Nothing says October like the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees squaring off in the Major League Baseball postseason with the hope of ultimately winning the World Series.
Only it hasn’t happened in 14 years.
The Red Sox and Yankees will battle in this year’s American League Division Series, though, amazingly marking the first time they’ve faced each other in the playoffs since Boston overcame a 3-0 deficit in the 2004 ALCS en route to breaking the Curse of the Bambino. And there are several reasons why you should be fired up about the upcoming showdown of star-studded powerhouses, regardless of your allegiance.
So, let’s stop screwing around and get to them, shall we?
1. The history.
Where do we even begin?
The Red Sox and Yankees have been bitter rivals for more than a century, with the sale of Babe Ruth to New York becoming synonymous with Boston’s 86-year championship drought from 1918 to 2004. Along the way, there’s been no shortage of drama, from fierce on-field wars to tense off-the-field arms races and everything in between. Brawls, arguments, dirty tactics. You name it.
For Yankees fans, there are stories of Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. Red Sox fans counter with tales of Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, Pedro Martinez and David Ortiz. So much of the history is intertwined, too, making for the best rivalry in all of sports, let alone MLB.
2. The bad blood.
Yeah, so about those brawls. There have been a few.
How about Carlton Fisk and Lou Piniella throwing down in 1976?
Or Pedro Martinez tossing Don Zimmer in 2003?
And who could forget Jason Varitek giving Alex Rodriguez a face full of glove in 2004?
Unfortunately, it looked for a while like the bad blood had diminished, perhaps due in large part to both teams not facing off in the postseason for so long. But the rivalry received an extra jolt these past couple of seasons thanks to some fresh faces, and it was back to swinging hands in April when Joe Kelly plunked Tyler Austin, kickstarting a huge brawl at Fenway.
Sure, Austin is gone, having been traded to the Minnesota Twins in July. But Luis Severino throwing near Mookie Betts’ head in August, resulting in Red Sox manager Alex Cora taking a postgame jab at the Yankees pitcher, suggests there’s still some lingering animosity.
3. The stars.
MLB often catches heat for its failure to promote superstars — see Mike Trout — but this series is jam-packed with elite players. It should appeal to the casual fan as much as the baseball savant.
The Yankees have two larger-than-life sluggers in Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge, two exciting rookies in Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres, an electric starter in Luis Severino and a polarizing closer in Aroldis Chapman.
The Red Sox, meanwhile, have two MVP candidates in Mookie Betts and J.D. Martinez, a Cy Young candidate in Chris Sale, an eccentric southpaw in David Price and a dominant ninth-inning hurler in Craig Kimbrel.
And that’s just the beginning. There’s talent everywhere on these two rosters, and both teams feature a tremendous amount of personality to boot.
4. The what ifs.
What if the Red Sox never sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees? What if the Red Sox, not the Yankees, acquired Alex Rodriguez and traded away Manny Ramirez? What if Grady Little removed Pedro Martinez earlier in the eighth inning of Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS?
The Red Sox-Yankees rivalry is full of classic what-if scenarios, and today is no different when you look at both teams: What if the Red Sox, not the Yankees, acquired Stanton, whom Boston had been linked to on several occasions? What if the Yankees acquired Sale when the Chicago White Sox finally made their longtime ace available in the winter of 2016? What if Boston was more aggressive at the trade deadline and dealt for reliever Zach Britton and starter J.A. Happ, both of whom landed with the Yankees after being tossed around as possible options for the Red Sox?
The list goes on and on…
5. The future.
Concerned this year’s ALDS won’t live up to the hype? Don’t worry. There’s a decent chance they’ll do it again next year. Because not only are these two teams stacked, they also have youth on their side.
Stanton is just 28. Judge is 26. Severino is 24. Andujar is 23. Torres is 21.
Betts turns 26 this weekend. Xander Bogaerts is 26. Andrew Benintendi is 24. Rafael Devers is 21.
Things can change in a hurry, especially with free agency and many players’ desire to secure the most money possible over the course of their careers. But it’s easy to envision a scenario in which the same core players are going toe-to-toe as part of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry for several seasons.
6. The stakes.
Let’s face it. You should be fired up about this series no matter what, because the winner is one step closer to reaching the World Series. There’s nothing quite like playoff baseball, when every single pitch is magnified, and a worthy opponent looms in either the Houston Astros or Cleveland Indians.
