Tale of the tape

How Red Sox, Yankees look after whirlwind offseason

By John Donovan, SI.com

A-Rod On The Move SI Writers • Verducci: The 'ultimate team move' • Head2Head: Good for baseball? | Reactions • CNNMoney: The rich are getting poorer • Tale of the Tape: Red Sox-Yankees • Taylor: Another hired gun for Steinbrenner • Donovan: A-Rod's shameful about-face • Analysis | Photo Gallery | Fantasy File Latest news • Rodriguez-Jeter friendship remains strained • Yankees introduce latest prize catch • A look at A-Rod's current contract

The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees have been sniping at each other for more than 100 years in the most pent-up -- and some say most screwed-up -- rivalry in baseball. For a century, this series has featured some of the greatest names the sport has known. It's been filled with drama, heartache and, along the way, maybe even a few curses.

Never in these two teams' long histories, though, have they spent an offseason like this one.

Blow by blow, big signing by big signing, this has been an extraordinary three-plus months game of payroll-inflating one-upmanship. Curt Schilling. Javier Vazquez. Keith Foulke. Gary Sheffield. Kevin Brown. It was all capped (oh, man, do we hope it was capped) over the weekend, when the free-spending Yankees stuck it to the Sox once again, trading for AL MVP Alex Rodriguez.

Before the trade, many analysts gave the early 2004 nod to the Red Sox. But with the acquisition of A-Rod, who the Red Sox tried to get earlier this offseason, things may have swung back to the Yanks.

Last season, the Yanks won a typically hard-fought regular-season series, 10-9. In the last game the two teams played -- Game 7 of the AL Championship Series in Yankee Stadium -- it took an 11th inning home run from Yankees third baseman Aaron Boone for the New Yorkers finally to put the Red Sox away.

Who will be king of the AL East this season? Let's go position by position:

First base: Kevin Millar vs. Jason Giambi Edge Millar and David Ortiz will carry the load in Boston, while Tony Clark, a former Boston first baseman, will spell Giambi in New York. Millar drove in 96 runs and smacked 25 homers, so he's no slouch. But Giambi, even with bad legs that limited his time and defensive ability at first, smacked 41 homers and drove in 107.   Second base: Pokey Reese vs. Enrique Wilson Edge The only non-glam position on the field, the Red Sox let Todd Walker and his 85 RBIs go and signed Reese, who tries to make up for his feeble bat with wicked glovework. Wilson, a career backup, played only 10 games behind Alfonso Soriano (who went to Texas for A-Rod) in '03. These guys are simple stuffing beside the main course. We'll call it a push. --   Third base: Bill Mueller vs. Alex Rodriguez Edge He's easy to forget, but the switch-hitting Mueller won the AL batting crown last season, hitting .326 with 85 RBIs. He also hit .358 with runners on. Still, he's no A-Rod. Rodriguez was "off" in '03 with 47 homers and 118 RBIs, and he'll have a lot more protection in the lineup now. A Gold Glove winner at shortstop in Texas, A-Rod's transition to third base shouldn't be too difficult.   Shortstop: Nomar Garciaparra vs. Derek Jeter Edge The free-swinging Garciaparra was dissed big-time in the attempted trade for A-Rod. But Nomar's a pro, and he'll continue his hacking ways (105 RBIs) in a contract year. Jeter has faded defensively, but he's the Yanks' captain and the team's heart. He hit .324 despite a bad shoulder.   Catcher: Jason Varitek vs. Jorge Posada Edge Both are switch-hitters, they're practically equal defensively and both are solid handlers of the pitching staff. Varitek hit 25 homers and drove in 85 runs last season, while Posada smacked 30 and knocked in 101 runs. The fact is, these are probably the two best catchers in the AL. The question is, who's No. 1? Posada, probably.   Left field: Manny Ramirez vs. Hideki Matsui Edge The Red Sox tried to rid themselves of Ramirez in the attempt to get A-Rod, but that had more to do with salary and off-field transgressions than performance (.325, 37 homers, 104 RBIs). Matsui's rookie season was good (.287, 16, 106). Neither will win a Gold Glove in the outfield. For pure hitting skill alone, Manny gets the nod.   Center field: Johnny Damon vs. Kenny Lofton Edge Two capable leadoff men, both Damon and Lofton can still swipe a base (they each stole 30 in '03). One of the biggest differences is Damon's superior defense, though neither has a particularly good arm. Both players will play the traditional role of setup men to the sluggers. We like youth, so the edge goes to the Red Sox.   Right field: Trot Nixon vs. Gary Sheffield Edge Nixon was good enough last season, hitting a career-high .306 and smashing 28 homers, to earn a three-year deal. He struggled against lefties, though, hitting .219. Sheff had an MVP-type year for the Braves (.330, 39, 132), was great against either lefties and righties and can zip the ball from the outfield with authority.   DH: David Ortiz vs. Bernie Williams Edge Ortiz wants to play more first base and Williams wants his job in center field back, but until then, they'll DH. Ortiz, with 31 homers and 101 RBIs, was mentioned as an MVP candidate last season. Williams battled knee and shoulder problems and had his worst season in 10 years (a .778 combined slugging/on-base percentage).   Rotation: Martinez-Schilling-Lowe-Wakefield-Kim vs. Mussina-Brown-Vazquez-Contreras-Lieber Edge Thanks to the defections of Andy Pettitte and David Wells, Joe Torre is stuck without a lefty or the first time during tenure in New York. The Yankees have turned over 60 percent of their rotation. Only ace Mussina (who never has won 20 games) and Contreras (who struggled in relief but still had opponents whiffing at a .202 clip) remain. Vazquez (a 3.24 ERA and a .229 average against for Montreal in '03) is solid, though some wonder how he'll react to the Big Apple. If Brown stays healthy (a 2.39 ERA in 211 innings last season), the Yanks will be tough. Lieber is a question mark, coming off Tommy John surgery. In Boston, and everywhere else, everybody knows what Martinez and Schilling can, and probably will, do. Lowe got banged around some but still won 17 games, and the indestructible knuckleballer Wakefield is a solid No. 4. The surprise for the Red Sox may come from submarining righty Kim, who finally gets a full-time spot in the rotation after bouncing around in the bullpen forever. This is close, but because of depth, we'll give the edge to the Red Sox.   Bullpen: Williamson-Timlin-Embree-Mendoza-Foulke vs. Gordon-Quantrill-Karsay-Heredia-Rivera Edge The Red Sox improved one of the weakest spots on the team with the addition of Foulke (43 saves and a .183 batting average against in Oakland). But the Yankees, who still have the best closer in the AL (40 saves, 1.66 ERA for Rivera), added Gordon (.213 batting average against in 66 games for the Cubs) and Quantrill (1.75 ERA in 89 games in L.A.) and may get back Karsay, who had shoulder problems last season.   Manager: Terry Francona vs. Joe Torre Edge One thing Grady Little did well in Boston was improve the clubhouse chemistry. Francona, who replaces Little, is supposed to be able to do the same. Talent-wise, he has more to work with. Torre is facing a lot of change, again, and in the last year of his contract with the best lineup he's had, he faces more pressure than ever. If anyone can bring all this together, though, it's the unflappable Torre.

After the Rodriguez trade is approved, the Yankees will have a payroll somewhere around $190 million this season. Four of their players own contracts worth $100 million each. The left side of their infield, alone, will make more in 2004 than the expected budget for the entire Milwaukee Brewers team. The Red Sox payroll, too, will be a whopper, somewhere around $120 million.

Still, when it comes to New York and Boston fans, money means squat. The Red Sox and their curses have not won a World Series since 1918. The Yankees have 26 World Series title. In 1,901 regular-season games since 1903, the Yanks lead the series between the two teams, 1,047-854.

The most important number for fans of this rivalry, though, is this: 19. The two teams will play 19 more times this season. It all starts, again, with a four-game set at Fenway on April 16-19.