Get Ready Sox Fans... It's Time to Cheer for the Yankees

No, there's not a mistake in the title, you don't need to make an appointment with your eye doctor. For Red Sox fans, it is time indeed to cheer for the Yankees as they take on the Rays this week and next with tonight being the first of 7 games that will certainly play a huge role in deciding who wins the AL Wildcard. Back on September 2, life was good for Sox fans as their team held a seemingly insurmountable 9 game lead over the Rays and the playoffs seemed like a lock. Then, the bats went quiet, the pitching staff forgot how to pitch, injuries mounted and voila, here we are 18 days later, holding on for dear life. The deficit has been trimmed to 2 games with 8 games left to play for the Sox and 10 for the Rays. As I said before, the Rays play 7 of those final 10 against the Yankees and for Sox fans, that can mean one thing and one thing only,  it is time to actually cheer for the Yankees. For something as rare as Sox fans cheering for the Bronx Bombers, there is a certain level of mental preparation that is necessary. You don't go from booing A-Rod all season to hoping that he all of the sudden hits a home run to send your team into the playoffs.

For all Sox fans, hating the Yankees has always been a way of life. Watching them lose is always fun, especially when your team had won that same day. To most, there was nothing more gratifying than taking down the Evil Empire in the 2004 ALCS. The greatest comeback in sports history was completely necessary in order to erase the painful memory of 1 swing of the bat by Aaron Boone on a cold October night in 2003. There hasn't been a playoff meeting since the comeback, but the rivalry remains as strong as ever and won't be going away anytime soon. For most Sox fans, cheering for the hated Yankees is a foreign concept that should never be done, with the exception of your team being in a dire situation. Losing 7 games off your wildcard lead in 18 days certainly qualifies as a dire situation, despite how much you may hate the Yankees with a burning passion. Trust me, I still haven't fully grasped the whole idea of cheering for the team in pinstripes over the next week or so. I've never cheered for the Yankees in my life and don't plan on doing so ever again, unless it is a must in order for the Red Sox to make the playoffs.

The only soothing thing about this whole situation is that we know deep down that if the Yanks come through for us, the Red Sox will be playing October baseball. In the regular season, there is nothing more you can ask for from your team if they play well enough to make the postseason. When the playoffs start, everybody is once again 0-0 and the disastrous September will be forgotten if the Red Sox can find a way to make the playoffs.

It's time to face it Sox fans, we must cheer for the Yankees to beat the Rays if you truly want to see your team in the playoffs, come October.