The Yankee/ Red Sox rivalry is regarded as one of the longest , and in some years, most brutal and bitter of all in modern day sports. Some suggest that this rivalry dates back to 1919, when the Red Sox owner , Harry Frazee, literally sold his troubled star, Babe Ruth, to the Yankees for $125,000 and was also provided a mortgage of $350,000 by Yankee owner, Jacob Ruppert. After this notorious trade,  Babe Ruth went on to become one of the greatest all time players and one of the most admired and talked about individuals in sports. The Boston Red Sox  supporters long believed that this very trade lead to decades of frustration, lost opportunities,  and, most importantly, no World Series wins until 2004 –  a long time since their last win in 1918, the year before they sold the Babe.

My first recognition of this intense rivalry goes back to the year I  finished 8^th grade at St Catherine’s of Siena Grammar School.  I vividly remember that Summer of 1978 when my beloved Yankees struggled for the first half of the season, falling substantially behind the red hot Boston team in the standings.  Even as late as July 19^th, they still were out of first place by a full 14 games. The second half of the season was a reversal of fortune and the Yankees came storming back.  In my memory, that summer is a collage of clutch pitching, home runs, and sparking plays.  And after the last game in the regular season,  the Yankee and Red Sox were tied for first place.  They had to face off against each other for a special one game play-off to determine which team would move on in the post season.  An entire season came down to one game between rivals.  Bucky Dent hits a three run homer (enter Ghost of the Babe) and Reggie Jackson seals the victory and improbable Division Flag with a dramatic and game winning  home run.  Perhaps the greatest baseball game ever!

Keep in mind that the Red Sox have won 8 World Series, including two while Babe Ruth was on the team. The Yankees have won 27, including 4 while Babe Ruth was on the team. With the disparity in number of World Series wins, I can fully appreciate and understand the frustration of the Red Sox nation, but I asked myself—is there that much of a difference between the Yankees and Red Sox? Any real difference between the fans ?

To answer that question, I set out a few years ago on what is now an annual trek to Fenway and I catch at least one game with friends and clients, all of whom come from  in and around Boston proper. I once talked on the floor of the NJ Senate about how the rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox was akin to the one between New Jersey Democrats and Republicans noting that, perhaps, the one between the baseball teams was more fun.

The first time at Fenway (much like the first  time at Wrigley) , you can only marvel at the physical structure of the Green Monster and the Stadium that is built around it. The carnival like atmosphere that surrounds the exterior of Fenway is childlike but compelling . As you walk into the Stadium and enter beneath the stadium, you immediately get the sense of old fashioned stadium charm captured and frozen in time.  The food and memorabilia signs, the food smells and the relentless hawking of programs and beer in 2018 could easily be mistaken for 1918.

I recall one time after the Yankees lost in Fenway after a particularly close 15 inning game, I was walking out with some of the other die hard baseball fans and it dawned on me that very little, if anything at all, actual separates the fans of the different teams.  We all share the same concerns about family and country. We all remove our hats and stand for the National Anthem and God Bless America. Boston does that goofy Neil Diamond, Sweet Caroline song and NY does that Frank Sinatra thing, New York New York. But at the end of the day, we just love baseball and we love a winner.

Last Monday, I took my latest trip to Fenway and we were lucky to occupy the Jim Beam Seats that are on the ground level and literally adjacent to the Red Sox dugout. Our group had the fortune to meet with Red Sox greats Jim Rice, Fred Lynn and Luis Tiant.  Besides feeling a little traitorous ( I remain a long time season ticket holder to the Yankees), I did feel comfortable with the good people of Boston.

Point of this column—an elderly gentleman was a row above our section and he was an obvious long time Red Sox fan. He leaned over and tried to hand Jim Rice his hat to sign.  Jim Rice politely declined and said he was only signing autographs for fans in the Jim Beam section. The gentleman was disappointed but withdrew his hand and respectfully sat back in his chair.  There was obvious disappointment on his face.  My law partner, Tom Scrivo, reached up and told the gentleman to give him the hat and he would get Rice to sign it, which he did . The face of this gentleman lit up like a Christmas tree as Tom handed back the freshly-signed, battered hat. A few minutes later, Red Sox great Fred Lynn walked into the Jim Beam section. The elderly gentleman looked at me, remained sitting, and whispered  ‘my favorite player’ . I instinctively  reached up and grabbed his hat and got it signed by Fred Lynn. I turned to the euphoric Sox fan and said, “remember that two Yankees fans did that for you”. He responded , “ I guess not all Yankee fans are bastards”.  That certainly says it all.

Side note, Babe Ruth died at the age of 53 years of age, 70 years ago in August of 1948.