Jason, a college friend who grew up on Long Island, e-mailed me yesterday with this thought:
Imagine how different things would be if yanks traded for beckett and sox signed pavano...
Let's ignore the fact that Jason's not into capitalization in his e-mails, and see if we can figure out how the world of The Rivalry would have changed with that succession of events...
(Imagine your screen gets wavy now, like a flashback scene from a number of movies, like this one...)
December 12, 2004: The Red Sox announce their signing of Carl Pavano to a four-year, $41-million deal.
December 22, 2004: The Yankees, spurned by Pavano, sign Matt Clement to a three-year, $25-million contract.
June 26, 2005: Pavano, after a whiny, mediocre half-season, complains of shoulder soreness and shuts himself down. Manny Ramirez, admiring Pavano's laziness (just like Homer of Larry Burns in this episode), shuts himself down, as well.
July 31, 2005: With Clement pitching well for the Yankees, and no jobs available in the rotation, a crestfallen Aaron Small, buried at the Yankees' Triple-A Columbus affiliate, retires.
October 10, 2005: The Yankees, with Clement piching poorly by the end of the year, lose to the Angels in the AL Division Series. The Red Sox, with both Pavano and Ramirez on vacation, miss the playoffs altogether.
November 22, 2005: The Yankees, realizing they desperatly need young, power arms, trade Robinson Cano and Phil Hughes to the Marlins for Beckett and Mike Lowell, whom they spin off to San Diego as a salary dump. The Red Sox respond by trading Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez to Minnesota for Francisco Liriano.
April 5, 2006: Under the tutelage of Curt Schilling, Pavano gets his act together and pitches well for the Sox, allowing two runs in seven innings. Feeling as though he has met his goals, Pavano then exaggerates six injuries to keep him out for the rest of the year.
October 1, 2006: With Beckett struggling through the bulk of the season, and with starting second baseman Miguel Cairo dragging down the lineup, the Yankees miss the playoffs. Joe Torre is fired and replaced by Lou Piniella.
October 26, 2006: With Liriano _ who, at the Red Sox's insistence, sat out the World Baseball Classic _ thriving as the new, young ace, the Sox win their second World Series title in three years.
April 30, 2007: "I feel like I've finally overcome my past," Pavano says, after picking up his third victory in five starts. Pavano undergoes Tommy John surgery that night. And Liriano, gassed from his '06 heroics, soon joins Pavano on the Tommy John list.
September 27, 2007: Beckett, having learned from his first year in the American League, wraps up a brilliant, 20-8 regular season.
October 8, 2007: Red Sox Game 4 starter Roger Clemens, having signed back in May for an annual salary of $28 million, lasts just 2 1/3 innings due to an ailing hamstring, and the Red Sox lose to the Angels in the ALDS.
October 31, 2007: Beckett wins World Series MVP honors in leading the Yankees to their first Fall Classic title in seven years. Yankees fans name team president Randy Levine their Most Favorite Person Ever. Torre, part of Fox's broadcast team, calls it "an insult" that Beckett pitched better for Piniella than he did for him.
July 31, 2008: Pavano announces that he has purchased a new Porsche.
2009-2018: The Yankees and Beckett win three more World Series titles. The Red Sox and Liriano win two more.
July 28, 2024: Beckett enters the Hall of Fame with a Yankees cap on his plaque. Pavano enters a Burger King in West Palm Beach, FL and orders a Whopper.