BOSTON — From 1919 to 2003, no matter how bad the Yankees’ seasons went, their fans put the year to sleep knowing the hated Red Sox were never described as “World Champions.’’
During that span, the Yankees won 26 World Series titles, which provided their backers with courage even during the dark days of the mid 1960s and the early 1990s.
Now, the Red Sox are nine innings away from getting a chance to win their third World Series since 2004 and rub more salt into a Yankees season that provided very deep wounds and kept them out of the postseason.
Saturday in Game 6 at Fenway Park, the Red Sox have a chance to close out the Tigers in the ALCS and advance to the World Series that starts Wednesday night in the AL park.
Leading the best-of-seven affair, 3-2, the Red Sox are favored to represent the AL in the World Series for the first time since 2007, when they beat the Rockies, because they are home, have a more balanced lineup and by far the superior bullpen.
The Tigers are latching onto having Max Scherzer, the likely AL Cy Young winner, starting in Game 6, and ace Justin Verlander if there is a Game 7 on Sunday night.
Clay Buchholz, who gave up five runs and eight hits in Game 2 on Oct. 13 at Fenway, which the Red Sox won, 6-5, in the bottom of the ninth, will start for the hosts.
If Game 7 is required, John Lackey, who provided 6 ²/₃ scoreless innings in a 1-0 Red Sox win in Game 3, will oppose Verlander, who absorbed that heartbreaking defeat.
There is a difference between October and the regular season and a difference between a clinching situation and Game 3 of an LCS.
“There is a lot more that hinges on the decisions, a lot more scrutiny and a lot more urgency,’’ Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “This does present a different set of circumstances.’’
One circumstance the Tigers would like to see change is Prince Fielder driving in a run. He hasn’t done that in the first five games which stretches his postseason RBI drought to 17 straight games.
“When he gets it hit hard and in the air obviously you do some damage with it, but he just hasn’t been able to do that a lot yet,’’ Leyland said of Fielder, who is 4-for-19 (.211) with one extra base hit (a double), hitless in three at-bats with runners in scoring position and has fanned four times. “But that’s real important for us, no question. Just like anything else, sometimes you focus on one guy or two guys and in reality we have a few guys that we have to get going if we want to move on.’’
The three-headed late-game bullpen, consisting of lefty Craig Breslow and right-handers Junichi Tazawa and Koji Uehara, gives the Red Sox a big edge over the inconsistent Tigers pen.
Although Uehara has been sensational since moving into the closer’s role in late June, Tazawa has handled Miguel Cabrera in two big situations in this series.
“I think I have been lucky in a way,’’ Tazawa said of striking Cabrera out with first and third and one out in the eighth inning of Game 3, and getting him to hit into a double play with runners on first and third in the seventh inning of Game 5. That double play scored a run but only pulled the Tigers to within, 4-3.
The combination of being home, having two chances to get one win and the bullpen gives the Red Sox a solid opportunity to make life uneasy for Yankees fans when Game 1 of the World Series arrives Wednesday.