By Emmanuel Berbari

“We own real estate inside Red Sox fans’ heads.”

“This is silly and childish.”

“Act like you’ve been there before.”

Hey, frankly, no one cares. You are speaking to deaf ears.

For the fourth time in 15 years, the Boston Red Sox are baseball’s best.

This year was different, however. This Red Sox team—compiling 119 wins between the regular season and playoffs—will go down in history as a top five squad in the outstanding history of America’s pastime.

Meanwhile, a 100-win Yankee team watched from home, while a fanbase eager to see its budding dynasty come to fruition overreacted at the sight of its archrival proving why this century has belonged to them.

Aaron Judge gave them poster material, blaring Sinatra’s “New York, New York” after an ALDS Game 2 win at Fenway, where the tides had apparently turned.

When the Red Sox played to a 10-2 clip for the remainder of the postseason and clinched their ninth title, the same song was in order during a raucous champagne celebration, despite defeating a Los Angeles-based team on the opposite side. They played inspired. They played like one of the greatest of all time.

Any Yankee fan that is shouting “19 more” has probably witnessed one championship in their lifetime.
They are the champions. When you win, it’s all on the table.

If you do not like it, win—plain and simple—and prevail against the best.

Sports are a culture, and cultures have themes.

A major theme of sports is, “What have you done for me lately?”

Lately, particularly within the last six years, the Red Sox have claimed two world championships.

Within the last six years, the Yankees have missed the postseason three times, and have been eliminated in the Wild Card game, ALDS and ALCS in respective years.

By Yankee standards, especially those who want to flaunt the “championship or bust” card, they have done nothing for you lately.

When you win a video game against your brother and do a celebratory dance, do you want to be told not to be happy?

If someone tells you that you’ll never succeed in something, and you succeed and prove them wrong, do you want to be told that they supported you all along?

The answer to both questions is no.

Pinstripe faithful has no grounds at this particular moment.

This is not to say that New York’s future is hanging in the balance—in fact, there is an extremely solid chance the Yanks grab a couple of championships before the end of this decade. After all, 2019 and the impending free agency was always the target in Brian Cashman’s brilliantly-shortened “rebuild” and surge back into relevancy.

For now, Yankee fans do not deserve any respect. No one feels sorry for them. In fact, most would use the word “hate” to describe the burning feeling toward the franchise and its fans.

It’s put up or shut up.

It’s a new century, and “New York, New York” has not been blaring all-too loud as of late.