's got a great body for a pitcher, and the ball comes out of his hand real easy. He has a number of weapons. It's interesting that these two got matched up because that's what Roger was like a couple of years ago."

Eric Karros   /   1B
	Height: 6'4" Weight: 216 Bats/Throws: R/R More info: Player page Stats Splits Hit chart A's site

Karros, who was Choi's replacement, came through with the game-winner. With one out in the seventh, Sosa singled and Moises Alou walked. Clemens was then pulled and Karros greeted Acevedo with his sixth home run.

"Any time the Rocket gets taken out of the game, you're happy to see him go," Miller said. "Roger will have to wait for his next turn to win. He'll get it sometime. Today he was dominant enough to win, but we'll take the win, that's for sure."

Hideki Matsui and Jorge Posada each hit solo homers for the Yankees. The Cubs had a cushion, and Alex Gonzalez added an RBI double and scored on Sosa's single in the Cubs' eighth.

Wrigley Field was alive -- and the two teams will play the rubber match of the series Sunday night.

"The stadium was out of control, the fans were great," Wood said. "Sometimes in the dugout you couldn't hear yourself think. It was awesome to be part of. For me right now I just want to know what's going on with Hee Seop."

Carrie Muskat is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to approval by Major League Baseball or its clubs.