Yankees Suck!

Sam Farmer - Contributing Writer (@samfarmer24)

I hate the Yankees. Like millions of other Red Sox fans, I simply can't stand the New York team. The Red Sox and Yankees rivalry has been brewing since the 1920's when the Yankees started winning title after title with our stolen superstar Babe Ruth. The rivalry has managed to grow even stronger in recent years, as the two teams consistently are competing for not only the AL East, but also the World Series.

The Yankees are without doubt the most successful franchise in MLB history. They have won 27 World Series trophies in their storied history. The St. Louis Cardinals are second with 11 and Boston sits in third with 9 after their triumph on Sunday. This isn't just a fan based rivalry though. The teams seem to legitimately dislike each other. Tensions were higher this season than they were in recent years, thanks to the talented rosters of both teams, as well as an early April brawl that set the tone. The fans dislike each other, the teams dislike each other, and there seems to be a strong animosity between the cities of New York and Boston in general.
Christopher Evans / Boston Herald

Due to the strong dislike of the Yankees, one of the favourite chants for Red Sox fans is a simple "Yankees suck." Boston fans will take any opportunity to chant Yankees Suck. I personally have heard it at a college hockey game, Patriots victory parade, and even have seen hundreds of college students running down the street in their underwear yelling it during Northeastern University's annual underwear run. Bostonians and Sox fans see it as a point of pride to hate the Yankees and love to see the Evil Empire lose at all times.

Bill Simmons recently spoke on his podcast about his dislike of the chant and how he believes fans should retire the chant. He complained that we were chanting it in both LA and Boston during the 5 game World Series. He points to the Red Sox recent dominance of the Yankees this century (four WS victories to two since the clock hit 2000) as reason to retire the chant. To me, it seems like Simmons is saying that now that we are winning multiple World Series' in a decade, we don't need to use the chant. He seems to be asking why we are so focused on the Yankees.
Mike Windle / Getty Images

To me, the Yankees Suck chant isn't symbolic of success or failure. We don't chant Yankees suck because we believe that the Yankees suck. This New York team won 100+ games this year, and we continued to chant it. Boston fans chanting Yankees Suck doesn't need to be made into more than it is. It's a fun chant that gets Red Sox fans excited and brings added fun to the atmosphere. I for one, am going to continue the Yankees Suck chant whenever I have a chance. I don't chant because I think the Yankees are terrible, but because it's fun, and as a die hard Red Sox fan, there's not much I love more than to hate the Yankees.