Boston Red Sox

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For the first time in almost four years, the Sox are two games under .500.

They have scored only 13 runs in the four games they have played and given up 20 for a nice round ERA of 5.00.

The hitters (other than Youkilis and his .625 batting average) are swinging through off-speed pitches where they were looking for fastballs.

After reading a few articles recently having to do with Fenway Park and doing a small amount of research on a proposed New Fenway Park, I decided it was time for me to weigh in on the issue.

"It's Time to Raze Fenway Park"

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You know what?  I grew up in Red Sox Nation and I didn’t really like baseball.  Or the Red Sox.  It’s true.

Not that I rooted for another team, but in terms of my allegiances, the Sox trailed the Celtics and Patriots, and maybe even professional wrestling.

It wasn’t always that way.  When I was really young, I followed the Sox just like I did the other teams.  Dwight Evans was my favorite player.

The Red Sox have dropped two of the first three games of the 2009 season. No cause for alarm; it's far to early for that.

But what makes it sting a bit is the fact that they were at home, where they have the best winning percentage in baseball over the past six seasons (.652), and they lost to their newest rival—the defending AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays.

We've all become accustomed to the Red Sox wining their home series, as well as beating up on the lowly Rays. Things are changing. At the least, the Rays have changed.

The rivalry between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox is often said to be the best in baseball, if not in all of American sports. It is not as ancient as some passionate fans may think, however.

It certainly is not as venerable as the competition between the Cubs and Cardinals, which dates back to a championship series played in 1885. Nor does it have the longevity of the feud between the Dodgers and Giants, which began when the two teams encountered one another in postseason play in 1889.

Following the New York Yankees' opening day loss to the Orioles, the Yankee squad heard about it.

Highly touted starter CC Sabathia giving up six runs in his Yankee debut and Mark Teixeira going hitless in his first game wearing pinstripes are just a couple things you may have heard.

The Yankees lost again last night, but we figured we’d take it easy on them (believe it or not, we can be merciful)

The Red Sox and Yankees rivalry is about to heat up. These two teams are probably the two best teams of the past 10 years, but which one has been better?

So lets get this going...

Overall regular season record: Over the past eight seasons, the Yankees' overall regular season record is 775-521. That includes three straight seasons of over 100 wins and seven seasons of over 90. This also includes six division championships.

The Boston Red Sox opened their 2009 season with a 5-3 victory over the defending AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays and a strong all-around team performance.

Josh Beckett (1-0) led the way, allowing one run in seven innings while striking out 10, scattering two hits and three walks on 93 pitches. The lone Tampa Bay run Beckett allowed came on a Carl Crawford sacrifice fly.

Dustin Pedroia opened the scoring with his first home run of the season. off of James Shields in the first inning. Jason Varitek also homered in the sixth.

After a 27-hour weather delay, the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays started their 2009 Major League Baseball seasons.

The Rays, coming off an amazing 2008 season in which they defeated the Red Sox in seven games to win their first AL Pennant, had no answers for Boston's ace Josh Beckett.

Beckett coming off an injury in 2008 could not have pitched any better against new rival Tampa Bay. Beckett went seven innings on 93 pitches, allowing just two hits and one earned run, while striking out 10 batters and only walking three.

I had to find out: Just what makes this group tick?

I'm a life-long New York Mets fan approaching 50 years of age. I have been following Major League Baseball for as long as I can recall and have been to many games in many cities. Needless to say, I've interacted with fans from all walks of life.

New York has two very popular baseball teams: the elite, historic, decorated Yankees and the Mets, the team that never fails to disappoint.