End result: Sox tie it in the third, Damon leaves with an injury and gets replaced by Gardner.

Sorry Pinstripers, this just ain't your year.

--Whittle

So much for the dream of another no-hitter by an unsuspecting Yankees pitcher against the Red Sox.

It's been 25 years since Dave Righetti, aka "Rags," made Wade Boggs (and everyone else) look foolish with that slider off the plate. If not for the mid-to-late 1990s, Jeter's flip to the plate in 2000, the Aaron Boone homer in 2003 and Jeter's dive into the stands against the Red Sox in 2004, this might have been the greatest Yankees moment of the past 25 years.

Alas, it's still in the top 10. And always worth a mention on July 4.

Photo from http://touchingallthebases.blogspot.com

Is he conceding the series already and showing his support for Beans Whittle and Dennehy?

Does that mean I won't accept the bet? Not on your life.

Bronx Boys: prepare to wear some Green.

Let's take a look at this weekends' pitching matchups ...

Tonight: Lester vs. Pettitte - Lefties love the Stadium. Recently, Lester has been one of the better lefties in the AL, while Pettitte has recently come around after misremembering how to pitch. This could be the one low-scoring affair of the series, and you know who that favors. ADVANTAGE: Beans.

America Rules Day: Beckett vs. Rasner - LOL OMG. ADVANTAGE: Beans.

Saturday: Masterson vs. Mussina - There's a chance the Sox might call up Clay Buchholz for this game, but either way, Mussina has been resurgent enough to engender confidence. ADVANTAGE: Bronx.

Sunday: Wakefield vs. Chamberlain - At first glance, this matchup looks like a mismatch; a butterfly-tosser versus a fireballer. But Wake has thrown seven straight quality starts and Joba has thrown two ever. ADVANTAGE: Beans.

--Whittle

I've got to be honest. All this business about the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry and discussion of bets feels kind of silly while the Tampa Bay Rays are in first place. While we live in the past, these thugs and no-names are on the verge of sweeping the Sox. Again.

Really, who are these people?

I'm not against other ball clubs having a run at glory. (Well, sort of). And I know Boston has had its share of sports successs.

But these guys from Wade Boggs country? This teams that plays in a hideous warehouse with a playing surface that looks like a cheap pool table. Whose most famous fan is Dick Vitale. Who changed their name during the offseason, for God's sake.

Who does that? What is this, the MLS?

I'd ask a real Rays fan for their perspective on all of this, but I'm just not sure one exists. Two weeks ago I disliked (Devil) Rays fans because they didn't for over $8 to go to the ballpark. Now I don't like them because they're treating a July series against the Red Sox like it's the World Series.

Really, cowbells?

What happened to the days when we'd enjoy a good Sox-(Devil) Rays brawl AND Greg Vaughn would strike out six times in the game?

Forget Yankees/Red Sox at the Stadium this weekend. All eyes are on Rays/Royals at the Trop!

-- Dennehy

Sorry, over here in the Beans side we had just settled in to baseball mode after vanquishing our other "traditional" sports rival (and savoring that marathon footage of Kevin McHale destroying Kurt Rambis) only to find our ballclub in a first-second battle with....the RAYS! Those pesky, thuggish Rays.

But, sure, we can still take some time for a friendly wager with our old friends in the Bronx.

Understand, if it came to it, I would probably need a while to deliver on a Giambi-esque mustache. In fact, I may only be able to resurrect the '87 Bird classic.

Sorry, though. It won't be enough to see these Yankee guys wearing Celtic green or a BEAT L.A. shirts. It's not like that would really hurt them, not really having a legitimate basketball team to call their own.

No, I'm thinking of another style statement that would still relate to the latest Celtics championship run...

I want to see Gino shirts, maybe some Gino wigs. The dance is negotiable. Hey, it's not like it's October.

Even as I make this wager, I understand this is a bet LaMonica and Fernandez may may not mind losing.

--- Dennehy

Here we go, Beans Whittle and Dennehy. Let's see if you've got the guts to make another friendly wager based on the outcome of the upcoming Yankees-Red Sox series at the Stadium.

The Wager

Should the Yankees win the four-game series, Beans Whittle and Dennehy will have to pose for a photo wearing a Giambi-esque mustache which will then be posted in the blog.

Should the Red Sox win the four-game series, Bronx La Monica and Fernandez will pose with Dennehy's World Championship Celtics memorabilia for a photo to be posted in the blog.

You guys ready to step up? To quote the Mad Dog, "Show some guts!"

Of course, that tradition started Wednesday night, but whatever. It just feels right, doesn't it?

That tradition carried over to Thursday morning. Sitting at breakfast in a Boston hotel restaurant, oopsies, I wore my Yankees bandanna. A waitress politely asked where we were from, as if the blue, red and white Yankees logo and the script "New York Yankees" wasn't a tell-tale sign.

I pointed to the bandanna for my response.

"What are you guys doing here in Boston?" she asked.

"Giving Fenway the finger!" I responded.

She laughed. But sensing her Bostonian pride - did they have any before 2004? - was about to get crushed, she retaliated with "You know, we do that too to Yankee fans."

"Yeah, but the New York finger is so much more powerful."

"Is that right?"

"Yep. Here, I'll show you."

And with that I gave a Boston hotel restaurant waitress the finger before noon!

- La Monica

As of this writing, Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia and Manny Ramirez are leading the way in the all-star votes for their respective positions. Jason Varitek trails Joe Mauer in a close race for catcher. The only Yanks who lead in balloting are A-Rod at third and that guy who used to date Mariah Carey over at short. Hideki Matsui could get the nod at DH over David Ortiz, who is leading in votes but is likely out due to injury. Johnny Damon is being a whiney baby about how he deserves a shot, but he is in sixth place in the outfield voting race, almost 300,000 votes behind 3rd place vote-getter Ichiro Suzuki.

In other words, there's a mighty good chance the whole right side of the infield will be Red Soxers at this year's Mid-Summer Classic. Meanwhile, the left side will be be occupied by two sure-thing All-Stars whose tickets to the game were punched in March. It also means five (six if Varitek makes the cut) of the eight starting position players will be Red Sox and/or Yankees. Will the Bleacher Creatures do a roll-call and conveniently skip over Man-Ram, Peds and Youkie? Probably.

Maybe a Yankee pitcher will start the game to settle the score. Oh, wait a minute.

More updates on the All Star voting are available on Kat O'Brien's blog at www.newsday.com/sports. Get into it - it's gonna be a heck of a game.

--Whittle

But fear not, gentle Sox fans. Bartolo is on the DL, but the Sox have something the Yanks lack: fans who bathe. Oh, and pitching depth. It would nice to think that the Bartolo Colon of 2008 is the same pitcher who won the Cy Young Award, but let's be real. Any good performances from Colon this year were simply gravy: a chance to give Clay Buchholz more seasoning in Triple A. And with Dice-K ready to come off the DL, Bartolo's batting blunder will allow Justin Masterson (3-1, 2.90) to stay in the rotation.

The Yanks are in trouble, though. Chien Ming Wang (who, by the way, should only be mentioned in the same sentence as the word "ace" if he's going to a hardware store) is out until September. The Pinstippers have limited options; some baseball pundits have even floated the idea of promoting career minor leaguer Dan Giese to the rotation. If that doesn't work (it won't) the other options are Kei "Worst Pitcher in the History of Modern Baseball" Igawa and about eight guys with names like Steven White (6.61 ERA at AAA Scranton) and Heath Phillips (5.88 ERA at Scranton). Where are Tyler Clippard and Matt DeSalvo when you need them?

(In case you're interested - the Yanks probably are - they are with the Washington and Atlanta organizations, respectively).

--Whittle

(50 bonus points if you can prove you knew it was Colon and not Rich Garces or Juan Berengeur without reading the headline!)

(AP Photo / June 16, 2008)

Hey, I've got an idea: Let's continue with interleague play 13 years after the MLB strike that canceled the 1994 World Series.

Maybe this way, all American League teams can be at a disadvantage for 9 games a season and, if we're lucky, a pitcher who gets paid to be near the plate only with his pitches and not his feet could be thrown into a physical encounter he's not used to so maybe he'll get hurt and miss the rest of the season.

Yeah, great work Commissioner Bud. What's next, end the All-Star game in a tie? Oh wait, sorry.

Sure, I'm whining, but whatever. It smells and smells hard that Chien-Ming Wang is likely out for the remainder of the season with a Lisfranc strain.

Thanks a lot, Mr. Selig. Interleague play, yeah, great idea. Let's put an asterisk on your forehead!

Now, credit where it's due, Joe manage to coax a surprising season out of a thoroughly talentless NL team in 2006. But now it's time for the comedy that is the Yankees playing in Houston (I guess we'll finally get to see what the 2004 World Series would have been like if both squads hadn't choked). Witness: an outfield consisting of Old Man Damon, Statue Matsui and the Adventures of Bobby Abreu. Witness: Joba Chamberlain confuses bat for a chicken wing, takes a bite out of the trademark. Witness: Lance Berkman clubs Yankee pitching, launches a few into Houston's comically short left-field porch.

Over in Ohio, the Running Red Sox will adjust swimmingly to NL-style ball. Be on the lookout for a three-hit day from former first baseman Tim Wakefield, a couple beautifully executed hit-and-runs featuring Alex Cora and some double switches featuring Kevin Youkilis playing first, third and the corner outfield positions (perhaps all at once). And that's just Saturday's game!

As a former resident of sunny Sarasota, I wish I still had my Homer Bailey SaraRed Bobblehead to place an Irish curse on. Sadly, I don't ... but the Sox should mash him anyway.

In other news: Manny Delcarmen is putting it together, the Sox have approximately 15 good starting pitchers on the 40-man roster, and Mike Lowell had 18 RBI last night. This "race" is about to turn into a waltz.

--Whittle

Check out the fifth inning of tonight's Yankees game as Joba Chamberlain says "take care" to a Shawn Chacon curveball deep into Houston's leftfield seats.

It's Joba's first day hitting in a big league game and I say he goes yard in his second at-bat, finally getting the timing of Chacon's slow deuce.

Joba's final line: 7 IP, 2 ER, 3 BB, 10 K -- from the plate: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 2 RBIs.

"That guy's still in the league?," said Bronx Mark La Monica about Chacon. "It will be a great battle between guys who wear their hats below their eyes."

-- Fernandez