4. All Of The Most Explosive Players Are Gone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AejNA_42RRA The best players make up the best teams. Similarly, the most fiery and explosive players make for an explosive rivalry. During the really hot Yankees/Red Sox years in the late 90s/early 00s, each side had some really volatile personalities. The Red Sox had Manny Ramirez, Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez. The Yankees had Roger Clemens (himself a former Red Sox in the 80s) and Paul ONeill. These personalities contributed to the heated rivalry. One of the major moments in the Yanks/Sox rivalry involves Don Zimmer, a 72-year-old pitching coach,
charging Pedro during a bench-clearing brawl, and having Pedro sidestep him and throw him to the ground. These days, there are few players left on either team from those explosive days. Derek Jeter just retired, Manny Ramirez is out of baseball, and many others have moved on as well. The only marquee names on either team (David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia for the Red Sox, Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixiera for the Yankees) will most likely be gone within five years. Do the remaining players care enough about the rivalry to stoke the flames going forward? Time will tell.