NEW YORK -- It still seems weird, if you can remember back before it all changed -- back before "Cowboy Up" and Aaron Boone and the Idiots and the Bloody Sock and all that went down between the Yankees and the Red Sox right around the middle part of this decade. If you can remember back that far, it feels weird that the Red Sox have become the model franchise and the Yankees are just yapping at their heels, trying their best to become everything their rivals already are.
But then you watch a game like the one they played Monday night at Yankee Stadium and you realize that's exactly what's going on here. The Yankees spent the night whining about the umpires, accusing the Sox of stealing signs, committing errors and passed balls and walking everybody in sight. The Red Sox spent it winning the game. And as they so often do these days, they outclassed the Yankees in almost every possible way.
BOSTON -- We are barely into a 54-round, bare-knuckle cage match, in which at least one participant will be knocked out, and it looks like a doozy.
The Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox opened the season with a three-game series that was nearly suffocating in its relentless intensity and drama.
"It's mentally draining when you've got to stay as high intensity as we do against the clubs in our division," Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria said after the Rays took Thursday's rubber game. "It's always nerve-wracking here getting the last three [outs]."
Join host Mel Allen as he takes a look back at the stories that mattered in the world of Major League Baseball this week on "This Week in Baseball," conveniently presented in the form of a chatroom transcript for those of you reading AOL Sports' "Fanhouse" blog, and presented in HD on certain cable systems you live nowhere even close to getting.
Kyle Farnsworth getting suspended for ANYTHING is Dugout-worthy news, much less getting suspended for throwing a fastball at Manny Ramirez's head. I don't know if he deserved the three-game suspension. I also don't know if he purposefully pitched at Manny's head, but honestly a part of me would be pretty disappointed if he didn't. We came up with your nickname before your announce team did, you might as well do something for our benefit every now and then. He should've thrown the ball at Manny's head, and while Manny was reacting Kyle should've ran up and tried to punch him.
Today's Dugout is the undoubtedly true story of what happened before, during, and after the at-bat. Inside this Dugout you will hopefully find a snippet of dialogue (unfortunately) lacking in misplaced curse words but still ridiculous and unnecessary enough to replace "go rerish" as the thing we're most remembered for. I don't want to be solely remembered as the "go rerish" guy. I mean, I didn't even come up with that. Some oriental guy did!
hold onto your butts; Big Country vs. Manny, after the jump.
NASCAR fans across the country were treated to a pre-race show that consisted of nothing but balls and strikes after Fox Sports decided to keep a game between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox on the air deep into the NASCAR timeslot.
Fans who had tuned in for the NASCAR event in Phoenix, Ariz. were abruptly switched to racing as the field entered turn three during the first lap of Saturday night's Subway Fresh Fit 500, while viewers hoping to catch the end of the baseball game were told nearly a minute later that they could continue watching on FX.
All in all, the situation simply wasn't handled well.
Me? I was hoping to see the NASCAR action. But neither here (Fox) nor there (FX) could I see any of the pre-race show, much less "Gentleman, Start Your Engines".
I understand that there are obligations Fox Sports has to carry while covering these two events, but it seems pretty clear to me that Fox Sports should have just been proactive enough to at least start the NASCAR coverage over on FX.
The Red Sox/Yankees tiff was a close one and I understand that millions of people were wanting to see the end of that one. Was it right for those fans to have to quickly switch over to FX to catch the last few pitches of a one-run game?
I don't think so.
The solution to put one or the other on FX long before the green flag of the Sprint Cup Series race makes a lot of sense to me. What say you?
This week, God decided to pull off the most illogical series of events since the time he put Fabio on a roller coaster in Virginia and had him be the only person on the ride to get hit in the face by a bird. In case you haven't heard, the Orioles won two games!
I'm just kidding (Go O's!). At Fenway Park, a 13 year old girl named Alexa Rodriguez was attacked by a hawk. It's really her fault, though, because the hawk clearly asked for her to "put it on the boaaaaard, e-yes!" Or perhaps she was holding a can of corn. Whatever happened, it was weird, and just another one of those times when the fates lean down from mythology to whisper, "here you go" to The Dugout.
Find out where the hawk came from (and why it attacked) after the jump.
Getting left off the playoff roster can trigger different emotions in baseball players. Some rail against their managers and the coaching staff and anyone else who comes to mind. Others just quietly accept it, praying that they'll get their chance if the team advances to the next round.
But the best reaction to being left off the ALDS roster comes from -- who else? -- Boston's Julian Tavarez. As noted in today's Boston Globe, the guy's clearly got everything in its proper perspective:
"That's OK," Tavarez said. "As long as we get the ring and the big check."
Since Tavarez' most notable postseason moment, at least around Red Sox country, is giving up a game-winning home run to Mark Bellhorn in the opener of the 2004 World Series -- the turning point from which the Sox took off and never looked back -- his absence in the bullpen will probably mean a slight drop in Maalox sales. But his ability to keep his teammates loose -- this is a guy, after all, who claimed he wanted to be a porn star, had his head rubbed by Manny Ramirez in a now-classic YouTube moment, and sported cleats emblazoned with David Ortiz' face -- makes him a valuable clubhouse presence for the October grind.
It may be time for Julio Lugo to call in an exorcist. Because, yes, things have gotten that bad for him.
The embattled Red Sox shortstop has been simply putrid at the plate, in an 0-for-31 skid that got him dropped from the leadoff spot, and batting an unquestionably anemic .089 over the last 30 days.
But during last night's loss to the Texas Rangers, Lugo proved he didn't need to take bat in hand to ruin everyone's good time. In the bottom of the eighth, with two out, the Looger was called in to pinch run after a Dustin Pedroia double. With the Sox down by one run and the red-hot Kevin Youkilis at the plate -- the same Kevin Youkilis who'd already launched a two-run homer in the second inning -- Lugo broke for third and was thrown out by a country mile.
You can't blame the guy for trying; he'd been 20-for-20 in stolen base attempts so far this season. But this one played out so awkwardly -- Lugo didn't slide, opting instead to try to bowl the third baseman over -- even Sox color man Jerry Remy declared it one of the strangest attempted steals he'd seen in a while.
The move left a few of Lugo's teammates bewildered as well, according to today's Boston Globe:
Youkilis, who was left to lead off the ninth, wouldn't offer any theory or explanation.
"You're going to have ask Julio about it. I'm not going to answer. I'm not here to answer for Julio. You'll have to ask Julio about the questions," said Youkilis.
I've gone on record as saying I think Lugo's gonna turn it around and prove a late-summer hero. But that's assuming some crazed Sox fan doesn't get his or her mitts on him before that.
The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups
Chicago Cubs (3-6) vs. Cincinnati Reds (6-4)-1:05PM Est.
He's only nine games into his tenure as manager of the Chicago Cubs and Lou Piniella is already tired of his team. After the way Big Z and the pen blew yesterday's 5-0 lead it's pretty obvious that no matter how much money they spend, or who they bring in to manage, they're still the Chicago Cubs. I can't wait until Rich Hill gets into trouble and Piniella comes to the mound. "What's wrong, Skip?" Piniella then rips Hill's heart out and bites into it. "Nothing."
Pittsburgh Pirates (4-6) vs. San Francisco Giants (3-7)-7:05PM Est.
Barry sure did have a happy homecoming to Pittsburgh on Friday didn't he? Two home runs, four RBI, and a Giants romp. If Barry played the Pirates everyday he'd catch Hank Aaron by Thursday. This game will also be Barry Zito's third attempt to get his first win as a Giant. So far he's making $15.59 million for every point on his 8.08 ERA. Also, as far as the Pirates are concerned, remember when they were 3-0 and in control of the NL Central? Boy, those were the days.
Boston Red Sox (5-4) vs. Los Angeles Angels (6-5)-FOX 3:55PM Est.
Something tells me that sitting around all week hearing nothing but talk of Daisuke Matsuzaka will arouse the fire that's dormant in the innermost recesses of his soul. So I'd expect a very philosphical performance from the pitcher turned blogger this afternoon. Hector Carrasco will make the start for the Angels in place of Kelvim Escobar as the Angels continue to rack up injured starters like Britney does new wigs.
The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups
Boston Red Sox (3-3) vs. Seattle Mariners (2-1)-2:05PM Est.
It's Opening Day at Fenway Park as Josh Beckett and the Boston Red Sox take on the Seattle Mariners. For Seattle, Jeff Weaver makes his debut in a Mariners jersey. Of course, I don't think Mariners fans care who starts for their team. They're just happy they're finally going to see their team play a game after losing an entire weekend in Cleveland. The only question is whether or not Mike Hargrove will be able to convince the umpires to call the game should Seattle be losing in the fifth inning.
Cleveland Indians (2-1) vs. Los Angeles Angels (5-2)-7:05PM Est.
For the first time in nearly ten years there will be an American League game played in Milwaukee. Much like the Mariners, Cleveland has been sitting around on their butts while eleventy thousand feet of snow fell all around them. Will Grady Sizemore be able to keep the torrid pace he started the season at after taking nearly a week off? Against Ervin Santana it won't be easy, as Santana and C.C. Sabathia make up one of the day's most interesting pitching matchups.
Atlanta Braves (5-1) vs. Washington Nationals (1-6)-7:35PM Est.
The Braves received some bad news on Monday when they learned they were going to have to live without Mike Hampton this season. The good news is, things seem to be working just fine without him anyway. As if taking two of three from the Mets to gain an early lead in the NL East wasn't enough, now they get to feast on the Nationals! Sometimes life just isn't fair.
NEW YORK -- It still seems weird, if you can remember back before it all changed -- back before "Cowboy Up" and Aaron Boone and the Idiots and the Bloody Sock and all that went down between the Yankees and the Red Sox right around the middle part of this decade. If you can remember back that far, it feels weird that the Red Sox have become the model franchise and the Yankees are just yapping at their heels, trying their best to become everything their rivals already are.
BOSTON -- We are barely into a 54-round, bare-knuckle cage match, in which at least one participant will be knocked out, and it looks like a doozy.
THIS
NASCAR fans across the country were treated to a pre-race show that consisted of nothing but balls and strikes after Fox Sports decided to keep a game between the 
WHEE
Getting left off the playoff roster can trigger different emotions in baseball players. Some rail against their managers and the coaching staff and anyone else who comes to mind. Others just quietly accept it, praying that they'll get their chance if the team advances to the next round.
It may be time for Julio Lugo to call in an exorcist. Because, yes, things have gotten that bad for him.
