newjerseynewsroom.com

BY FRANK VERDE

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

FRANKIE SAYS

What better way to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park than an afternoon game between the Yankees and Red Sox, each team decked out in replicas of their 1912 uniforms.

For the Red Sox, that means all-white caps. The Yankees, among the most traditional franchises in all of sports, will wear gray caps with a navy blue brim and their familiar logo. Their road uniform will also sport an extra-large interlocking N and Y instead of “NEW YORK” across the shirt.

It’s the first time the Yankees will wear a different road uniform in team history.

A lot has changed in 100 years. The “Curse of the Bambino” didn’t exist yet because Babe Ruth didn’t arrive in Boston until 1914, when he played five games for the Sox. And the Yankees weren’t even the Yankees yet. They were the New York Highlanders then, changing their name to the Yankees the following season.

In 1912, Boston would go on to win the World Series – the first as the Boston Red Sox. The team would add two more World Series titles, in 1915 and 1918, before the Yankees won their first of their record 27 championships, beginning in 1923. Ruth, of course, had been traded from Boston to New York before the 1920 season and the curse was born.

It was 86 years between World Series titles for the Red Sox until Terry Francona led Boston to the 2004 championship and repeated the feat three years later. He’s expected to be at Fenway today after initially saying he wouldn’t attend because he didn’t want to feel like a hypocrite and be seen hugging people that he didn’t have warm feelings for.

But if you think there’s still some frostiness between Francona and the people in the front office who fired him after last season’s collapse, wait till you see how Red Sox Nation greets Bobby Valentine today.

Boston fans have been practicing all week, booing Valentine at every opportunity. If Valentine elects to come out to the mound to talk to his pitcher or remove him from the game, trust me, he’s not doing it to get face-time on NESN, which broadcasts Red Sox games.

Believe me, Francona will never be as popular in Boston again as he will be today in comparison with Valentine. The feisty former manager of the Mets has riled up fans, the general manager, players and ex-players and we’re still not out of April yet.

Valentine’s troubles really started when his new closer, Andrew Bailey, suffered a thumb injury before the season even started. He lost MVP candidate Jacoby Ellsbury two weeks into the season with a shoulder injury, and arguably lost the clubhouse when he recently questioned Youkilis’ commitment before apologizing for his remarks.

The 4-8 start to the season certainly hasn’t endeared himself to Boston fans either. The team traded for Mark Melancon in the offseason to help out in the bullpen, but the former Astro quickly went from candidate to replace Bailey as closer to minor leaguer. That’s what a 49.50 ERA in four outings will get you. Melancon only retired six of the 18 batters he faced and allowed five home runs.

The Yankees, at 7-6, have had better starts, but they're sitting pretty compared to their rivals from the North.

Curtis Granderson’s three home runs and 5-for-5 day at the plate in Thursday’s 7-6 victory over the Twins was one encouraging sign. Another was Mark Teixeira’s first home run of the season.

And Andy Pettitte remains on track to rejoin the Yankees’ starting rotation sometime next month. He’s pitching again in Tampa on Friday night, his third Class A start of the season. He went four innings in his last outing and hopes to extend himself farther on Friday.

The Yankees have a couple of veterans to turn to in left field since Brett Gardner has landed on the disabled list with a bruised elbow. Raul Ibanez and Andruw Jones are expected to split time in left.

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One hundred years ago Friday, the Red Sox scored a run in the last of the 11th inning to beat the Highlanders, 7-6, in the Fenway Park opener.

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On Monday in Texas, Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez will make it official. He’s retiring. Rodriguez played in 44 games with the Nationals last year and was unsigned this season. It was reported in February by the New York Daily News that the Mets had some interest in signing the catcher.

It remains to be seen if rumors of Rodriguez using performance enhancing drugs will affect his chances to be elected to the Hall of Fame. Defensively, Rodriguez had few equals behind the plate. Offensively, he put up numbers that – without the shadow of PEDs – would ensure an early entrance into Cooperstown.

In 1999, Rodriguez was the MVP in the American League when he hit .332 with 35 home runs and 25 stolen bases for the Rangers.

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Wednesday night’s Phillies-Giants pitching duel featuring Cliff Lee and Matt Cain, respectively, was a rare feat these days. Lee tossed 10 shutout innings and did not record a decision. Cain threw nine shutout innings of his own and did not figure in the decision either as San Francisco won, 1-0, in 11 innings.

It brought to mind another pitcher’s duel – one for the ages – that also took place in San Francisco.

The Giants’ Juan Marichal and the Milwaukee Braves’ Warren Spahn, two of the greatest pitchers ever, hooked up in a scoreless duel that went into the 16th inning on July 2, 1963. Both starting pitchers went the distance.

Giants’ manager Alvin Dark wanted to remove Marichal in between innings once the game entered the 12th, 13th, 14th innings, but the Giants’ ace refused.

The story goes that Marichal, then 25, pointed to the mound and told his manager: “I’m not coming out of this game until that old man over there comes out.” Spahn, who won 20 games 13 times, was 42.

It nearly took an Act of God to end the contest. And when it began to appear that the heavens were happy to see this contest go on forever, the great Willie Mays finally stepped in. His home run off Spahn in the last of the 16th inning was the only run scored all night, even as the calendar changed to July 3.

Pitch counts?

Both men threw more than 200 pitches that night. Two hundred! We’ve got a better chance of celebrating Fenway Park’s 200th anniversary than seeing another pitching performance like this in the next 100 years.

See more of Frank Verde’s sports blogs at frankverde.sportsblog.com