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Did Pap rev up the rivalry?

Email|Link|Comments (5) Posted by Steve Silva, Boston.com Staff July 24, 2008 11:59 AM

In today's New York Times, George Vescey nominates Jonathan Papelbon as "the man who has done the most to restore acrimony to the rivalry between the Yankees and the Red Sox.":

Just when it looked as if the Yankees and Red Sox were drifting into the cozy familiarity of “Brady Bunch” reruns (four episodes you haven’t seen in at least a week), along came Papelbon, poking a sharp stick into the cage of somnolent Yankee fans.
Papelbon performed this service during the All-Star festivities last week, when he mused that he would pick himself to close the game. A posse of New York tabloids (and Papelbon’s manager, the perceptive Terry Francona) reminded Papelbon that the Yankees have a reliever named Mariano Rivera.

Vescey also writes that some Yankee fans think Papelbon may have been doing the taunting during the All-Star parade on Sixth Avenue in New York.

Let it be noted that some touchy Yankee fans on the parade route felt Papelbon was ostentatiously flashing his World Series ring, telling Yankee fans: Look what I’ve got — and your team doesn’t. Or maybe Yankee fans wanted to think he was flashing the ring.

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5 comments so far...

Let's hope that Red Sox fans remember the treatment that Papelbon and all the other Sox players received by New Yorkers during the All-Star festivities.

C'mon Boston - time to recipricate. Let's show the New Yorkers that two can play that game. Let's make every single New Yorker uncomfortable this weekend.

Posted by The Sour Apple July 24, 08 01:16 PM

"somnolent Yankee fans"? Living in CT, I can assure you that Yankee fans are not somnolent. Can't tell you how many times Yankee fans look at my 4 month old with a Red Sox t-shirt on and make comments like "poor kid" or something stupid like that.

Posted by William July 24, 08 01:17 PM

I was there and saw Paps waving his rings around. He was giving it back to the fans and it was actually comical the way the fans and Paps were going back and forth. I didn't hear death threats and wasn't even sure that lady with him was his wife so I would be surprised if the fans did. I was suprised that it was blown out of proportion. I am sure Paps wife got upset and Paps did what a husband does and that is over-react, which he cleary regrets when he said it was over a few days later. Rivalry will stay strong because they are close in talent. I just want to win.

Posted by ed July 24, 08 04:21 PM

I was at the parade and he was flashing his ring. Everytime a Yankee fan would yell at him, he would wave and then make a fist to flash his ring. All the Red Sox fans were going crazy. It was awesome.

Posted by Happy Azi July 25, 08 08:20 AM

The paps issues is nothing the whole thing started when our minor leaguer won the MVP and the boo's started to get worse as the festivity got under way. Second Paps is not the first player to use his ring to get a point across(Millar did it when he came into town with the Orioles and other players when they come to play the yanks) . Also to the fan that said he didn't saw nothing wrong then why did the NYPD stop the fans from going wild. Also why did the NYFD driver closed his window and wish not to be there but fighting a fire instead.

Posted by EddyintheBX July 25, 08 03:26 PM