Red Sox-Yankees Tonight

One of the best Red Sox-Yankees moments… Ellsbury steals home.
Photo courtesy of: www.totalprosports.com

The new chapter in the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry starts tonight. Granted, Spring Training games don’t really count for anything besides seeing how your players are doing, making adjustments, and enjoying the nice weather in Florida or Arizona. However, tonight starts the new chapter, the Valentine chapter, if you will. Bobby Valentine likes to talk… and create controversy it seems. He’s already made some comments regarding his thoughts on the Yankees (see earlier posts about A-Rod and Jeter). He said he hates the Yankees before (both as a member of the Red Sox and when he was the manager of the Mets).

Personally, I do pay attention to the details whenever the Red Sox play the Yankees. There’s always going to be those wayward glances, a few comments, the fans jeering each other and the players. Do I think there is any greater significance in the games as they stand alone, especially in Spring Training? No. They’re fun, and there’s the history. But, there are all sorts of rivalries in sports.

I’ve had to deal with my share of Yankees fans. There’s an attorney who comes into my office at work every so often, sees my Charlie Chowdahead on my desk and my Red Sox mousepad, and will go off on a tangent as to how the Yankees are the greatest franchise in history. He’ll brag how he went to the White House when the Yankees were there. He even collects Yankees memorabilia.

In 2004, one of my good friends I worked with would walk around me saying “Go Yankees” (she grew up in New Jersey). Also, in 2004, my former boyfriend would wear Yankees hats just to piss me off (for the record, I said “former boyfriend” and he had no loyalty to any team. He wore hats based on their colors). Lucky for me (and all Red Sox fans), 2004 was a bright spot for the franchise.

As hard as it was last year to watch the Red Sox squabble such a lead in September and miss the playoffs, I think 2006 was the hardest year for me as a Red Sox fan. The Sox went 9-21 in August, and the kicker was the five game series against the Yankees… at Fenway Park. The Red Sox lost all five games.

At that time, I was working at Menards in Ankeny, Iowa, my job while I attended Iowa State University (don’t worry, I recovered. I’m a Hawks fan). My front-end manager was a big Yankees fan. By big, I mean HUGE! He was probably as much of a Yankees fan as I was a Red Sox fan. Anyway, he liked to rub that 5-game sweep into my face… a lot. I took it in stride though. My manager really was a nice guy, even if he was rooting for “The Evil Empire.”

Sometimes, it is fun to get wrapped up into the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. It’s a competition, even if it is more aimed at the fans these days. My dog, Fenway, even has a shirt that says “I Bite Yankees Fans.” When the Red Sox play the Yankees during the regular season, I will change my Facebook picture to the picture of Fenway wearing his shirt.

Tonight’s game should be interesting, even if it is just to see how Bobby Valentine reacts. I know he’ll want to psych his players and the fans up, but I don’t see the players getting worked into a tizzy over a Spring Training game. But, come April 20th, the first Red Sox-Yankees game of the season, I’m sure everyone involved will be worked into a tizzy. It’s just the way it goes.