Zzzzzzzzzz: Why the New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox rivalry is so boring these days

No, that's not Wile E. Coyote.

I always refer to the competition between the Yankees and the Red Sox as The Rivalry, but at this point, maybe I should just call it "a rivalry" (lowercase letters). What used to be vehement, fire-breathing hatred between the two teams -- and the two fan bases -- is now more like Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog.

Remember them from Looney Tunes cartoons? They clock in to work, bash each others' brains out all day, then exchange pleasantries as they punch out. That's kind of where we are in the Boston-New York rivalry. Heck, even the trash talk between Subway Squawkers and Boston site Monstah Mash is friendly and fun. Twelve years ago, we would have been at each others' throats. Now our sass comes with a wink.

As Monstah Masher Tyler recently wrote:

Let’s face it, the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry peaked when Jason Varitek fed A-Roid his catcher’s mitt. Since then it’s been nothing more than two rich kids saying how their dads could beat each other up while attempting to b*tch slap each other like a couple of grade school girls.

Ouch! But, but, I don't disagree. (Although our rich dad has cut off our allowance these days!)

Not only are the fans friendlier these days -- I have a slew of Red Sox friends on Facebook, and I can't remember the last time we really got into it -- but the teams also don't seem to have the hatred any more for each other. After all, the Red Sox did tributes for Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter when they were on their retirement tours, and you know the Yankees will for David Ortiz this year.

Tom Brady doesn't think
Frosted Flakes are grrreat!

Heck, I can't even get that worked up about all things Boston, the way I used to. I even have to say I admire Tom Brady (gulp!) on something! Brady took a courageous stance this fall against soda (calling it "poison for kids") and processed food like Frosted Flakes -- two industries that are huge advertisers with the NFL. Brady told Dennis and Callahan on WEEI radio: "You just keep eating those things, and you keep wondering why we have just incredible rates of disease in our country."

As somebody who has been on a mission to improve my own diet, I have to tip my hat to Brady for having the guts to say all this. And yes, I'm cringing as I type that!

Anyhow, something's got to give. What will it take to get The Rivalry back? I asked my Boston fan friends, and most of them agreed that a bona fide two-team pennant race would get things going. And maybe some brushback pitches, followed by a bench-clearing brawl, would help, too. Dare to dream!