Say what you want about the constant deluge of coverage, from seeing pictures of Johnny Damon?s wedding and subsequent honeymoon (I don?t know the specific rules regarding honeymoons, since I?ve never been on one, but I?m pretty sure you?re not supposed to invites friends), to reading about Bronson Arroyo?s offseason activities (complete with pictures of that hideous hairstyle; at least he answered the eternal question as to what would happen if Snoop Dogg were to somehow successfully pro-create with a weasel), to the fact that Alex Rodriguez is in therapy making national news. I?m holding my breath for Cesar Crespo?s book to come out. But there?s a reason why you can?t turn on the TV or go to ESPN?s homepage without seeing some sort of Sox-Yanks related material. For one, the dollar signs that constantly swirl around the rivalry are more than the GDP for several countries. The Red Sox and Yankees combine to make up 53% of total licensed merchandise sales this year. The Sox number alone jumped from 12% last year to 21% this year, which is unfortunate for us Diehards that so many people hopped on the bandwagon to the point where being a Sox fan has almost jumped the shark, but ultimately good for the team as their revenue will increase and they?ll have more money to spend on players (as long as said player is NOT named Byung-Hyun Kim). With that much money being spent by the fans on the rivalry, it naturally follows that the news organizations will cater to their interests, thus increasing their own profits from advertising sales. The fact this column has been written and published (and you are reading it) substantiates that fact. Somebody had to pay for that Free Ipod Giveaway popup ad you just angrily closed. However, there is clearly more to this rivalry than just the almighty dollar sign, as this past weekend?s latest chapter proved. You never know what to expect when these two teams get together, and that is why it is such an attraction. Friday night, there was Dale ?Send-em? Sveum, who inexplicably was solely responsible for getting two runners thrown out at the plate on consecutive throws, by a combined 30 feet. The second play, when there were two outs, was maybe, MAYBE, acceptable, but on the first play, with one out and David Ortiz lumbering to the plate with a possible bases-loaded situation, why would you ever take that risk? I think I learned in tee-ball that you never make the first or second out of the inning at home plate. And this isn?t the first time Sveum has been exposed. He has been a constant liability to the Red Sox ever since he replaced Wendell Kim (and Sox fans thought it couldn?t be any worse than Kim-seriously, how hard is it to find someone who can successfully tell a runner when to stop and when to go? It ain?t brain surgery). I?m not sure if Elias keeps statistics for third base coaches, but if they did, I would be afraid to see what Sveum?s PORTOBAM would be (percentage of runners thrown out by a mile). But I digress. Saturday?s game consisted of the most lopsided win (or loss for you Yankees fans) in the history of the rivalry. Edgar Renteria: glad you finally arrived, welcome to the team, we?ve been waiting for you. Sunday night?s game was relatively incident-free, with David Wells pitching a great game after the two first-inning homeruns. There were a few exceptions, however. Tanyon Sturtze hit Trot Nixon with the second pitch in the top of the ninth, clearly on purpose. Sturtze must not be over the tussle he got into with Nixon the day of A-Rod/Tek I. I was mildly surprised at the restraint Trot showed after getting hit, but I don?t think this is over. Other than that incident, possibly the funniest moment of the game came when Joe Morgan was explaining to Jon Miller that David Ortiz was celebrating the Dominican Republic?s version of Mother?s Day for his wife even though they were in the United States. Morgan justified Ortiz?s celebration by saying that he would celebrate Christmas even if he were in Germany on December 25th. Now I am not Christian, so I may not know this with absolute certainty, but was Jesus born on a different day in each country or something? Morgan also explained throughout Mussina?s start that Mussina was actually pitching well and that the Sox hitters were just hitting well, when it was fairly clear that Mussina was getting rocked. This was substantiated when Joe Torre, in one of those surreal in-game interviews, basically told Morgan that he was wrong and that Mussina simply did not have his good stuff. Who gave Sunday Night Baseball that Emmy, anyway? All in all, the weekend passed as just another installment in the Boston-New York rivalry; boatloads of money were made, history was made, and best of all, the Sox took two-of-three.