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Inside The Pinstripes

Yankees Do Something to Red Sox They Haven’t Done in Years

The New York Yankees struggled against the Boston Red Sox all year last season, but, in the early goings of 2026, they beat the Red Sox down at home.
New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) reacts with second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) and shortstop José Caballero (72) after defeating the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park
New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) reacts with second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) and shortstop José Caballero (72) after defeating the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park | David Butler II-Imagn Images

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The New York Yankees were able to complete the sweep against the Boston Red Sox, but Game 3 was more of a grind than the previous two were. Heroics by Giancarlo Stanton and Amed Rosario earlier in the series set the tone early, but, in the much-anticipated Fenway Park debut of Cam Schlittler, the Yankees had to keep clawing back.

It looked like a game where the Sox would stave off the Yankees' offense. That was especially the case when Payton Tolle escaped a bases-loaded jam with no outs.

Fenway Park has become a house of horrors for the Yankees in recent years, and sweeps have been hard to come by. It seemed they would have to settle for a series win.

That was not the case, though. The Yankees were able to tie it early after a Jazz Chisholm Jr. home run, and finally put together a rally against their former farmhand and Bay Shore, New York, native Greg Weissert.

New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr.
New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) reacts with right fielder Aaron Judge (99) after hitting a home run against the Boston Red Sox in the fifth inning at Fenway Park | David Butler II-Imagn Images

A long time coming

With that win, the Yankees did something they haven't accomplished in five years — they swept the Red Sox at Fenway.

The last time that happened was in September 2021. It was one of the few times that season when it seemed like the scales would be tipped in the Yankees' favor, since they were chasing the Sox all season.

Not long after that, Gerrit Cole would implode on the mound in the Wild Card game, and the good feelings that came after a clutch Giancarlo Stanton grand slam went up in smoke.

Since that 2021 season, the Yankees are 32-31 at Fenway. They have had the slight edge, but hovered around .500.

Last year was even tougher than usual since the Yankees were 4-9 against the Sox in the regular season, and, just like in that 2021 season, it was the Bombers chasing down their division rival all year. The ending was a bit better than what happened five years ago, and they have Schlittler to thank for that.

The big hope is that a strong win over Boston is one of the early signs that this Yankee team won't be bullied by its division rivals the way it was last year. On top of not being able to scratch across wins against Boston, they also struggled against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays ended their season, and the Yankees haven't had their revenge the way they did with Boston.

The Red Sox are bad and could be slated for a last-place finish if they keep playing this poorly, but one thing about the Sox is that they always seem to play up when the Yankees come to town. Hence, that .500 record against them at home, despite having some bad teams since they won that World Series in 2018.

Both the Sox and Jays are worse this year, and if the Yankees truly want to atone for those 2025 sins, they need to thrash them both all year. Sweeping the Sox at Fenway Park is a good start.

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Joseph Randazzo
JOSEPH RANDAZZO

Joe Randazzo is a reference librarian who lives on Long Island. When he’s not behind a desk offering assistance to his patrons, he writes about the Yankees for Yankees On SI. Follow him as @YankeeLibrarian on X and Instagram.