Issue date: 4/15/08 Section: Sports

Stop me if you've heard this one.

A construction worker sneaks into the building where he's working one night carrying a shirt. He buries the shirt in the foundation and seals it up in the concrete...

Oh wait. This actually happened, just two days ago.

The building was the new Yankee Stadium. The construction worker was a diehard Red Sox fan hellbent on cursing the ballpark. And the shirt was a David ".104" Ortiz jersey, which was eventually found and removed.

Welcome to the greatest rivalry in sports. Welcome to Yankees-Red Sox.

Baseball fans generally fall into one of three camps: Those who love the Yankees, those who love the Red Sox, and those who hate them both.

If you happen to fall into that last group, I feel for you (I myself bleed pinstripes). Often, baseball's most compelling storylines go unnoticed as New York and Boston battle for control of the standings - and the headlines.

But no matter who you are, you've got to love this latest twist in a feud that is quickly devolving from the sublime to the ridiculous.

I mean, the Yankees spent untold millions digging up the Ortiz jersey from the new stadium's foundation. Then they suggested they might sue the Red Sox fan who hid it there.

And of course, the newest generation of Steinbrenners weighed in with an expletive-laden tirade. "I hope they find him and kick the &%*$ out of him," Hal Steinbrenner said.

This is the Yankees owner saying that. Even if you hate everything about Yankees-Red Sox, you have to find this hilarious.

The thing about, um, "Concrete-Gate," is that the actual games are just as good as ever. The Yanks and Sox just finished a three-game tilt at Fenway Park that had as much emotion as a playoff series. When Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon struck out A-Rod after a two-hour rain delay Saturday, he reacted like he'd just won the World Series.

That kind of enthusiasm isn't easy to find. Most April series feel like April, when the season is young and a playoff race seems a million years away. But when the Yankees and Red Sox play, whether it's spring training or Game 7, you're more often than not gong to see an Instant Classic.

So when you think about the Yankees and Red Sox this week, laugh all you want about the absuridties of the century-old rivalry. But while you're at it, watch an inning or two of tomorrow night's game.

You'll see America's pastime at its most passionate.

Sports editor Jake Simpson is a Medill junior. He can be reached at
james-simpson@northwestern.edu

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools