The Red Sox then spent most of their history as being the sport’s most high-profile screwups. Following Boston’s notorious trade of Babe Ruth to New York, the Yankees went on to become the winningest franchise in MLB history. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Red Sox have been playing games against each other for well over a century now. There’s a lot going on here but at the root of it is this: Boston has always felt insecurity over being overshadowed by New York, leading to a natural rivalry between the two East Coast cities. Okay, I guess we have to go into the history of the rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox. One imagines many fans coming into today’s Wild Card Game rooting for the proverbial meteor. How long ago was that, culturally? Well, try to get young people to remember a period where casual sports fans were rooting for a Boston franchise to win a championship. The Red Sox’s battle from near-elimination to a championship was a parable, one that expressed the possibility that you could flip the switch on old narratives: the underdogs perpetually plagued by bad luck and homebrewed dysfunction could actually pull off a miracle comeback and make MLB history in the process. It also provided some of the bluntest symbolism you’ll ever see. This series, where the Red Sox overcame a 0-3 deficit to defeat the Yankees in seven games on their way for their first World Series win since 1918, was not just one of the most important in recent baseball history. Even though all the players involved are now long-retired, it’s weird to hear about the 2004 ALCS as if it were ancient history. It’s also a great way to keep track of your mortality (feel free to use that one MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, I know you’re a reader). Baseball is not a sport, or at least not just a sport.
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