8/6: The first game of “The Series.”

John Smoltz and his good FIP take to Yankees Stadium, trying to finally put together a quality start. He will square up with Joba Chamberlain. The Red Sox need a split, but want even more...

Justin Masterson is a reliever.

Justin Masterson is dominant against right-handed hitters. But lefties reach base well over the league-average. Meaning that Masterson will have trouble until he can establish an "out-pitch" to retire them. Or develop his command more so, which is a possibility. Because currently, Masterson still catches too much of the inner half of the plate, at least against left-handers. And 2009 hasn't been any different either. A relatively small sample, but Masterson's .794 OPS against lefties just isn't going to cut it.

5/5: Send them to .500

Jon Lester got down to business last night, now it's Josh Beckett's turn to show the Yankees that it sucks to draw the Red Sox #1/#2 punch in a two game series. A Red Sox win pushes the Yankees to .500. I like the sound of that.

BOS 6, NYY 4: Undefeated

New venue, same drama. The rivalry between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees will always be eventful.

Lady Luck is a fickle mistress — just ask the Sox and Yankees

This decade has been the most monumental in the franchise's history. Not only did new ownership arrive, but Fenway Park was revitalized, a Nation was born (in the media, that is), a new generation of stars (Nomar, Manny, Pedro, Big Papi, Papelbon, Pedroia) put their stamp on their team... oh, and there were those two World Championships as well.

All this was done thanks to the incredible work that Theo Epstein and the rest of the baseball operations put in to give us the players that we root for every day. They are, to be certain, the reasons why we have our first two rings since 1918.

But let's not count out Lady Luck. Lady Luck is a fickle mistress; you never know when she'll turn on you.

4/24: Rivalry Renewed

And so it begins....video after the jump.

Big Papi issues warning to Joba; Carter demoted

Big Papi, David Ortiz, issued a stark warning to Joba Chamberlain to watch his step, reported the New York Post.

Chamberlain seems to have an issue with Kevin Youkilis, having thrown the ball at or near his head four times in the last two years -- which is a rather striking number. The 2007 incidents earned him a suspension while one of the 2008 pitches almost sparked a brawl.

"None of that, man -- just play the game the way it's supposed to be, and that's about it. This is a guy, as good as he is, the next step for him will be to earn respect from everybody in the league. He's not a bad guy, but when things like that happen, people get the wrong idea."

Nine Up, Nine Down: Welcoming the Yankees

In advance of the Yankees coming to town tomorrow for a three-game set in what will be the unofficial start of baseball season around here, I figure we should get caught up with what's going on in Yankeeland.

After the jump we bring you up to speed on CC Sabathia's struggles, the injury report plus a breakdown of the pitcher's the Sox will face this weekend.

Know Thine Enemy 2009: New York Yankees

The other half of the best rivalry in sports, The New York Yankees. The Bronx Bombers "only" ended up with 89 victories last season. And the key players they inked this past off-season, have them looking incredibly strong on paper for this upcoming 2009 season.

The philosophy about building a strong farm was basically put on hold for a year. But Brian Cashman made some nice maneuvers, and the result--whether it was intentional or not--allowed the Yankees to lose their first three picks this year. And that is better than losing a first-round pick in three consecutive seasons, of course.

NYY 1, BOS 0: Joba as good as advertised

No walks and nine strikeouts over seven innings of work tallies up for a dominant performance by Joba Chamberlain in…