Yanks Start 2nd Half By Sinking Mariners

The 2nd half of the Major League Baseball season is underway. The schedule is set up so that 41 of the Yankees' last 74 games are at home. This included last night, when the Yankees opened a 3-game home series against the Seattle Mariners.

Remember when the Mariners were supposed to be a Playoff contender, led by ex-Yankee Robinson Cano and "King" Felix Hernandez? Right, Cano's batting .249. with a .287 on-base percentage. Meanwhile, Hernandez -- who is 29 and has still never seen a postseason game except on television, so he's no king -- is having another great season, but he can only pitch 1 game out of every 5.

And remember Jesus Montero, whom the Yankees gave up for the oft-injured Michael Pineda? Lots of people (I'm not naming names) thought that was a horrible trade. Now, Pineda is 1 of the 5 best pitchers in the American League, while Montero has made 27 major league plate appearances in 2014 and '15 combined. His weight and his attitude have been issues.

If Pineda is 1 of the 5 best pitchers in the AL, so might be Masahiro Tanaka, who started for the Yankees last night. He pitched 7 innings, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7. The 3 runs came on a pair of home runs by Kyle Seager. Tanaka was not brilliant, but he was effective.

The game was tied 3-3 when Hiro threw his last pitch. They scored single runs in the 2nd, on a home run by Chris Young (his 11th of the season); in the 4th, on a double by Young and a single by Chase Headley; and in the 5th, on a single by Alex Rodriguez, a walk by Mark Teixeira, and a single by Brian McCann.

With 1 out in the bottom of the 7th, A-Rod came up, and crushed a home run to to the opposite field. It was his 19th of the season, and the 678th of his career. (That's 36 behind Babe Ruth, 77 behind Hank Aaron, and 84 behind Barry Bonds. I don't know if taking a year and change off helped him, but passing the Babe and threatening Hank and Barry is still within the realm of possibility.)

Dellin Betances pitched a perfect 8th, and Andrew Miller a scoreless 9th. Yankees 4, Mariners 3. WP: Tanaka (6-3). SV: Miller (19). LP: Joe Beimel (0-1).

The series continues today, with with Pineda starting against Hisashi Iwakuma and his 5.22 ERA. Sunday's starters haven't been announced, so the Yankees may end up avoiding "King" Felix.

*

Many people have complained about various aspects to Yankee Stadium II. But the lights work better than at Nationals Park in Washington (3 power outages resulted in last night's game being suspended), and the lack of the dome still leaves it better off than Chase Field in Phoenix (the retractable roof leaked last night, which sounds odd those of us not used to hearing about rain in Arizona).

And All-Star Game MVP Mike Trout kept up his hot hitting by launching a walkoff homer for the Whatever They're Calling Themselves This Season Angels of Anaheim.

Come, Michael. Come to the Light Side of the Force.

A Yankees-Mets All-Star Game: Play Ball

I wanted to post a picture of Reggie Jackson and Tom Seaver together, but the only one I could find on the Internet was of a baseball card commemorating the 1973 World Series, when Reggie took Tom deep in Game 6 -- while Reggie was still with Oakland.

So, instead, I put up this picture of Reggie with Derek Jeter. It is stunning for those of us who remember Reggie as the big man in New York baseball -- and he is a full 6 feet tall, and was 200 pounds at his physical peak -- to realize that Jeter is 3 inches taller. Anyway...

It's a beautiful summer night at Citi Field in Flushing Meadow, Queens. The temperature is 77 degrees, with a slight wind -- not the swirling kind that sometimes caused problems at Shea Stadium. The air smells like peanuts, shake from Shake Shack, and, of course, jet fuel.

The Mets take the field to begin the game, wearing the uniforms they regularly wore from 1980 to 1992, with Mets in script and the uniform number beneath on he front, and blue & orange stripes down the sleeves. On their left sleeve, they wear the 2012 50th Anniversary patch. On their right sleeve, they wear the S patch they wore in memory of Bill Shea in 1992.

The caps are the traditional bright blue with the orange "curlicue" interlocking NY previously worn by the baseball edition of the New York Giants. There is no black anywhere on the uniform. Names on the back.

Their outfield has Cleon Jones in left, Carlos Beltran in center and Darryl Strawberry in right. The infield is David Wright at 3rd, Jose Reyes at short, Edgardo Alfonzo at 2nd and Keith Hernandez at 1st. The catcher is Gary Carter, and the starting pitcher, naturally, is Tom Seaver.

Derek Jeter comes up to lead off for the Yankees. Home plate umpire Doug Harvey points to Seaver, and says, "Play ball!"

*

Jeter fouls off several pitches, before Seaver strikes him out. Bernie Williams flies out to center. Thurman Munson cracks a single up the middle, but Seaver strikes Reggie Jackson out.

The Yankees take the field for the bottom of the 1st. They are wearing the road gray uniforms they have worn since the 1973 season, with NEW YORK across the front. Numbers on the back, but no names. The caps are navy blue with the traditional white interlocking NY.

Their outfield has Hideki Matsui in left, Williams in center and Jackson in right. The infield is Alex Rodriguez at 3rd, Jeter at short, Robinson Cano at 2nd and Tino Martinez at 1st. Clearly, manager Joe Torre is saving Don Mattingly as a defensive replacement -- much as Met manager Davey Johnson is saving Mike Piazza as a pinch-hitter, because there's no DH, and he can't catch.

Munson is catching Ron Guidry. Torre didn't select Guidry because he was the best Yankee starter from 1969 onward -- at least, not necessarily -- as was the case with Johnson starting Seaver; but because he wanted to neutralize the lefthanded bats of Hernandez and Strawberry, and turn the switch-hitting Beltran around to his weaker right side.

Reyes leads off against Guidry, and hits a grounder in the hole. His great speed is neutralized by a fantastic Jeter play and throw, showing who the better shortstop really is. Jones flies to left. Hernandez hits a drive to right-center, but Williams drifts over to catch it. End of 1 inning: Yankees 0, Mets 0.

Martinez leads off against Seaver, and slices a single into left field. A-Rod grounds into a 4-6-3 double play. Matsui slices a double down the left-field line, but Seaver ends the threat by striking Cano out.

Guidry strikes Strawberry out. Carter slaps a single over Jeter's head. Guidry catches Beltran looking. Wright draws a walk. Alfonzo can only pop up, an easy catch for Munson. End of 2 innings: Yankees 0, Mets 0.

The pitcher's spot is coming up in the order, and, between them, Guidry and Seaver have allowed just 2 baserunners each. Should Torre put in a pinch-hitter for Guidry, whose entire career came between the institution of the DH and the arrival of Interleague play, and never once came to bat in 14 seasons? Looking at his list of lefthanded bench players to face the righthanded Seaver, he sends up Bobby Murcer. Murcer hits a drive to right field, but Strawberry catches it at the warning track. Jeter grounds to 2nd. Williams flies to center.

With the next 3 Met hitters being righthanders, Torre brings Catfish Hunter in. Seaver was a good hitter for a pitcher, but Catfish gets him to ground to 3rd. Reyes singles up the middle, and Jones singles to left. The 2 big lefties are up next. Torre plays the percentages (I won't say he "panics"), and brings in CC Sabathia. He walks Hernandez, but busts Strawberry inside. But Carter singles to left, and Reyes scores. CC manages to get Beltran to ground to 1st to end the threat. End of 3 innings: Mets 1, Yankees 0.

*

Seaver gets Munson to fly to center. Jackson hits a dribbler up the middle that Reyes bobbles. The Mets put the defensive shift on Martinez, but because he hits so well to the opposite field (as did most of the 1996-2001 Yankees), it doesn't work: He singles to left. Now it's Tom Terrific vs. A-Rod. Seaver gets him to pop up to 1st. Matsui draws a walk, but Cano strikes out. The Yankees had 2 men on, and got nothing out of it.

Torre leaves Sabathia in to start the 4th inning. He seems to find a groove, striking Wright out, getting a grounder to 3rd from Alfonzo, and inducing a fly to short center by Seaver. End of 4 innings: Mets 1, Yankees 0.

The pitcher's spot is up again for the Yankees to lead off the 5th inning. Torre sends up Dave Winfield, who hits a long fly to left field, but Jones catches it at the wall. Jeter strikes out. Williams drops a single into short center, but Munson grounds to 1st.

Andy Pettitte is the new pitcher for the Yankees. Four innings and change, and Torre has already used 5 pitchers. At least he doesn't have to worry about a pitch count.

Pettitte strikes Reyes out on a nasty cutter. But Jones singles to right. Now comes the reason Pettitte is in the game: Lefties Hernandez and Strawberry. He gets Hernandez to fly to left. But Strawberry blasts one to deep right-center. Home run. The Home Run Apple goes up in center field.

Pettitte jams Carter and strikes him out, at which point Phil Rizzuto, broadcasting the game on television, says, "But the damage is done. I tell ya, Bob Murphy, this is unbelievable. Did you see that ball that Darryl hit? Holy cow." End of 5 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 0.

Jackson leads off the top of the 6th. If Billy Martin were managing the Yankees, he might pinch-hit for Reggie. But Torre is the manager, and he trusts Reggie. Seaver tries to sneak a slider past him. It doesn't work: Reggie cranks it, over the Home Run Apple. That puts the Yankees on the board. As Reggie rounds 1st, he looks at Darryl, shooting him a dirty look, as if to say, "You ain't seen a home run trot yet, but it's comin'."

Seaver strikes Tino out, gets a fly to right from Matsui, and strikes Cano out. 3-1 Mets.

Torre trusts Pettitte with another inning. He strikes Beltran out, but Wright singles up the middle. He gets Alfonzo to fly to left. That means 2 outs, and Seaver can't bunt Wright over. With a 2-run lead, Johnson decides to leave Seaver in to hit for himself, but Pettitte gets him to ground to short, where Jeter flips to Cano for the force. End of 6 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 1.

*

Johnson leaves Seaver in for the 7th. By now, Terry Collins might have sent in a reliever.

The pitcher's spot is up, and Torre sends Mark Teixeira up to pinch-hit. Seaver strikes him out. But Jeter laces a single into right field, and now Johnson gets the Met bullpen going. Bernie singles to left. Munson strikes out, and reinjures his shoulder. Seaver strikes Reggie out to end the threat.

The 7th inning stretch features a moment of silence for the troops, Kate Smith's recording of "God Bless America," and a singalong of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," with Mr. Met standing on the Met dugout and conducting the fans.

A pinstriped 1977 Toyota Celica comes out of the visitors's bullpen, and stops in front of the 3rd base dugout. Out comes Sparky Lyle, mustache blazing, cheek full of tobacco. Torre's 6th pitcher. He'll be pitching to a new catcher, Jorge Posada.

Reyes has never seen a pitch quite like Lyle's slider, and strikes out on 3 pitches. Jones flies to center. Hernandez pops to short. End of 7 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 1.

Johnson notes that Reggie, the Yankees' most dangerous lefty hitter, ended the last inning. So instead of Al Leiter, the new Met pitcher is going to be Dwight Gooden.

Doctor K strikes Tino and A-Rod out. Matsui singles to left. No matter, as Gooden strikes Cano out. Going to the bottom of the 8th: Mets 3, Yankees 1.

Sparky vs. Darryl. Not to worry, Darryl can't hit Sparky's slider, and strikes out. But as, he so often has (and Joe Girardi so often still does), Torre pulls the lefty pitcher after facing the lefty batter. Out comes the pinstriped Celica, and in comes the Goose. Gossage strikes Carter out. Beltran drives a double to left-center. But Gossage jams Wright, who pops to 3rd. (Shades of Carl Yastrzemski at the end of the Bucky Dent Game.) End of 8 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 1.

Top of the 9th. The Yankees need 2 runs just to keep it alive, and they're facing Dwight Gooden, with his 2015 judgment and his 1985 pitching ability.

The pitcher's spot is up. Naturally, Gossage isn't going to be allowed to hit for himself. Torre sends Paul O'Neill up to pinch-hit. Gooden gets 2 quick strikes, but O'Neill fouls off 5 straight pitches before singling to left.

Jeter comes up, and singles to right. Bernie singles to center, and O'Neill scores. Mets 3, Yankees 2.

Jeter on 3rd, Williams on 1st, 1 out. The batter is Posada, a switch-hitter, who would be batting from his stronger left side against the righthanded Gooden. Should Johnson pull Doc for the lefty reliever John Franco, to turn Posada to his weaker right side? He does. Franco gets Posada to ground to 3rd, and the runners have to hold.

Now, it's Reggie Jackson, lefty, against John Franco, lefty. Tying run on 3rd, potential winning run on 1st, 2 outs. Billy Martin would pinch-hit for Reggie, but he's not here.

Torre plays a hunch, and leaves Reggie in.

Franco induces Reggie to hit a ground ball to short. Reyes calmly picks it up...

No he doesn't! He drops it! Everybody's safe! Tie ballgame, 3-3!

Bernie on 2nd, Reggie on 1st, 2 out. The batter is Tino Martinez. Johnson leaves Franco in. Torre leaves Tino in.

Franco strikes Tino out. Going to the bottom of the 9th, Mets 3, Yankees 3.

Tie game. Torre refuses to bring in his closer into a tie game. Will that come back to haunt him?

His pitcher will be David Cone. He gets Alfonzo to ground to 2nd.

The pitcher's spot is up. Johnson sends Mike Piazza up to pinch-hit.

Torre goes to the bullpen again, and brings in... Mel Stottlemyre.

Piazza hits a long drive to center. But it's all height and no distance, and Bernie settles under it.

Then Stottlemyre strikes Reyes out to end it. End of 9 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 3. "Free baseball!"

*

For the 10th inning, Johnson makes not a double-switch, but a triple-switch. Since Piazza batted for the pitcher, he will stay in the game as the catcher and bat 9th. Concerned over Reyes' fielding, Johnson pulls Reyes from the shortstop position, and replaces him with Bud Harrelson. Then, since he doesn't want the pitcher's spot coming up in Carter's former place in the order so soon in the bottom of the 10th, he moves Harrelson into the 5th spot, and makes the pitcher the leadoff hitter.

Wanting a lefthander to face Reggie, Matsui and Cano, and to turn Posada to his weaker right side, and not knowing how long the game will last, he brings in a lefty who usually started, Al Leiter.

A-Rod leads off the top of the 10th. No one on base, but a clutch situation. He drives Leiter's first pitch -- his 1st, not his 142nd like in Game 5 of the 2000 World Series -- into the gap in right-center field. Agee gets to it before Strawberry, and fires in to hold A-Rod to a double.

Matsui accepts Torre's sign to not swing for the fences, and bunts A-Rod over to 3rd. Potential winning run on 3rd with less than 2 out. But Leiter strikes Cano out. And now -- curse you, National League -- the pitcher's spot is up again.

Who's left to pinch-hit? Graig Nettles? He has good power, but he's a lefty, so no. Don Mattingly? He's as good a pure hitter as the Yankees have had since Joe DiMaggio, and with power, but also a lefty. Wade Boggs? He's as good a pure hitter as anybody's had since Ted Williams, but also a lefty. Bucky Dent? He's a righty, but not much of a hitter, and this isn't Fenway Park with that nice close left field wall. Willie Randolph? He's a righty, a decent hitter with good plate discipline.

Torre sends up Randolph. Johnson considers his bullpen options, and the only remaining righthanders are Ron Darling and the young David Cone -- meaning that, if he brings in Cone, both versions of him will be the current pitchers.

Johnson picks up the dugout phone, and calls Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History. Tyson, sitting in a box on the 1st base side, picks up his smartphone, and assures Johnson that having 2 different David Cones in the same baseball game will do no damage to the space-time continuum.

Thus satisfied about the safety of the universe, Johnson decides that 1988 David Cone is a better choice than 1999 Al Leiter to face 1978 Willie Randolph.

Randolph works the count full, and then Cone just misses with a curve. The home plate umpire, Doug Harvey, who is, at the moment, the only living umpire in the Hall of Fame, calls ball four. Johnson, knowing that Harvey is so well-respected in baseball that he is nicknamed "God," doesn't argue.

A-Rod on 3rd, Randolph on 1st, 2 out. And who's up? Captain Clutch, Derek Jeter.

Young Coney strikes him out. End of threat.

Torre makes a double switch, keeping Randolph in at 2nd base, and moving the pitcher's spot to 8th in the order. With Hernandez and Strawberry coming up in the inning, he brings in his last lefthanded pitcher, David Wells.

Cleon Jones singles up the middle. Hernandez singles to right. Now the Mets have the winning run on 2nd with nobody out, and Strawberry at the plate.

Mariano Rivera is warming up, but he's not ready. For now, it's Boomer or nobody.

Wells strikes Strawberry out on 3 nasty breaking balls. Then he gets Harrelson to ground into an around-the-horn double play, A-Rod to Willie to Tino. Whew. End of 10 innings: Mets 3, Yankees 3.

*

We go to the 11th. Bernie leads off against Cone, batting lefty. He punches a single to right. Posada is up. Bernie decides to test Piazza's arm. He steals 2nd. Then he steals 3rd.

Posada flies to center. Agee makes the catch, and throws home, but Piazza's positioning is so bad that he can't tag Bernie out. For the first time in the game, the Yankees lead.

Cone strikes Reggie out, and gets Tino to pop up to short. Going to the bottom of the 11th: Yankees 4, Mets 3.

Of course, now, Torre brings Rivera in to pitch. He strikes Beltran out. But Wright singles to center. Tying run on 1st, winning run at the plate, 1 out. Alfonzo hits one down the 3rd base line. A-Rod can stop it, but there's no chance of a throw.

Tying run on 2nd, winning run on 1st, 1 out. The batter is Mike Piazza. One of the great fastball hitters of all time. The pitcher is Mariano Rivera. One of the hardest pitchers of all time.

Piazza hits the ball deep to left, but it's just foul.

Then Rivera tries to pitch him outside. Piazza sends the ball deep to right field. Reggie is backed up against the wall, but it sinks into his glove. The runners move up to 2nd & 3rd, but now there's 2 outs.

And now, it's the Mets who must accept the fact that the pitcher's spot is up. Johnson sends Rusty Staub up to pinch-hit for Cone.

The Sandman tries to bust Rusty inside with a hellacious cut fastball. Le Grand Orange swings, but can only pop it up between 3rd and short. A-Rod yells, "Ha!" Jeter says, "Yours!" Alex catches it.

Ballgame over. Yankees win. Theeeeeeee Yankees win! Holy cow! How about that!

*

YANKEES  0 0 0  0 0 1  0 0 2  0 1 - 4 13 0
METS          0 0 1  0 2 0  0 0 0  0 0 - 3 12 1

The totals on the ballgame:

* For the Yankees, 4 runs, 13 hits, no errors, and 12 men left on base.

* For the Mets, 3 runs, 12 hits, 1 error, and 8 men left on base.

* The winning pitcher is David Wells. Mariano Rivera is credited with a save. The losing pitcher is David Cone -- even though he also pitched for the Yankees in this game.

* The Most Valuable Player of the game is Bernie Williams, 3-for-5, and manufacturer of the winning run.

* The attendance at Citi Field, 41,922.

* And the time of the game, an unmanageable, but thoroughly enjoyable, 4 hours and 47 minutes.

Of course, the Mets couldn't "take back New York." Not even with the home-field and no-DH advantages.

Maybe if Gil Hodges had been their manager. Davey Johnson made some boneheaded decisions.

Maybe it wasn't the 1969 title, but the 1986 one, that was the true "miracle." The Mets didn't win that World Series because of Johnson, but in spite of him. His later experience managing in Baltimore, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and Washington, where he's never added to his Met total of 1 Pennant, certainly suggests that.

Or maybe the Yankees, cumulatively over the last 46 years, have simply been better.

A Yankees-Mets All-Star Game: The Setup

With the All-Star Break underway, I decided to see what a Yankees vs. Mets All-Star Game would be like.

Since it wouldn't be fair to include all Yankee players in the eligibility, going back to 1903, or even going back to the birth of the Mets in 1962 -- thus making Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford and Roger Maris eligible -- I decided to make the cutoff date 1969. That way, none of the old Yankee Dynasty players would be eligible, but the players from that season's Met "Miracle" would be.

I'm going to use a variation on the 1999 Major League Baseball All-Century Team positioning: 2 players at each of the infield positions, being 1st base, 2nd base, shortstop, 3rd base and catcher; switching the numbers for the other positions, resulting in 6 outfielders and 9 pitchers; and 5 "wild cards," putting in the 5 best players each team has had from 1969 to 2015 that didn't otherwise make the cut.

Any players who played for either team from Opening Day 1969 onward are eligible, but if you think Matt Harvey is a good choice based on less than 2 full seasons, you're fooling yourself. Same with R.A. Dickey for 3 seasons.

Here are the players, and you'll note that some uniform numbers are worn by more than one player:

New York Mets, 1969-2015

1 CF Mookie Wilson
3 SS Bud Harrelson
4 RF Ron Swoboda (Wild Card selection)
4 CF Lenny Dykstra (WC)
4 3B Robin Ventura (WC)
5 3B David Wright
6 2B Wally Backman
7 1B Ed Kranepool (WC)
7 SS Jose Reyes
8 C Gary Carter
10 RF Rusty Staub (WC)
12 P Ron Darling
13 2B Edgardo Alfonzo
15 C Jerry Grote
15 CF Carlos Beltran
16 P Dwight Gooden
17 1B Keith Hernandez
18 RF Darryl Strawberry
20 CF Tommie Agee
20 3B Howard Johnson
21 LF Cleon Jones
21 1B Carlos Delgado
22 P Al Leiter
31 P John Franco
31 C Mike Piazza
32 P Jon Matlack
36 P Jerry Koosman
41 P Tom Seaver
44 P David Cone
45 P Tug McGraw
5 MGR Davey Johnson

* From the 1969 World Champions, 9 players: Harrelson, Swoboda, Kranepool, Grote, Agee, Jones, Koosman, Seaver and McGraw.

* From the 1973 National League Champions, but not the '69 team, 2 players: Staub and Matlack.

* From the 1986 World Champions, 9 players: Wilson, Dykstra, Backman, Carter, Darling, Gooden, Hernandez, Strawberry and Howard Johnson, plus manager Davey Johnson.

* From the 1988 NL Eastern Division Champions, but not the '86 team, 1 player: Cone.

* From the 2000 NL Champions, 5 players: Ventura, Alfonzo, Leiter, Franco and Piazza.

* From the 2006 NL East Champions, 4 players: Wright, Reyes, Beltran and Delgado.

If you're wondering about Willie Mays: Since he only played for the Mets at the end of his career, you'd be getting the 1972 Mays, not the 1954, the 1965, or even the 1969 Mays. Same with some other legends: You'd get the Gil Hodges of 1962, not 1951; the Duke Snider of 1963, not 1955; the Richie Ashburn of 1962, not 1950; the Warren Spahn of 1965, not 1948, 1957 or even 1961; the Rickey Henderson of 1999, not 1982, 1989 or 1993; and, most definitely, the Tom Glavine of 2007, not 1995. (By the same token, the Yankees could have the Phil Niekro of 1985, but not the one of 1973.)

What about Johan Santana? Face it, he failed as a Met. If your sole reason for wanting to see him here is the fact that he pitched the first Met no-hitter, well, be honest: He didn't. No one has. Yet.

New York Yankees, 1969-2015

1 CF Bobby Murcer
2 SS Derek Jeter
9 3B Graig Nettles
12 3B Wade Boggs (WC)
13 3B Alex Rodriguez
15 C Thurman Munson
20 SS Bucky Dent
20 C Jorge Posada
21 RF Paul O'Neill
22 P Jimmy Key
23 1B Don Mattingly
24 1B Tino Martinez
24 2B Robinson Cano
25 1B Mark Teixeira (WC)
28 P Sparky Lyle (WC)
29 P Catfish Hunter
30 P Mel Stottlemyre (WC)
30 2B Willie Randolph
31 LF Dave Winfield
33 P David Wells (WC)
35 P Mike Mussina
36 P David Cone
42 P Mariano Rivera
44 RF Reggie Jackson
46 P Andy Pettitte
49 P Ron Guidry
51 CF Bernie Williams
52 P CC Sabathia
54 P Goose Gossage
55 LF Hideki Matsui
6 MGR Joe Torre

* From the 1964-76 interregnum, 1 player: Stottlemyre.

* From the 1977 and 1978 World Champions, 9 players: Nettles, Munson, Dent, Lyle, Hunter, Randolph, Jackson, Guidry and Gossage ('78 only).

* From the 1981 American League Champions, but not '77 or '78, 2 players: Murcer and Winfield.

* From the 1982-95 interregnum, 1 player: Mattingly.

* From the 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000 World Champions, 11 players: Jeter, Boggs ('96 only), Posada, O'Neill, Key ('96 only), Martinez, Wells ('98 only), Cone, Rivera, Pettitte and Williams, plus manager Torre.

* From the 2001 and 2003 AL Champions, but not the World Championships on either side, 1 player: Mussina.

* From the 2009 World Champions, but not the previous dynasty, 5 players: Rodriguez, Cano, Teixeira, Sabathia and Matsui.

Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry played for both teams, but, here, they will be Mets only. The Mets have the 1988 version of David Cone, while the Yankees can have his 1996 self.

I'll give the Mets the home-field advantage, and play the game at Citi Field. This also means no designated hitter, which means either pitchers bat, or there's pinch-hitters.

The game will be broadcast on 660 WFAN by John Sterling (Yankees) and Bob Murphy (Mets). It will also be telecast on WPIX-Channel 11 by Phil Rizzuto (Yankees) and Ralph Kiner (Mets). Who knows, the two of them might stop telling stories long enough to tell us what happens on the field.

On the home side of the field, the 1st base side, the Mets have provided luxury boxes for Joe Namath, Bill Parcells, Denis Potvin, Paul McCartney, Jerry Seinfeld, and Mayors Robert Wagner and Ed Koch. On the 3rd base side, the Yankees have provided boxes for Walt Frazier, Phil Simms, Eli Manning, Mark Messier, Nelson Mandela, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Crystal, Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and Governors Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo.

Team Captains Hernandez and Munson (not Jeter) come out to exchange lineup cards with umpires Doug Harvey (NL, home plate), John Hirschbeck (AL, 1B), John McSherry (NL, 2B), Durwood Merrill (AL, 3B), Lee Weyer (NL, LF) and Jim Joyce (AL, RF).

A moment of silence is held, in memory of the old New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers.

The National Anthem is sung by Billy Joel, who played the first concert at the old Yankee Stadium (other than pregame or postgame shows or festivals) and the last concert at Shea Stadium. He was born in The Bronx (Yankee territory), and has lived most of his life on Long Island (supposedly, Met territory), but is clearly a Yankee Fan. Casey Stengel, the only man to get his uniform number retired by both teams, will throw out the ceremonial first ball.

Up next: PLAY BALL!

July 13, 1985: Live Aid

July 13, 1985, 30 years ago: The Live Aid concerts are held: One at the old Wembley Stadium in West London, the other at John F. Kennedy Stadium in South Philadelphia. 

The show was organized by Bob Geldof, leader of The Boomtown Rats; and James "Midge" Ure, lead singer of Ultravox. Geldof, Irish, and Ure, Scottish, had written "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for African famine relief, in time for the 1984 Christmas season, and got pretty much everybody who was currently anybody in music in the British Isles to sing on it.

With its success, an American version was inevitable. Producer Quincy Jones called Michael Jackson, at the time the biggest show business figure in the world. Jackson and Lionel Richie wrote "We Are the World," and Jones gathered several American musical luminaries to record it in Los Angeles. It was also a runaway success.

With both songs having raised a lot of money, a benefit concert was inevitable. It ended up being 2 shows, one in each country. It was a combination of current stars and established legends -- an "All-Star Game" and an "Old-Timers Day" in one. Or, in more recent parlance, an Avengers of rock and roll.

And it wasn't that easy. Geldof called Elton John, and said you gotta do it, because David Bowie and Queen had already agreed -- when they hadn't. While Elton was thinking it over, Geldof called Bowie, and told him that Elton and Queen had already agreed. Eventually, Geldof got everybody he wanted.

*

At 12:00 noon London time, 7:00 AM U.S. East Coast time, the British leg began at the original Wembley, England's national stadium since its opening in 1923. Holding 100,000 in its normal configuration, the huge stage limited it to 72,000 seats, all sold. Tickets were £5, plus a £20 donation to charity. With Britain's rate of inflation, that's about £75. With today's exchange rate, that's about $105.

The Coldstream Guards gave a royal salute, and played the National Anthem, "God Save the Queen." Queen Elizabeth II was not in attendance -- she was already 58 years old, and tolerated rock and roll more than actually enjoying it -- but her son and heir, Prince Charles, and his wife, Princess Diana, were there.

The Anthem done, the 1st band to play was Status Quo. They were followed by The Style Council, Geldof's Boomtown Rants, Adam Ant, Ure's Ultravox, Spandau Ballet, Elvis Costello (singing only one song, The Beatles' "All You Need Is Love"), Nik Kershaw, Sade (who may have the sexiest voice in all of humanity), Sting from The Police and Phil Collins from Genesis together, Howard Jones, Bryan Ferry, Paul Young, U2, Dire Straits, Queen, David Bowie, The Who reunited for the 1st time since their 1982 "farewell tour," and Elton John.

Queen came on at 6:41 PM, and have been widely regarded as the highlight of the Wembley part of the show. They played "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Radio Ga Ga" (the song that inspired Stefani Germanotta, born the next year, to rename herself Lady Gaga), "Hammer to Fall," "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," "We Will Rock You," and "We Are the Champions."

Freddie Mercury and Brian May of Queen

At 9:48, Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury and lead guitarist Brian May came back out, and played, "Is This the World We Created?" At 9:51, former Beatle Paul McCartney came out, and, with Bowie, Geldof, Alison Moyet and Who guitarist Pete Townshend backing him, sang "Let It Be." At 9:57, the show closed with everybody coming back out, and, over 5 months before the next December 25, sang, "Do They Know It's Christmas?"

Left to right: Bob Geldof, Bono, Paul McCartney and Freddie Mercury

*

Built in 1926, as Sesquicentennial Stadium, for a world's fair celebrating the 150th Anniversary of American independence, and known from that fair until 1964 as Municipal Stadium, John F. Kennedy Stadium was a 105,000-seat horseshoe in South Philadelphia, with The Spectrum and then Veterans Stadium built adjacent. Best known as the site of the annual Army-Navy football game, it was, by this point, rarely used, since it was aging and not well-cared-for.

So, why there? The producer for the American leg was Bill Graham, already legendary for the concerts he promoted in San Francisco, and operator of the concert halls Fillmore West there and Fillmore East in New York. He got well-known TV producer Tony Verna to handle the U.S. broadcast. Verna was a Philadelphia native, and Verna was on good terms with Mayor Wilson Goode, who offered the use of JFK Stadium.

Why not New York? The biggest stadium in the Tri-State Area was Giants Stadium, and, this being before the building of the Meadowlands Spur of New Jersey Transit's rail operations, getting there by any means other than car was a miserable experience. (Given the inevitable traffic backups, getting there by car wasn't much better.) And since both Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium were owned by New York City, they would have needed Mayor Ed Koch's permission to do the show at either one, and Koch wasn't interested.

Tickets were $35, or about $77 in today's money -- hardly an unreasonable price, given how many stars took the stage at JFK Stadium. The crowd was listed as 89,484. They started earlier, their time, than London did: 8:51 AM.

The 1st act was Bernard Watson. Who? His real name was David Weinstein, he was 18 years old, he was from Miami Beach, he had just graduated from high school, and he had no professional musical experience. He slept outside the stadium for a week, hoping to get a ticket, and ran into Graham, and talked him into letting him open. He sang Bob Dylan's "All I Really Want to Do," and a song he wrote, "Interview." (About the only information I have on him is that he's still alive.)

At 9:01 AM, Joan Baez, a veteran of the Greenwich Village folk scene, the Newport Folk Festival, and Woodstock took the stage. She told a generation too young to have gone to those shows, "This is your Woodstock, and it's long overdue." She sang "Amazing Grace" and "We Are the World."

She was followed by Philly natives The Hooters, then Motown legends the Four Tops. Trinidadian soul singer Billy Ocean was next, and then, a different style from any of those, the British inventors of heavy metal, Black Sabbath, with Ozzy Osbourne singing lead with them for the 1st time since 1979.

If that wasn't enough of a mix of styles, Sabbath were followed by the biggest group in rap at the time, Run-D.M.C. And they were followed by... Rick Springfield. And then REO Speedwagon. David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash were the 2nd act from Woodstock, after Baez, to perform. And their soft-rock was followed by another British metal icon, Judas Priest. Then Bryan Adams. Then the Beach Boys, complete with Brian Wilson.

George Thorogood and the Destroyers came up from Delaware, with bluesmasters Bo Diddley and Albert Collins sitting in. Simple Minds came over from Scotland. The Pretenders were next. At the time, their leader, Chrissie Hynde, was married to Simple Minds' leader, Jim Kerr. Then, Woodstock veterans Santana. Motown songwriting couple Nick Ashford & Valerie Simpson, by now singing their own songs, performed with Philly native Teddy Pendergrass, by then in a wheelchair following a car crash.

Madonna was next, with Thompson Twins and Nile Rodgers backing her. Then, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Kenny Loggins, The Cars. Neil Young, who has often performed with Crosby, Stills and Nash, performed without them. Next up was The Power Station: Lead singer Robert Palmer; Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor and bassist John Taylor; and Chic drummer Tony Thompson. Then, Eric Clapton.

One man played at Wembley, got over to Heathrow Airport, flew across the Atlantic Ocean on the Concorde, got from JFK Airport in New York by helicopter to JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, and played there, too: Phil Collins. He had played from 3:18 to 3:48 in London, and from 8:00 to 8:35 in Philadelphia -- with the 5-hour time difference, it was about a 10-hour gap.

And that may not have been the most notable thing he did that day. He played drums for Led Zeppelin. Singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist John Paul Jones hadn't played together since drummer John Bonham died in 1980. But, with Collins sitting in, they played "Rock and Roll," "Whole Lotta Love" and "Stairway to Heaven."

Then, as night began to fall over the Delaware Valley, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young did sing together. So did Duran Duran. Then things got serious: On came Philly native Patti LaBelle. Then Philly natives Daryl Hall & John Oates, with former Temptations singers Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin.

Tina & Mick

At 10:15, Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones and Tina Turner took the stage, and sang 5 songs together. At 10:39, backed by Stones guitarists Keith Richards and Ron Wood, Bob Dylan, who did not play at Woodstock, came on, and sang "Ballad of Hollis Brown," "When the Ship Comes In," and "Blowin' in the Wind." The finale, at 10:55, was everybody coming onstage to sing "We Are the World."

Between the 2 shows, it was estimated that 1.9 billion people watched at least part of the broadcast, about 40 percent of the world's population at the time. Money raised? According to Geldof, about £150 million, or about $107 million given what was then the exchange rate, or about $235 million in 2015 money.

This was the greatest thing ever to happen at Wembley, or any other sports stadium. England's victory in the 1966 World Cup Final is a distant 2nd.

The old Wembley was not well-cared-for, and a replacement became necessary. It was closed in 2000, demolished, and the new Wembley Stadium opened on the site in 2007.

Mick and the Stones had planned to return to JFK Stadium for their Steel Wheels tour in 1989, but it was ruled unsafe for occupancy, so they headed 2 blocks north to The Vet. The last show at JFK Stadium was The Grateful Dead in 1991. The following year, it was demolished. In 1996, the new arena for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers opened on the site. As one bank has bought out another, arena naming rights and all, it has gone through several names, and is currently the Wells Fargo Center.

Scrap the Home Run Derby

Today is Monday of the All-Star Break. And that can only mean one thing.

Major League Baseball's official freak show.

Not only is the Home Run Derby totally meaningless, and its history riddled with cheaters, but the winner frequently gets hurt right after it, hurting his team after he participated in a meaningless competition.

Did I say, "riddled with cheaters"? You're damn right I did:

1986 Wally Joyner
1992 Mark McGwire
1993 Juan Gonzalez
1996 Barry Bonds
2000 Sammy Sosa
2001 Luis Gonzalez
2002 Jason Giambi (admittedly, a Yankee at the time)
2004 Miguel Tejada
2010 David Ortiz

The whole point of the home run is its excitement -- much of which is due to its being unexpected. That's why the most famous home runs aren't those hit by Babe Ruth or Mark McGwire, but by less-likely heroes: Bobby Thomson, Dusty Rhodes, Bill Mazeroski, Dave Henderson, Scott Podsednik.

As a Yankee Fan, I can name Chris Chambliss, Bucky Dent, Jim Leyritz, Chad Curtis and Aaron Boone. Met fans can name Al Weis, Lenny Dykstra, Todd Pratt, Robin Ventura and Benny Agbayani.

Kirk Gibson was a good slugger, but his 1988 homer was huge because he was injured and it was a big surprise. In contrast, Reggie Jackson had to hit 3 homers in a single World Series game to get anybody to notice.

Why doesn't Joe Carter get more credit for hitting a Series-winning homer? Less the 396 homers he hit in regular season play, more that it was off Mitch Williams, so you could kind of see it coming. In the Home Run Derby, you expect home runs. So they're no big deal.

Scrap the Home Run Derby. Bring back the Old-Timers Game.

*

Hours until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 10, tonight, at 9:30 Eastern Time, against Panama, in the Group Stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas. The U.S. men haven't exactly followed the amazing path of the U.S. women -- or have they? The U.S. women didn't look great in the Group Stage of the recent Women's World Cup, but they plowed through the knockout rounds like the other teams owed them money. At any rate, regardless of how tonight's game ends, the U.S. is assured of topping their group.

Days until the Red Bulls play again: 5, this Saturday night at 7:30, away to Orlando City, their 1st-ever meeting with this expansion team.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": 8, next Tuesday afternoon, at 4:00, against the Philadelphia Union, in the Quarterfinal of the U.S. Open Cup, America's version of the FA Cup. The next game against the New England Revolution will be on Saturday night, August 22, at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The next game against D.C. United will be on Sunday night, August 30, at Red Bull Arena.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 22, on Tuesday, August 4, at 7:00 PM, at Yankee Stadium II. A little over 3 weeks.

Days until Arsenal play again (in a competitive match): 27, on Sunday afternoon (8:30 in the morning our time), home to East London club West Ham United. Under 4 weeks.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 52, on Thursday night (why?), September 3, away to Woodbridge. A little over 7 weeks.

Days until Rutgers plays football again: 54, on Saturday afternoon, September 5, home to Norfolk State.

Days until the Devils play again: 88, on Friday, October 9, home to the Winnipeg Jets. A little under 3 months.

Days until the Islanders' first home game at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn: 88, also on Friday, October 9, against the defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks. Or, to put it another way, "88 Sleeps Till Brooklyn." Until then, despite having definitively played their last competitive game in the Nassau Coliseum, even with their 4 straight long-ago Stanley Cups, they're just a Small Club In Hempstead.

Days until the Devils play another local rival: 97, on Sunday, October 18, away to the Rangers.

Days until the next North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham: 117, on Saturday, November 7, at the Emirates Stadium.

Days until the next East Brunswick vs. Old Bridge Thanksgiving game: 136, on Thursday morning, November 26, at 10:00 AM, at EB. A little over 4 months.

Days until the Copa América Centenario begins on U.S. soil: 326, on June 3, 2016. A little under 11 months. The tournament will be between teams from the North American, Central American and Caribbean region (CONCACAF) and South America (CONMEBOL, which is celebrating its 100th Anniversary). Although it's a member of CONCACAF rather than CONMEBOL, the U.S. is the host nation, and thus qualifies automatically, as it does for the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Days until Euro 2016 begins in France: 333, on Friday, June 10.

Days until the next Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 389, on Friday, August 5, 2016. A little under 13 months.

Days until Alex Rodriguez's Yankee contract runs out: Officially, at the end of the 2017 season. Game 7 of that year's World Series could turn out to be on Halloween, so, for the sake of this entry, let's say October 31, 2017, which would be 1,206 -- a little over 2 years. Of course, the Yankees could release him before then, but I don't think the House of Steinbrenner wants to take the financial hit from buying him out.

Days until the next World Cup begins in Russia: 1,426, on Friday June 8, 2018. A little over 3 years.

Duke Refsnyder and A-Rod Lead Yanks to 2 of 3 Over Boston Red Scum

To paraphrase Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars (you know: Episode IV: A New Hope):

Fenway Park. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.

On Friday night, Michael Pineda took the mound in the little green pinball machine off Kenmore Square, pitched into the 7th inning, and allowed 1 run on 7 hits and no walks, striking out 6. The only run was a solo home run by Mookie Betts in the 5th inning.

(That was when Lisa Swan of Subway Squawkers said she came in and turned on the TV. I'm not saying she's a jinx... but she sometimes says it about herself.)

So the Yankee pitching gave the Yankee hitting the chance to win the game. They did. Alex Rodriguez hit a home run in the 1st inning. Naturally (if you'll pardon the choice of words), the Sox fans chanted, "Ster-oids!" at him, and then wildly cheered David Ortiz, who took the collar: 0-for-4. A small piece of what would serve him right.

The Yankees scored 3 more runs in the 4th, with help from a game-ending injury to Sox starter Clay Buchholz, an error by Sox 2nd baseman Brock Holt (sounds like the name of either a naive soap opera character or an unscrupulous law firm), and a bases-loaded walk by emergency reliever Robbie Ross. Ex-Chowdahead Jacoby Ellsbury singled home another run in the 8th, and the Yankees had taken the opener of the series.

Yankees 5, Red Sox 1. WP: Pineda (9-5). No save. LP: Buchholz (7-7).

*

In spite of how poorly the Sox are doing this season (again, a small piece of what would serve those bastards and their bastard fans right), I don't think anyone expected the Yankees to sweep this series. Beating the Red Sox is tough enough, especially in the pinball machine.

But this was Ivan Nova's 3rd straight disappointing game after his triumphant return from over a year on the Disabled List. He got into the 7th inning, and didn't walk a batter, so it wasn't an issue of control. But he allowed 4 runs on 8 hits. His ERA is 3.42, which is respectable. But in these last 3 starts, he's 0-3, with an ERA of 4.76, which is not good.

It didn't help that, in relief of Nova, Adam Warren and Chasen Shreve faced 6 batters and only got 1 of them out, adding another run to the Sox' total.

A-Rod hit another home run, his 18th of the season; and Ellsbury, remembering how much he likes hitting at Fenway, hit his 2nd. He singled in the 8th, and Brett Gardner doubled him home.

Rob Refsnyder made his much-awaited major league debut on Saturday night. Batting 9th, wearing Number 64 (surely, he'll get a lower one, possibly even this season) and playing 2nd base, he grounded out to 2nd off Eduardo Rodriguez in the 3rd, lined out to right field off Rodriguez in the 6th, and popped up to 1st off Junichi Tazawa in the 8th.

Red Sox 5, Yankees 3. WP: Rodriguez (5-2). SV: Koji Uehara (22). LP: Nova (1-3).

*

So yesterday afternoon was the rubber game, and the last game before the All-Star Break. There wasn't really a "must-win" vibe around the Yankees. The Sox needed the game a lot more.

Kim Jung-Tae was born on March 24, 1991 in Seoul, Korea. At the age of 5 months, he was adopted by an American couple, and given the name Robert Daniel Refsynder. He grew up in Laguna Hills, Orange County, California. That's Angels territory, and he grew up as an Angels fan.

His father, a former small-college basketball player, took him to the Los Angeles Lakers' annual Christmas Day game every year. He played quarterback for his high school football team, but went to the University of Arizona on a football scholarship. He switched to baseball, and he helped them with the 2012 College World Series.

There was a to-do about Brian Cashman keeping Refsnyder in Triple-A while Stephen Drew's bat was pathetic. At age 24, and doing very well at Scranton, he should have been up, at the minimum, in May. If not last season. After yesterday's game, it will be impossible for a reasonable man to ignore Refsnyder. We'll see if Cashman is going to be reasonable.

Brian McCann hit one out in the 2nd inning, his 14th homer of the season, making it 2-0 Yankees. But the Sox came back with 3 off Nathan Eovaldi in the 3rd. But McCann led of the 5th with a double, Chase Headley singled him over to 3rd (McCann can do lots of things, but running isn't one of them), and Wade Miley committed a balk to send McCann home with the tying run.

Brett Gardner led off the 6th with a single, and A-Rod doubled him home. After Mark Teixeira lined out, Chris Young doubled home A-Rod. McCann grounded out, but Headley doubled home Young, to make it 6-3 Yankees.

The Sox took a run back in the bottom of the 6th, but Refsnyder led of the 7th with his 1st major league hit, a single to center off Tommy Layne. In the 9th, with Headley on 2nd, Refsnyder came to bat against Alexi Ogando, and crushed a pitch over the Green Monster for a home run.

If you're keeping track at home:

Career Home Runs
Alex Rodriguez 673
Rob Refsnyder 1

Naturally, we were wondering what broadcaster John Sterling's call was going to be. It turned out to be, "Refsnyder has soul!" A play on his birthplace of Seoul. Lame, John. The least you could have done was call him "Duke Refsnyder," a play on the old Brooklyn Dodger center fielder Edwin "Duke" Snider, a.k.a. "the Duke of Flatbush."

(Snider was called Duke as a boy because he seemed to have a very noble bearing. Like Refsnyder, Snider was a quarterback in high school before becoming a major league slugger. Like Venus and Serena Williams, he was, literally, straight outta Compton, though he usually called neighboring Los Angeles his hometown.)

But the rookie sensation giveth, and the rookie sensation taketh away. He committed an error in the bottom of the 9th, and Andrew Miller's shakiness after coming off the DL continued. The Sox tagged him for 2 unearned runs, before he got Shane Victorino to pop up to end the game.

Yankees 8, Red Sox 6. WP: Eovaldi (9-2). No save. LP: Miley (8-8). That's 2 out of 3 against The Scum, in Scum Town.

Ortiz did not play in this game. According to Sox manager John Farrell, he has "an upper respiratory infection." Could that be code for that time-honored Sox activity, choking? Farrell said that Ortiz was "taking fluids." What kind of fluids, Johnny? Performance-enhancing fluids? Same New England, always cheating.

*

So, with 15 out of the season's 26 weeks in the books, the Yankees are 48-40, a pace for 88 wins. Not enough to win the American League Eastern Division? Perhaps not, but, for the moment, in 1st place. They lead the Tampa Bay Rays by 3 1/2 games (5 in the loss column), the Baltimore Orioles by 4, the Toronto Blue Jays by 4 1/2 (6 in the loss column), and the Red Sox by 6 1/2 (7 in the loss column).

If the current standings hold until the end of the season, the Playoff teams will be as follows: The Yankees, the Kansas City Royals, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the Minnesota Twins and the surprising Houston Astros in the AL; the Washington Nationals, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Pittsburgh Pirates and another surprise, the Chicago Cubs, in the National League. The Mets? Despite all their injuries and their pathetic hitting, they're just a game (2 in the loss column) behind the Cubs for the 2nd NL Wild Card.

The All-Star Game is tomorrow night, in Cincinnati. A-Rod, Teix, Gardy and Dellin Betances will represent the Yankees.

Yankees vs. Red Sox: The Defining Moments, Part IV: 2002-2015

The image above really should include North and Central Jersey.  But it gets the Bristol Line (as I call it, cutting through the Connecticut hometown of ESPN, and also Yale's base of New Haven) pretty much right.

It also gives an interesting indication: While, road-wise, the eastern tip of Long Island, Montauk Point, is closer to Midtown Manhattan and Yankee Stadium, in terms of as-the-crow-flies distance, which includes radio and TV signals, it's actually closer to Boston's Downtown Crossing and Fenway Park. As a result, there are more Sox fans there than Yankee Fans. To be fair, there are ferries from Montauk to the Rhode Island locations of Newport and Block Island.

December 26, 2002, Fenway Park. The Yankees sign Cuban pitcher Jose Contreras, and new Sox president Larry Lucchino, in a fit of petulance, calls the Yankees "the Evil Empire."

Oh, really? Putting aside the question of which team is actually more evil... The term "Evil Empire" had been used by President Ronald Reagan -- who knew more about baseball than he did about economics or foreign affairs -- to describe the Soviet Union. Excuse me, Larry, but how do you square the image of the heavily capitalist Yankees with Communism and its prohibition of private property?

Some Yankee Fans, however, connect the word "Empire" with the villains of the Star Wars film franchise, including one fan who made a T-shirt with Darth Vader's helmet, saying, "May the Curse be with you."

October 11, 2003, Fenway Park. Game 3 of the ALCS, and another Roger vs. Pedro matchup. Pedro hits Karim Garcia in the head, on purpose. Not the first time he's hit a Yankee on purpose, nor will it be the last, but it is easily the most notorious.

There is yelling back and forth. Jorge Posada, himself a former Pedro victim, yells in Spanish so that Pedro has no problem understanding. Pedro points at his head, then at Jorge. Message: "I'm going to hit you in the head." Making such a threat is a crime.

Later in the game, Clemens pitches to Manny Ramirez, and the pitch is head-high... but over the plate, and clearly not intended to hit Manny. (As we've seen, if Roger Clemens wanted to hit a batter, that batter got hit.) Manny points at Clemens and walks toward him, still holding the bat. The benches clear again, and Yankee coach Don Zimmer -- manager of the Sox in 1978, but also a former player who nearly died from a beaning in Triple-A ball in 1953 -- runs toward Pedro.

Pedro Martinez, age 32, grabs Don Zimmer, age 72, by the head, and throws him to the ground. Attempted murder, if the jurisdiction is New York City. In Boston, Zimmer ends up forced to apologize, with Pedro getting a $50,000 fine -- pocket change, with what the Sox are paying him.

Refresh my memory: Did we have to apologize to Japan for putting Pearl Harbor in the way of our Pacific Coast?

When things finally settle down, Clemens finishes his strikeout of Manny. Yankees 4, Red Sox 3. The next day, Game 4 is rained out, giving everyone a 24-hour cooling-off period, which was really for the best.

English soccer fans like to refer to their rivals as "The Scum," and their rivals' fans as "Scummers." As far as I'm concerned, this was the day the Red Sox stopped being mere arch-rivals, and truly became The Scum. They can take their "Evil Empire" talk and shove it up their own evil asses.

October 16, 2003, Yankee Stadium. It comes down to a Game 7. David Ortiz hits 2 home runs (cough-steroids-cough), and the Sox lead 5-2 in the bottom of the 8th. By this point, Ortiz, a.k.a. "Big Papi," has been hitting the Yanks like crazy all year. His success against the Yankees will eventually beg the question, "How many times does a guy have to get big hits off you before you plunk him?"

Ah, but there's a double standard at work: A Sox pitcher can hit a Yankee batter, and get away with it every... single... time; a Yankee pitcher can hit a Sox batter, and he gets thrown out of the game, fined and suspended. Anyway, the Sox need 5 more outs.

Derek Jeter doubles. Bernie Williams singles, Jeter scores. 5-3.

Sox manager Grady Little comes out, and he has to know that Pedro has thrown too many pitches, and that the next 2 batters are Hideki Matsui, a lefty; and Posada, a switch-hitter but much better from the left side than from the right; so the right thing to do is to bring in a lefthanded pitcher, probably Alan Embree (who usually pitched well against the Yankees), to pitch Matsui lefty-on-lefty and turn Posada to his weaker right side. The decision seems obvious to everyone: Sox fans, Yankee Fans, the Fox broadcast team, neutral TV viewers.

Obvious to everyone, that is, except for the man whose decision it was: Little. He leaves Pedro in. Matsui hits a ground-rule double, moving Bernie to 3rd base.

2nd & 3rd, only 1 out, and the dangerous (especially from the left side) Posada coming up. Now Little has got to take Pedro out, and bring in Embree.

But he stays in the dugout. Pedro remains on the mound, and Jorge dumps a looper into short center, scoring Bernie and Hideki. 5-5. Yet another legendary Sox choke, and The Stadium shakes with fans cheering and jumping. (And, considering Game 3, I find it very fitting that Posada got the hit that ended Pedro's night.)

Bottom of the 11th, and Tim Wakefield, who had beaten the Yanks in Games 1 and 4 of the series, and had pitched a scoreless 10th, opens the inning by throwing a 69 miles-per-hour knuckleball to Aaron Boone. Boom. Yankees 6, Red Sox 5. Boone takes his place alongside Bucky Dent and Bill Buckner.

Was this the greatest game of all time? Or, at least, the greatest Yanks-Sox game? It might have been, if the Yankees had won the ensuing World Series. But they lost. I don't want to talk about it. Jeff Fucking Weaver.

November 28, 2003, Fenway Park. Having failed to trade Nomar to the Texas Rangers for Alex Rodriguez, the Red Sox instead pull off a "reverse Tom Seaver": They trade 4 nobodies to the Arizona Diamondbacks for one of the top pitchers in the game, Curt Schilling, who had previously driven the Yankees nuts in the 2001 World Series.

As a Philadelphia Phillie, Schilling had been described by general manager Lee Thomas as follows: "One day out of five, he's a horse; the other four, he's a horse's ass." Schilling lives up to that reputation at his introductory press conference in Boston, by saying, "I guess I hate the Yankees now."

February 16, 2004, Yankee Stadium. With the Sox having failed to trade for A-Rod, making a very public mess of the negotiations with the Texas Rangers, the Yankees succeed, sending Alfonso Soriano to Texas for the biggest name (if not the best player) in baseball. With Jeter still at shortstop, A-Rod moves over to 3rd base.

July 1, 2004, Yankee Stadium. As wild a regular-season game as you'll ever see. The Yankees end up using everyone on their roster. The Sox use everyone on theirs, except for 2. One is backup catcher Doug Mirabelli. The other is Nomar, apparently injured but not on the Disabled List -- and the fact that Nomar is not sent into what is very much a key game, calendar be damned, is telling.

Once, Nomar, Jeter and A-Rod were the subjects of a debate as to who was the best shortstop in baseball. Now, Jeter is making a diving play that saves the game, A-Rod is playing 3rd base and moving to shortstop after Jeter got hurt on that play, and Nomar is sitting on the bench, leading to his being traded by the Sox within a few days.

Manny homers in the top of the 13th, but Miguel Cairo and John Flaherty double in the bottom of the 13th to win it. Yankees 6, Red Sox 5. A stunning game whose re-airing on the YES Network the next morning gets relabeled from "Yankees Recap" to "Yankees Classic." (It also allowed "Flash" Flaherty to turn his one big hit in the major leagues into a broadcasting career on YES. Then again, one big hit is more than Fran Healy, a backup catcher for the Yankees who broadcast for both New York teams, ever got.)

July 24, 2004, Fenway Park. Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo -- white people should never wear cornrows, except for Bo Derek -- purposely hits A-Rod in the back. A-Rod curses Captain Cornrows out. Sox catcher and Captain Jason Varitek leaves on his mask, like the coward that he is, and pushes his catcher's mitt into A-Rod's pretty face, instigating a full-scale brawl.

Refresh my memory: Which of these teams is evil? After the 1976 brawl, Bill Lee said, "The Yankees looked like a bunch of hookers swinging their purses." Well, at least they didn't hide behind protective masks.

Bill Mueller takes Mariano Rivera deep in the bottom of the 9th. Red Sox 9, Yankees 8. Mueller has often been suspected of steroid use, but has thus far been protected from such revelations.

September 19, 2004, Yankee Stadium. Yankees 11, Red Sox 1. The Yankees, the one team that seems to give Pedro trouble, beat him yet again, pounding him. In a postgame press conference, he says, "I just tip my cap, and call the Yankees my daddy."

"Who's Your Daddy?" chants will dog Pedro for the rest of his career. One fan -- was it Vinny Milano, a.k.a. Bald Vinny the River Avenue T-shirt vendor? -- made up a T-shirt showing Darth Vader wearing a Yankee jersey, and saying, as if to Luke Skywalker, "Pedro, I am your father!" The chant even returned when Pedro pitched for the Mets in an Interleague game in 2006, and for the Philadelphia Phillies in Games 2 and 6 of the 2009 World Series at the new Yankee Stadium.

October 20, 2004, Yankee Stadium. After a Game 4 comeback led by proven steroid user David Ortiz, and a Game 5 win also led by proven steroid user Ortiz, and a Game 6 win that featured A-Rod's slap play on admitted steroid user Arroyo in relief of suspected steroid user Schilling (who had said before the series, "I'm not sure I can think of any scenario more enjoyable than making 55,000 Yankee Fans shut up"), Game 7 is a disaster from the outset, as proven steroid user Ortiz homers again. Red Sox 10, Yankees 3.

The Red Sox become the first Major League Baseball team to come back from a 3-games-to-0 postseason deficit, and win the Pennant, clinching at Yankee Stadium, a house of pain for them for so long. They go on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, killing the Curse of the Bambino after 86 years.

Or so they thought. Now we know the truth.

April 5, 2005, Yankee Stadium. After he hit the home run that won Game 4 of the 2001 World Series, Jeter said he'd never hit a walkoff homer before, not even in Little League. He does it again in this game, off Keith Foulke. Yankees 4, Red Sox 3. The Yankees could have used one of these homers on October 17 or 18, 2004.

April 14, 2005, Fenway Park. Yankee right fielder Gary Sheffield's cap is knocked off by a Red Sox fan while trying to pick up a fair ball in right field. In response, Sheffield pushes the fan. The conflict is quickly stopped by security guards. The fan was ejected from the game for interfering with play and is eventually stripped of his season tickets. Red Sox 8, Yankees 5. Still, the Sox fans once again prove that they, not the Yankees or their fans, are the evil ones.

August 18, 19, 20 & 21, 2006, Fenway Park. The Yankees complete a 5-game sweep at the little green pinball machine off Kenmore Square. The scores are 12-4, 14-11, 13-5, 8-5 and 2-1. The Yankees won a tight pitching duel, a pair of slugfests, and 2 blowouts. They have moved from 1 1/2 games ahead of the Sox to 6 1/2 games ahead, effectively killing the Division race with 6 weeks to go.

I was in Boston on the 20th, for the 4th game, although my chances of getting into Fenway were slim and none, and I had to watch from elsewhere in Scum Town. Then again, I'd rather have watched from outside Fenway and won than watched from inside and lost. You should have heard Sox fans, not to mention the WEEI radio hosts, talk: They were in a daze, acting as though what happened in October 2004 had never happened. (And, based on what we now know, it really didn't.)

April 22, 2007, Fenway Park. Manny, J.D. Drew, Mike Lowell and Varitek hit 4 consecutive home runs off Yankee pitcher Chase Wright, powering a comeback from a 3-run deficit and completing a 3-game sweep of the Yankees at Fenway Park for the first time since 1990. Red Sox 7, Yankees 6.

While the Yankees do get the Wild Card in this season, they never recover enough from this beating to take the Division title. The Sox win the World Series again, although this can also been deemed illegitimate. Of the players who hit the 4 straight homers, Manny is later proven a steroid user, and the other 3 have also been suspected.

Joe Torre is lowballed on a new contract offer, and leaves the Yankees. Former catcher Joe Girardi is named manager.

February 29, 2008, Legends Field, Tampa, Florida. At the spring-training complex soon to be renamed for his father, Yankee senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner responds to the popularity of the Sox in The New York Times newspaper's Play magazine:

'Red Sox Nation?' What a bunch of bullshit that is. That was a creation of the Red Sox and ESPN, which is filled with Red Sox fans. Go anywhere in America, and you won't see Red Sox hats and jackets, you'll see Yankee hats and jackets. This is a Yankee country. We're going to put the Yankees back on top and restore the universe to order.

Not "restore order to the universe." "Restore the universe to order." It will take 2 more seasons.

July 30, 2009, Fenway Park. Exactly 10 years to the day after the 13-3 demolition I saw at Fenway, it is revealed that both David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez failed steroid tests in the 2003 season. With Papi and Manny the 2 biggest reasons the Sox won the 2004 and 2007 World Series, those titles are now revealed to be completely illegitimate. The Curse of the Bambino still lives. 1918 * Forever.

August 7, 2009, Yankee Stadium II, Bronx. A-Rod ends a 0-0 standstill after 15 innings with a two-run home run off Junichi Tazawa, who is making his major league debut. Two days later, former Sox hero Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira hit back-to-back homers to give the Yanks a come-from-behind 3-2 win and a sweep.

September 27, 2009, Yankee Stadium II. Yankees 4, Red Sox 2. The Yankees complete a three-game sweep of the Red Sox with a 4-2 victory, clinching their first AL East title since 2006. The Yankees came back to tie the season series against the Red Sox 9-9, after starting with an 0-8 record against them, and go on to win their 27th World Championship -- slaying their own dragons (real, imagined, or steroid-induced), and in Hank's words, restoring the universe to order.

May 17, 2010, Yankee Stadium II. Marcus Thames breaks a bottom of the 9th slugfest deadlock with a walkoff homer off Jonathan Papelbon. Yankees 11, Red Sox 9.

September 28, 2011, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, Maryland. As late as September 1, a date on which they completed a 2-out-of-3 series win over the Yankees, the Sox were in 1st place in the AL East. But the Sox went into a tailspin, the Yankees took advantage, and, on this date, the Sox lose to the Baltimore Orioles, 4-3, while the Yankees lose to the Rays. As a result, with the Yankees having already clinched the AL East, the Sox blow the Wild Card to the Rays.

Manager Terry Francona and general manager Theo Epstein will soon be fired. Once again, it is the Yankees who are regarded as champions, and the Red Sox who are regarded as chokers. As God intended it.

April 20, 2012, Fenway Park. The Sox celebrate the ballpark's 100th Anniversary -- the 1st Major League Baseball stadium to reach a centennial -- by playing on the exact anniversary, and playing the exact same opponent. But they don't get the same result, as the Yankees hit 5 home runs: 2 by Eric Chavez, and 1 each by Nick Swisher, Russell Martin, and 1 by Alex Rodriguez. Yankees 6, Red Sox 2.

Every time A-Rod comes to the plate, the Sox fans chant, "Steroids!" -- while cheering known steroid cheat David Ortiz.

April 21, 2012, Fenway Park. The Yankees come from 9-0 down to beat the Sox 15-9, including 7 runs in the 7th inning and 7 more in the 8th. Swisher homers again, and Mark Teixeira hits home runs from each side of the plate. The next day, the series finale was rained out, and postponed until July, but the Yankees ended up winning it then anyway.

July 7, 2012, Fenway Park. The Sox lead 5-3. Boone Logan comes in to relieve Phil Hughes with 1 out in the 6th, man on 2nd. Flyout, back-to-back walks, strikeout. End of that threat. But Girardi should have realized that, having already walked 2 batters, Logan shouldn't be kept in the game.

He leaves Logan in to start the 7th, and he allows a double. Girardi brings in Cory Wade, who turns that leadoff double (totally Logan's fault) into 4 runs (all of them partly Logan's fault). The Sox lead 9-4 instead of 5-4. The Yanks manage to make it 9-5, meaning if Logan doesn't allow that double, it's no worse than 5-5.

And this is against The Scum. Granted, the Sox were awful in 2012, but you still want to beat them, and the Yanks were still in a Division title race. This was Game 21 in Logan's Litany of Losing.

However, having Bobby Valentine as manager turns out to be a disaster for the Sox, as they go 69-93, their worst season since 1965. The Yankees win the Division, but the postseason turns out to be a disaster.

May 31, 2013, Yankee Stadium II. The teams play each other for the first time since the bombing at the Boston Marathon on April 15. "Boston Strong" signs are everywhere, and, for once, the fans of the 2 legendary rivals are united. (There were no games between them in 2001 after September 11.) Behind the pitching of CC Sabathia and an RBI double by Vernon Wells, the Yankees win, 4-1.

August 5, 2013, Commissioner's Office, Rockefeller Center, New York. Alex Rodriguez is suspended for the rest of the 2013 season, and all of the 2014 season, for steroid use.

David Ortiz is permitted to continue playing.

September 6, 2013, Yankee Stadium II. The Yankees host the Sox, and lead 8-3. Andy Pettitte has pitched 6 strong innings. But Girardi brings the struggling Phil Hughes in to pitch the 7th. He gets 1 out, but allows 3 singles and a walk, making it 8-4. Girardi brings Logan in to face Ortiz with the bases loaded and 1 out. Cringe time... Logan strikes Ortiz out! All right, now get him out of there!

No, Girardi leaves him in to face Mike Napoli with the bases loaded and 1 out. Logan feeds the gopher, and Napoli hits a game-tying grand slam. Girardi still leaves him in, to face Daniel Nava.  Nava singles, and, finally, Girardi takes him out, and Preston Claiborne gets Stephen Drew out to end the inning. Claiborne and Joba Chamberlain finish the disaster in the 8th, and the Sox win, 12-8.

By this point, even Girardi had learned that Logan could not be trusted with pitching in the major leagues. Only once more did he put Logan in a game, and that was on September 24, in a game that an exhausted Hiroki Kuroda had already let get away. It was in a 7-0 loss to the Rays, and Logan faced 1 batter, Sam Fuld, and struck him out. But the September 6, 2013 game was the 34th game that Logan blew, or helped to blow, in his 4 seasons in Pinstripes. Exit permanently, stage lefty.

The Yankees went 85-77, a decent season by most teams' standards, but missing the Playoffs, finishing tied for 3rd in the AL East, 12 games behind the Division-winning Red Sox, and 7 games behind the 2nd Wild Card team, the Rays.

The Sox went on to win another World Series, beating the St. Louis Cardinals in 6 games. David Ortiz, who shouldn't even be allowed to play professional baseball after being outed as a steroid cheat and a liar, and still lying about it, was named Series MVP.

September 4, 2014, Yankee Stadium II. Chase Headley hits a home run off Koji Uehara in the bottom of the 9th, giving the Yankees a 5-4 win.

As of July 10, 2015, the Yankees have hit 220 walkoff home runs in their history, counting the postseason. 28 of these, including the postseason walkoffs by Bernie Williams in 1999 and Aaron Boone in 2003, have been against the Red Sox.

July 10, 2015, Fenway Park. The Hundred-Year War continues, as the Yankees open a 3-game series in Boston by beating the Sox, 5-1. Michael Pineda pitched superbly, while A-Rod hit another home run. Still, the Ortiz-loving Sox fans do the steroids chant.

Tomorrow and Sunday, we go at it again.

BEAT THE SCUM!