The New York Yankees face their blood rival Boston Red Sox in the AL Wild Card round this year and, though Derek Jeter won’t like how we put this, the series isn’t simply about winning and advancing.
Rather, this Yankees-Red sox best-of-three series is a test in baseball redemption. And not just because the Red Sox trounced the Yankees in the season series, 9-4. That’s meaningless. New York was 4-8 against Boston in 1999 and still dispatched them in five games in the 1999 ALCS en route to a second consecutive World Series title.
Instead, this playoff series is about one thing: the Yankees proving they can still beat Boston in October.