10 Reasons to watch this weekend's Red Sox/Yankees Series

When the 2010 schedule was published showing the season beginning and ending with Red Sox and Yankee series, it sure felt exciting, didn't it?

Perhaps there would be a great showdown for the AL East... maybe playoff positioning?

When the Red Sox were hovering around contention the 6 head to head meetings over the final 10 games sure looked inviting.

Now...
Flop.

The Red Sox are all but done... the tragic number is 4. They are playing out the string and getting ready to play golf this October.

The Yankees are cruising to another October appearance and trying to right their pitching staff while jockeying for position with the Rays and Twins.

So why should Red Sox fans even watch this series?
There are some reasons...


1. WIN THE SERIES AND THE RED SOX HOLD OFF ELIMINATION

Yeah elimination will be inevitable... but if it can be held off until Monday, then as a point of pride we can say "We weren't eliminated until the last week of the season."

With all the injuries on the team, that's a nice (if misleading) thing to say.


2. DELAY THE YANKEE CELEBRATION

It's clear by the way Joe Girardi is managing that he is simply trying to make the post season without worrying about the Division... sure he would LIKE to win the Division but he'd RATHER have a healthy pitching staff. So the Yankees clinching a playoff spot seems to be the goal.

They'll get there, but it doesn't have to be on OUR watch.


3. JON LESTER, COMPROMISE CY YOUNG CANDIDATE?

Can Jon Lester get to 20 wins? If he does will he be a Cy Young Candidate? (Sabathia's 20 wins seem to be his only qualification over Felix Hernandez but he is talked about as the front runner.)

If Lester gets 20, his name will be in the mix. He goes for win #19 on Saturday.


4. 90 WINS IS A GOOD GOAL FOR THIS TEAM

Seriously, with all the injuries and strife on this team to finish with 90 wins would be a real accomplishment.

They need to win 6 games out of their last 10 to pull that off. That would give Francona six 90 win seasons out of seven years in Boston. Not bad.


5. MAYBE SOMEONE ELSE WILL GET HURT

The Red Sox have had 19 guys on their disabled list.
Why not 20? Seriously... a nice round number is easier to remember. And that would be the legacy of the 2010 Red Sox... 20 dudes on the DL.

That would make 90 wins even MORE impressive.






6. IT WILL TAKE YOUR MIND OFF OF THE PATRIOTS/JETS LOSS

Perhaps seeing a New England team beat a New York team will take the sting out of it.

Yeah that is petty... but so are we!



7. YOU'LL GET TO SEE THE RED SOX SEE THE SUBTLE STEINBRENNER MEMORIAL

Then again they can probably see it from Fenway Park.






8. MAYBE THEY'LL SHOW SOME CLIPS OF THE 2004 ALCS

Those are always fun to see.

Granted they will also show clips of Bucky Dent, Aaron Boone etc... but those don't hurt as much since '04 and '07.

Plus it is always interesting to see how they can spin the rivalry since the whole Bambino thing is over.




9. NO MATTER WHAT THE STANDINGS ARE, IT IS ALWAYS FUN TO SEE THE YANKEES LOSE

It isn't nice to admit that, but it is true.

Admit it Sox fans... when you saw that the Yankees were getting killed last night, you checked in... hoping to see Joba and Vazquez get slapped around. Seeing the seed of doubt creep into Yankee land, especially on the dawn of the playoffs, is a beautiful thing. Why not see the Sox contribute to that?


10. YOU WILL SEE THE BEGINNING OF THE GREATEST END OF THE SEASON COLLAPSE IN YANKEE HISTORY AND THE RED SOX STORM INTO THE PLAYOFFS

Hey... how is that any less likely than the Red Sox coming back from a 3-0 series hole, trailing in the 9th facing Mariano Rivera?

I bet you thought we were dead then too!

The come back starts NOW!



So have fun, and remember Sox fans who make the trip, you will be in THEIR home. Play nicely.

Besides, Red Sox fans and Yankee fans should be friends.

So play ball! Go Sox and make us proud in what is left of this season.
(And let's hope Joba gets an appearance or two.)

Cardinals vs. Reds could be the rivalry of the 2010s

Hey baseball… want to do something SMART regarding the marketing of your sport?
OK, I didn’t think so.

But in case you do, let me point out something that is going on. The two most popular teams remain the Yankees and the Red Sox and yes, most of the TV and marketing attention is being pushed towards them.

However, the rivalry is getting a little stale… and this is coming from a die hard Red Sox fan and a classic Yankee hater. It reached its fever pitch in 2003-2004 and 2005, although the baseball world was denied a third straight Red Sox/Yankees ALCS in 2005 when neither team made it out of the Division Series.

Both teams have won a World Series since… both teams have missed the playoffs at least once since… the Yankees went through a big transformation and the Red Sox are rebuilding.

The rivalry isn’t what it was 5 years ago and I think the rest of the baseball world is bored of it.

But looming out there is a potential rivalry… one with two franchises with deep traditions, great players and now some legitimate bad feelings.

I’m talking about the Reds and the Cardinals.
And if you were smart, you’d build up these two teams and their mutual dislike to make their games burn redder than their uniforms.

People think there is too much Northeast focus? Then here’s two Midwest teams whose appeal can stretch far beyond their city limits the way the Red Sox appeal travels throughout New England and the Yankees have fans… well… everywhere!


Ohio (save for the sadists in Cleveland), Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee.. that could all be Reds territory.

And the Cardinals already dominate the Midwest with one of the best fan bases in the game.

Both teams have terrific players and are young enough that they might both be good for a while. Perhaps the Albert Pujols vs. Joey Votto debate can be the great argument for the next few years.

They both have rich history, but they never seem to be good at the same time.
The Cardinals won multiple World Series in the 1960s.
The Reds won multiple World Series in the 1970s.
The Cardinals won a World Series in the 1980s.
The Reds won a World Series in the 1990s.
The Cardinals won a World Series in the 2000s.
And now it looks like the Reds will be in the post season this year.

They both have respected managers who don’t seem to like each other and their teams… well their mutual dislike is as subtle as an Albert Pujols homer.

Brandon Phillips talking trash. Former Cardinals Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen brawling against their old teammates. Former Red Jason LaRue being clocked by Cincy’s Johnny Cueto and possibly having his career end?

These games could be hyped up and made to be a clash of traditional division rivals that is not so friendly.

I am not talking about trying to make the Rockies and the Diamondbacks blood enemies. These are teams whose fan base goes back into the 19th Century… and there are plenty of transplanted Ohians and Missourians through out the country

The Northeast (and us transplants) will always get up for Yankees and Red Sox. And if the Mets ever get good again, they’ll care about Mets and Phillies.

Now imagine ANOTHER region of the country that pumped up for regular season baseball.

It’s being served to you on a red plate.

Yankees/Red Sox? That was so 2000s!
Reds/Cardinals? That’s THIS decade. (Or it could be.)