Major League Baseball (MLB) New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are historical rivals. It is considered the most fierce rival among the numerous rivalries of MLB, which has 30 clubs. Because they are together in the Eastern Division of the American League (AL), they also share the fate of advancing to the World Series only when they overcome each other. Since they belong to the same district, they face each other several times a year, but tickets for the two teams always sell out like hot cakes. Even though the ticket price is set more expensive than other game tickets.
This year,토토사이트 the two teams set another monumental box office milestone in the MLB. According to MLB.com on the 20th (Korean time), 603,303 spectators flocked to 16 MLB games on the 19th, which was’Father’s Day’ in local time, and it has been about 25 years since September 29, 2008 (612,669) Recorded the highest number of spectators for a Sunday game on Sunday. MLB.com explained, “September 29, 2008 and June 19, 2023 have one thing in common: the Yankees and Boston doubleheader was held and 16 games were played in one day (not 15 games).”
Not only this. The average number of spectators for 45 MLB games last weekend, including three consecutive games between the Yankees and Boston, was 35,299. It is the first time in 7 years since June 25-27, 2016 (average of 35,441) that MLB exceeded 35,000 game average spectators in three consecutive weekend games before July. The average crowd for a ‘Father’s Day’ match, 37,706, is also the largest for any Sunday match since 38,174 on June 15, 2014. This is a result that once again shows the potential of the two prestigious MLB teams.
The rivalry between the Yankees and Boston has already been over 100 years. Now the legend of the Yankees, but the transfer of Babe Ruth, who was once a signboard of Boston, was the starting point of its history.
Boston was the strongest team in MLB in the early days. In 1915, Ruth, an unsung star, joined and became stronger. However, when the owner of Boston, who was desperate for money, sent Ruth, the team’s top star, to the Yankees in 1920, joy and sorrow began to diverge. From the first year of his transfer to the Yankees, Ruth hit 54 homers and flew. In 1923, he hit the first home run against his team, Boston, in front of 70,000 spectators at Yankee Stadium’s opening game. In Game 3 of the World Series against Boston in 1932, he also showed off the majesty of the ‘Announced Home Run’, in which he lifted his bat from the plate, pointed to one of the outfield spectators, and then hit a home run in that direction. The two teams, which were divided amidst Ruth’s transfer and performance, continued their bloody battle by repeating the battle over and over again.
The most intense and symbolic game in the history of the two teams came in the 2003 and 2004 AL Championship Series, which qualified for the World Series. The winner in 2003 was the Yankees. The 7th game was held in the middle of a 3-3 matchup in a best-of-seven match, and the Yankees won a dramatic come-from-behind victory with Aaron Boone’s walk-off home run in the 11th inning of overtime. Boston head coach Grady Little at the time was fired even after leading the team to the league championship series. The reason was that he misjudged the timing of the replacement of starting pitcher Pedro Martinez in Game 7.
The two teams met again on the same stage a year later and led the game to the 7th game again. The Yankees won three games first, but Boston created a miracle. He defeated Mariano Rivera, the best firefighter in MLB at the time, in the ninth inning for two days in a row, and David Otis hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 12th inning of Game 4 and a hit in the bottom of the 14th inning of Game 5, respectively. In Game 6, Kurt Schilling’s ‘bloody socks’ fighting spirit continued. In the end, Boston took the 7th game and completed the first reverse sweep in MLB postseason history. In the World Series, after 86 years, he solved the ‘Curse of the Bambino (bass Ruth’s nickname)’ and lifted the first championship trophy after Ruth’s transfer.
The Yankees and Boston still growl when they meet, and remain rivals most eager to defeat each other. Fans also engage in a war of nerves outside the field that they cannot back down every time. This is why the scene where the crowd gave a standing ovation at Boston’s Fenway Park during Yankees legend Rivera’s ‘retirement tour’ remains especially special. Major League Commissioner Rob Manfred said, “The Yankees and Boston are rivals with the richest story in MLB history.”
The heated ‘Father’s Day’ confrontation ended with Boston’s complete victory. Boston took both games of the double header on the 19th and swept all three games in a row. However, both teams are not very good in the standings this season. Until the 20th, the Yankees are 3rd in the district (39-33), and Boston is 5th (38-35). Because of the strong teams in the AL Eastern Division, Boston is in last place even with a win rate of over 50%. This is true even though they have won more than the Minnesota Twins (36-37), the first place in the AL Central Division.