Dear Boston,
Start from scratch. Get rid of Pedro, rebuild Fenway (keep the monster), and finally trade for the Babe. Pay whatever they want, just get him back in white and red. In all seriousness, you can win the championship without the Babe, but until you are willing to totally let the notion that you are cursed go, you will never win. The Yankees may have your number, but you aren't cursed. The only curse is your lack of ability to win a big game. Five outs away, it's not fair, but it's baseball.
I'm certainly not a GM but let me tell you some ideas from the Yankees point of view. Firstly, Pedro Martinez will never win a championship for the Red Sox nation. He doesn't have what it takes to be a pitcher in Boston, where there is possibly more hatred for losing and weakness than even New York.
Curt Shilling will win you a championship eventually and putting faith in him is a step in the right direction. Martinez doesn't have the guts to win when it counts the most and his numerous failed chances prove that. He has been a great pitcher for you, but he isn't a Boston-style pitcher and certainly won't win you anything. He's getting older by the day and he doesn't have the drive of one of your best pitchers ever to wear the white and red - Roger Clemens.
Clemens is the work horse your team needs to find the ring, and you have a younger Clemens on your roster right now in Schilling. He doesn't make excuses, he simply finds ways to go out there and win.
Secondly, it is time to rebuild Fenway Park. I don't mean this in a highly critical way like most Yankee fans, I simply see a new Fenway as a chance to give you more opportunity to win. Think about the added revenue, extra fans, and more support you can generate for the team. There are no negatives, you would rebuild the stadium in a more fan friendly area of Boston, and you keep the field setup and dimension the same. Some argue the monster has hurt you over the years, but there is no argument that it is considered a national monument in Boston.
There is no question that Fenway wouldn't be the same. Yet the positives far outweigh any damage that would be done by spending more years in the same stadium. And for any of you "curse" believers, think about how cursed the damn stadium is. It is the only thing that's been the same since 1918.
Lastly, get the Babe back. Call up George Steinbrenner, tell him that you understand how much No. 3 is worth to New York, and then get out a blank check. Listen to whatever number he tells you and write it in the dollar amount. If that doesn't work, tell George that you will give him the $300,000 that you traded Ruth for back in 1918 back to him. Tell him you don't want concessions from the Yankees, you just don't want anything to do with Ruth anymore. Face it, until you have George Herman Ruth, or at least have absolved yourself from all things pinstripe, you will never win a World Series.
In conclusion, the year may be over, but your chance to win a Series this decade isn't ... yet. Don't prolong the mistake you have been making for the last 86 years. Do the right thing now and you still may win the title - just not this year.
Best Wishes, A Yankee Fan
