I want to start off this article with a caveat. I am a Yankees fan who is still riding the euphoria of a Bucky Dent-like Aaron Boone eleventh-inning home run. I was on the second floor of Shapiro Campus Center watching the game when the home run was hit, and I was giddy with excitement, jumping up and down, hugging and high-fiving complete strangers. It was an experience that may never be matched as I thanked Boone, Rivera, Babe and what is known as the "curse." But now that I've calmed down a bit, I've given some thought about the whole "curse" idea.
A curse can be defined as a profane or obscene expression usually of surprise or anger; something you shouldn't say in front of your mother. Likewise, "The Curse," is something you shouldn't mention in front of a Red Sox or Cubs fan in October - especially this October.
But blaming your team's loss on a curse is like blaming your missing homework on your dog's dietary needs. Just as the classic "dog ate my homework" excuse doesn't fly with teachers in school, neither will "my team lost because of the curse" hold water in my article. Neither will blaming your team's loss on Steve Bartman or Grady Little. Postseason games are won and lost by the nine men in between the white lines; so blaming a loss on an umpire, fan, coach, manager, broadcaster or Mother Nature is ludicrous.
I'll concede that it is unbelievable coincidence that both the Red Sox and Cubs - with 85 and 95 years of futility, respectively - had three-run leads in clinching games with their best pitcher on the mound. And then, with these same pitchers on the mound, the lead was given up, with Grady Little and Dusty Baker (two leading Manager of the Year candidates) leaving primed relievers in their bullpen.
But please don't put blame on "the curse." While Chicago shouldn't blame the Billy Goat and Boston shouldn't blame Babe Ruth and his submerged piano, they also shouldn't place all the blame on their own team. Although Alex Gonzalez let a crucial ground ball go through his legs and Tim Wakefield gave up the home run to Boone, the Yankees and the Marlins deserve a lot more credit for winning their respective series.
The Marlins came back from a 3-1 series deficit, rallying in every game they played in the series (except one blow-out). They used speed, youth and a never-say-die attitude to beat the Cubbies. And when they needed the big play throughout these playoffs, Ivan Rodriguez has shined like the MVP "Pudge" of old.
The Yankees seemed like they were down and out in their series also. Given a golden opportunity to put away the Red Sox in Game Six, with Andy Pettitte going up against the far inferior John Burkett, the Yankees blew it. The Yanks failed to add insurance runs to a 6-4 lead (mostly due to a huge strikeout of Jason Giambi), and then watched their bullpen lose the game. They then faced the daunting task of facing Pedro Martinez, arguably the best pitcher in the American League in the seventh game against a tiring Roger Clemens.
And the situation looked even bleaker when Boston quickly got out to a 4-0 lead off of Clemens and Pedro looked infallible. With nobody out and runners on first and third in the fourth, Clemens was lifted for Mike Mussina. If Mussina couldn't hold the Sox, the game was all but over. Mussina got three huge outs, including an enormous double play by Mr. Clutch, Derek Jeter to hold Boston to four runs.
And the Yankees slowly chipped runs off of Pedro. Giambi - struggling mightily - was dropped to the seven-hole by Joe Torre to take the pressure off of the Yankee slugger. He responded, crushing two solo home-runs to cut Boston's lead to 4-2. The Yankees relief held Boston in check. From Mussina to Heredia to Nelson to Wells, the Yankee bullpen kept the Red Sox from adding to their lead (save a David Wells hanging breaking ball which David Ortiz crushed out of the park for a solo-homer).
And then the Yankees rallied. Like they did in Game Three, the Yanks started to hit Pedro. With one out, Jeter hit a two-strike pitch over Trot Nixon's head for a double and the rally started. And then Grady Little refused to remove Pedro from the game. Why, when you have Alan Embree and the unhittable Mike Timlin in the bullpen warmed up and you don't bring them in is totally beyond me. Jorge Posada then calmly dunked a base knock into center (eerily similar to Luis Gonzalez's broken bat shot that ended the 2001 World Series) to tie the game up at five. Finally Little went to the mound to take out Pedro, but it was too late. Although Embree got Giambi out in a big situation to preserve the lead, the damage had been done.
And then came Rivera. The MVP of this series showed why he's not only the best postseason relief pitcher, but he may have finally proved why he's the best relief pitcher in the history of the game. Pitching three dominating, scoreless innings, the game stayed tied at five until the eleventh.
That's when Aaron Boone, disappointing as a Yankee until that point, forever endeared himself in the hearts of Yankee fans and inserted his name into postseason lore.
Since I started junior high school in 1996, the Yankees have won six pennants. In those six ALCS wins, I don't think I've ever reacted the way I did when they won the other night. I don't think I reacted to half of their World Series wins as I reacted the other night. And the same goes for the team, themselves. As soon as Tim Wakefield's pitch was hit out, they, like me, looked like they had won the World Series.
I consider myself a fanatical Yankees fan. But I just feel like it's really hard to get up for another series. The emotional drain that the ALCS caused, especially with all of the Red Sox fans (and those fakes who just root for whoever the Yankees are playing) who ragged me the entire playoffs, left me drained for this World Series. Maybe I'm just jaded or spoiled by all the success they've had, but I felt myself less inclined to figure out ways to miss classes and meetings to see the games.
And as the Yankees try to close in on a remarkable 27th World Series title, Red Sox and Cubs spend another winter wondering what if and saying "wait until next year."
That is until next year comes. And then again it is possible they will be knocked off by superior teams like the Yankees and Marlins did this year.
But you'll never hear me say that it was due to any long-standing curse.