YES Network.com

Today in celebration of the 100 year anniversary of Fenway Park, YESNetwork.com put out a top-10 Yankees-Red Sox moments of the rivalry, but I would be remiss if I didn't add a couple of very big moments in the rivalry into my own list.

The Summer of '49

This was such a big season in the heated rivalry of the two franchises that the late great David Halberstam chorincled it in a best selling book. The Red Sox were the odds on favorite to win the Pennant and win their first World Series since 1918. Casey Stengal was implemented as the new manager of the Yankees and this hiring was panned around baseball. As the season wore on the DiMaggio brothers shined. Dom DiMaggio, along with Teddy "Ballgame" Williams led the Red Sox to a wonderful season. Joe DiMaggio did all he could to keep the

As Russell Martin discussed the rekindling of the rivalry between the Yankees and the Red Sox, he had a look of anticipation on his face. It was the look of a boxer before an important bout against a despised rival. It was the look of someone who was anxious to try and spoil Boston’s 100^th anniversary celebration of Fenway Park on Friday.

“When you play Boston,” Martin said, “the only thing you care about is beating them.”

Obviously, that is the same attitude the Yankees have when they play any team. Whether it is the Red Sox, the Rays or the Rangers, the Yankees want to win every game. But Martin meant that the conquests between the Yankees and the Red Sox are a bit different. There is a different type of intensity when the Yankees roll 200 miles north and

I need to get a few things off my chest. A disclaimer: The opinions expressed here do not represent the majority of the New York sports fan base, a passionate and knowledgeable group with whom I enjoy the interaction. As the old cliché goes, one bad apple does spoil the bunch, and thanks to a few that needs to pay five cents to see Dr. Lucy, there’s a perception out there that suggests all is lost for their beloved teams.

To be fair, such panic isn’t exclusive to New York City, but this is the place I call home, so I’ll keep my focus here.

To start, apparently people are killing the New York Rangers for being tied 2-2 in a best-of-seven series against a very good Ottawa Senators team. Among the comments posted on Twitter:

It's nights like last night as a #NYR

Lou DiPietro has a game preview here.

Brett Gardner LF
Curtis Granderson CF
Andruw Jones RF
Eric Chavez 3B
Raul Ibanez DH
Brandon Laird 1B
Jose Gil C
Ramiro Pena 2B
Doug Bernier SS

Pitching: David Phelps

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Dustin Pedroia 2B
Kevin Youkilis 3B
Adrian Gonzalez 1B
David Ortiz DH
Cody Ross LF
Ryan Sweeney RF
Kelly Shoppach C
Mike Aviles SS

Pitching: Aaron Cook

Follow Jon Lane on Twitter: @JonLaneNYC

Joe Girardi admitted it: the first Red Sox vs. Yankees game of 2012 at George M. Steinbrenner Field (YES, 7 p.m.) will create “a different excitement level in the stands” compared to your standard Spring Training tilt.

But that’s where the Yankees manager hit the brakes on the hype.

I guarantee you, for better or worse, social media will be lit up with a mixture of praise and condemnation, proclamations of either a World Championship or cries for a great shake up, depending on how a fan’s respective team is performing. Heck, I remember covering a spring game at Fort Myers in 2004 – the first meeting between the teams since Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS – where tickets were being scalped for thousands and a few media members referred to the Grapefruit League

     Buck Showalter during last year’s spring training made some criticism about the Yankees in the April edition of Men’s Journal.  Obviously the Yankees during the 2011 Season won 13 games out of the 18 played against the Orioles.  Hopefully with Bobby Valentine as the new Boston Red Sox manager recent criticism can fuel the Yankees into more wins this upcoming season compared to last season 6 wins and 12 loses against the Red Sox. 

   When Bobby Valentine managed the Texas Rangers from 1985 – 1992 until he for fired by future former President George Bush halfway into the season.  The Rangers won 51 games and the Yankees lost 44 games during that time period out of 95 games played.  However when Bobby Valentine

I’ve sung karaoke with Bobby Valentine in Tokyo, I’ve eaten lunch with him at his restaurant in Connecticut and I’ve seen him console a 9/11 family during a memorial event for their son, who was a friend of mine. In every setting, which ranged from hilarious to casual to somber, Valentine was always on. He was on stage and on display because he is comfortable with being in the middle of any situation.

Sometimes, Valentine creates the situation unnecessarily. That is what happened on a sleepy Tuesday in Florida when Valentine questioned aspects of Derek Jeter’s famous flip play and also took a swipe at Alex Rodriguez. While speaking with reporters, the Red Sox manager didn’t need to inject Jeter or Rodriguez into the discussion, but he did. My guess is Valentine

Following Brian Cashman’s latest stealth act that (pending physicals) will bring Michael Pineda and Hiroki Kuroda to the Bronx, many have declared the Yankees the big winners in the offseason. There’s no question the Bombers are better equipped for 2012 and future seasons, but as we were reminded by the Red Sox last year, championships are won in October, not January.

Remember this time a year ago? The Red Sox made a cannonball into the Hot Stove pool by signing Carl Crawford and trading for Adrian Gonzalez, seducing the Boston media to the point where it declared the 2011 Red Sox better than the 1927 Yankees. The Yankees, meanwhile, signed these players from the scrap heap: Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, Andruw Jones, Eric Chavez and Russell Martin.

The BoSox weren’t

Behind every sport, there is some sort of drama that lies behind it. With Football, you have Peyton Manning missing a whole season, Tim Tebow doing his weekly "Tebowing" and then you have the Jets with their all bark and no bite mode. With basketball, there was the NBA lockout. And with hockey...well, it's the same thing every night. Pucks are hit into goals and punches fly. But if there was one sport that has drama that is unimaginable, it would have to be baseball. 

I believe that baseball has so much drama that it should be made into its own T.V. show. Something always happens in the offseason that makes you gasp and have the mentality that you "didn't see it coming." Here is some drama worthy moments for some of the baseball teams in the league.

Boston Red Sox: The 2011