Yankees: 5 moments from 2021 that should reignite rivalry with Red Sox

The New York Yankees–Boston Red Sox rivalry is there … but it’s not really in your face. And we want it in your face. Yes, YOURS. Stuffed into your face each and every time it’s possible to put these two teams in national television. We do live in an increasingly divisive world, but life was just better when that was removed from our everyday interactions and instead just reserved for sports.

Or maybe life was never like that?

Anyway, this really got us thinking, because ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball broadcast really rubbed us the wrong way. Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz being “pals” for the world to hear while the two teams did battle on the field in a game that carried huge playoff implications? The two “reminiscing” about the 2004 ALCS? Ortiz offering to mend the bridge between A-Rod and Jason Varitek?

Whatever happened to carrying hate in your heart for a lifetime? This generation can’t handle that? Back in my day …

Just kidding! We don’t want it to be that extreme in any situation, but we do want disdain to exist. We don’t want to publicly express our “respect” to players who have crushed our souls in life-defining sports moments. We want these players taking the field ready to humiliate one another and revel in the misfortune they’ve created.

The rivalry hasn’t really reached intense heights as it did some 15-plus years ago, and it’s really kind of fizzled since 2018. But we think 2021 is here to fix that.

5 moments from 2021 that will intensify the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry

5. Blown call against Rougned Odor on Sunday Night Baseball

We’re not here to harp. Just reliving some moments that should bring more flair. And one could say it all began on June 6.

The Yankees were looking to avoid the second straight sweep at the hands of Boston on Sunday Night Baseball and, of course, this one went to extras … even though it maybe shouldn’t have.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Bombers tied this one up 4-4 on a Gleyber Torres RBI double. Thrilling. Torres then stole third and Gary Sanchez walked. With two outs, Rougned Odor stepped into the batter’s box. He battled Sox reliever Matt Barnes and worked the count full.

And then this happened:

You’ll never believe what happened next! The Red Sox scored two runs in the top of the 10th and won 6-5. We’re not saying the Yankees would’ve won this … but they definitely would’ve had a better chance with the bases loaded against Barnes and his elevated pitch count!

Blown calls are certainly more ammo to hate your rival.

3. Fan throwing a baseball at Alex Verdugo

Not condoning this one bit! But fans always try to inject themselves into rivalries and this unacceptable behavior surely fanned the flames.

On July 18, the game at Yankee Stadium between the two rivals was abruptly stopped when a fan threw a baseball and hit Verdugo in the back. Chaos. What motivated this unacceptable behavior is unclear (because the act was allegedly committed by a Mets fan?) but the suspect was ejected from the game and banned from every MLB ballpark.

Nonetheless, this should’ve given the Red Sox every reason in existence to want to embarrass the Yankees each following chance they got. And they got off to a nice start in the following four-game set when they won the aforementioned game against German and took Chad Green to the woodshed in another one the Yankees blew on that Thursday night.

Verdugo is a fiery and outspoken personality, too, and he’ll be with the Sox for quite some time given his situation under team control following the Mookie Betts trade. We can only hope he carries this resentment towards the Yankees whenever he takes the field against them.

And we eternally hope he doesn’t deliver. We just want the stakes higher and the trash talk to thrive.

2. Giancarlo Stanton’s go-ahead grand slam on Sept. 25

Giancarlo Stanton has owned the Red Sox across his 48 career games against them, but no hit was bigger for him (or for the Yankees, at least in recent memory) than his go-ahead grand slam with two outs in the top of the eighth inning on Sept. 25.

The Yankees trailed 2-1 and had Brett Gardner at the plate with two outs. He walked. Then Aaron Judge walked. Then Anthony Rizzo was hit by a pitch. One mound visit and one pitch later, it was 5-3 after Stanton demolished an offering from Darwinzon Hernandez over the Green Monster and into the streets of Boston.

How many times had the Yankees been in this position? Couldn’t string together hits. One run scored late in the game. Serving it up to their opponent on a silver platter. But we can safely assume Stanton was fed up with that narrative, which has left the Yankees battling for a Wild Card spot instead of a division title.

That home run turned the tides on the series and led to a sweep, with the Bombers taking control of the top ALWC spot. Stanton had three homers and 10 RBI in the series but that moment was the demoralizing back-breaker for Boston, even if they thought they’d survive the next night …

… which they didn’t.

1. Joe West’s “blown” strike three call on Aaron Judge

Boston needs a scapegoat, and they sure got one on Sunday, Sept. 26. And again, the game-altering moment came in the top of the eighth inning.

Two Yankees errors and a poor decision by Aaron Boone to make a pitching change coughed up the lead in the bottom of the seventh. The Sox flipped a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead in a blink … and they didn’t really do anything worthwhile to earn it.

Then came to the top of the eighth. Gio Urshela walked to lead off the inning and Tyler Wade pinch ran for him. Wade went to steal second — and had it stolen! — but decided not to slide because he thought he heard the ball get fouled off .. and we’re still not sure what that means.

Great … the leadoff runner is now toast. Back to the drawing board.

One pitch later, DJ LeMahieu walked. A few pitches after that, Anthony Rizzo doubled to right-center. If Wade was on base, he would’ve scored and the game would be tied. Instead, it’s runners on second and third with one out for Aaron Judge. And with two strikes, this happened:

Judge struck out, but he tipped the ball, and from West’s perspective it appeared as if Sox catcher Christian Vazquez dropped it (when, in reality, he only fumbled the exchange to his throwing hand). A few pitches before this, Bobby Dalbec didn’t catch a Judge pop-up in foul territory, so this was his third life in the same at-bat.

On the next pitch, Judge clobbered a two-run double to dead center and the Yankees took a 4-3 lead. One pitch after that, Stanton hit ANOTHER homer to make it 6-3. And just like that, the Sox saw their 7-0 season series lead end 10-9 … even after being gifted numerous Yankee choke jobs.

Here Sox fans go, though, talking about how West “screwed” them when they had one extra-base hit all night, went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position, and benefitted themselves from West screwing the Yankees on a number of strike three calls. They failed to take advantage and left it up to something like this deciding their fate.

But then again, wasn’t it just the Red Sox not getting the job done and the Yankees capitalizing? The Sox had the lead and all the momentum after Boone’s flop and the two errors that gave them the lead in the first place. They also had a chance to retire Judge a third time with a well-placed sweeping slider. Didn’t happen.

West’s call has given them an excuse to mask their poor play. But they’ll still mention it for years. Oh well, as long as it intensifies the rivalry, we’re fine with it.

Yankees-Red Sox ESPN broadcast with Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz wasn’t received well

During the Sunday Night Baseball broadcast of the New York Yankees vs Boston Red Sox game, Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz were "buddies."