July 24, 2004 ... In one of the most exciting games in the century-old history of the rivalry, the Sox beat the Yankees, 11-10, with three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning,
finishing their improbable comeback on Bill Mueller’s two-run,
walkoff home run off indomitable Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.
Welcome to the rivalry, Alex Rodriguez. Like childbirth and marathon running, you can study the manuals and listen to those who have been there, but you have to experience it for yourself to know the true meaning of Red Sox vs. Yankees. This was the day
when the passive Red Sox finally fought back. And we mean fought. Jason Varitek shoved his catcher’s mitt into the face of A-Rod in the third inning and before the day was over there was a bloodied Yankee, 5 ejections, 21 runs, 27 hits, and 4 errors in 3 hours 54 minutes of hard-nosed
hardball. It marked the first time in 57 games that the Yankees lost after leading at the end of eight innings.
And thus in the top of the third inning yesterday, there were two centuries and four months of Red Sox frustration heaped on the shoulders of Varitek. The Sox had been humbled Friday night and were taking a beating from their own fans as they fell
behind, 3-0, in a rain-delayed, nationally televised game. Time for somebody to step up. With two outs and nobody aboard, young righthander Bronson Arroyo hit Rodriguez in the left arm. Instead of trotting to first base quietly,
A-Rod
started jawing at the pitcher. Varitek quickly got in the way and the two exchanged words. Then there was a bump. Then the catcher put his fat mitt in
his face and it was Saturday afternoon at the fights.
The best bout was an undercard affair near the Sox on-deck circle, where Yankees starting pitcher Tanyon Sturtze (Worcester’s own) collared Gabe Kapler from behind. The two went to the ground. Kapler, who could bench press the
tarp roll if he wanted, and therefore needed no help, immediately was assisted by teammates David Ortiz and Trot Nixon. Sturtze was bleeding around his left ear when the fight ended and wounded his right pinkie (X-rays were negative). Pedro Martinez wisely elected to guard the equipment
until the shouting and shoving subsided. When it was over, Varitek, Rodriguez, Kapler, and Kenny Lofton were ejected, and suspensions may follow.
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BILL MUELLER |
The Sox got some initial bounce off the bout, scoring a pair off Sturtze in the third, then two more to take a 4-3 lead in the fourth, but Arroyo and his bullpen people could not sustain the momentum. New York scored six in the sixth inning -- an inning
in which Francona was ejected for arguing a close play at second base. The Sox scored four in the bottom of the sixth, cutting the lead to 9-8. It was 10-8 in the bottom of the ninth when Nomar Garciaparra (three hits) led off with a double to left-center. With one out Kevin Millar
(four hits) scored Nomar with a single to right to make it 10-9. Then Mueller worked the count to 3-1, and drove a long homer into the bullpen in right-center. Varitek almost hit his head on the clubhouse ceiling when he watched the homer on the locker room TV.
There was quite a convention of Red Sox at home plate. Something you have to go through to experience. Just like the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry.
