The Red Sox Team Store Is Selling New York Yankees World Series Home Plate Metal Signs And You Can Blame Owner John Henry

Let me get this out of the way - there's a world where the Red Sox selling Yankees hats across the street from Fenway Park in the official team store MIGHT not bother me. 

Let's say you're a Yankee fan going to the game. 

You forgot your hat. 

You'd like to wear a hat to support your team. 

Now, let's imagine the store had a small section in the back where they sold the generic hat for the team the Red Sox were playing that night or that series. 

Would that be that bad? 

Me? I'd say no. Zero problem with that. 

These "Greatest Rivalry" hats are being promoted by the store in-store, on the display, and on its website. My uncle, from the mean streets of Leominster, MA, but a die-hard Yankees fan who lives in New Jersey now, would wear this hat, I think. 

It's a very nice hat, if you can stand the logo of your rival on your head and focus on the actual rivalry. 

But where this all goes wrong, and feels like a disgusting money grab, is these Championship Home Plates. 

Because these might look like just little markers to tell Yankees fans where to find their gear in a RED SOX TEAM STORE…

But no, these are Yankee Fan Collectibles, available online through the Yankees' Official Team Store. 

And now, laughably in person, at the Red Sox Team Store. 

Fans are annoyed, and I get it. I had a spy at Fenway on Wednesday night tell me the crowd felt "50-50" when it came to Red Sox vs. Yankees fans. The Red Sox have let Fenway lose any sort of regular-season home-field advantage over the years.

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From a Boston Herald story from that 2024 season: 

This weekend a huge contingent of Yankees fans traveled to Boston and have made their presence felt, frequently belting out loud “Let’s go Yankees” chants at a volume and frequency that would have seemed unthinkable just a few years ago.

That came after fans of the Philadelphia Phillies inundated Fenway Park earlier this week, and before that we saw similar crowds surge in from Baltimore, Atlanta and other cities.

And it's all John Henry's fault. 

Over the last, well, almost decade now, he's spent less and less of the team's revenue on the actual baseball product. He's shown he's less interested in winning. 

In turn, fewer Red Sox fans are attending games at Fenway, opening seats for the opposing fanbase. And the Red Sox have been using Fenway Park as a marketing tool for these fans, inviting them to come watch their team in the historic ballpark. Because the owner doesn't care who buys the ticket, as long as someone buys the ticket. 

Winslow Townson. Getty Images.

His ownership has sold out to these visiting fans. It's bad enough that Yankee fans have openly invaded Fenway Park, but now they can buy commemorative metal home plates at the team store across the street. Gross. 

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Just a brutal look for the team, here. The Red Sox aren't just selling Yankees gear and chachkies - they're going out of their way to promote it with this gaudy display. 

And you can blame John Henry for all of it. 

Thankfully, Dave made a shirt that lets you show Henry and the organization how you feel about all of this. 

I'd buy 10 of these before I bought one of those silly home plates. #selltheteam