Why the Entire World Hates the Yankees (Except for Yankees Fans)

For the last few days, I've kept on asking myself the same question:

"Why does the entire world, except for Yankees fans, hate the Yankees?"

I've narrowed my reasoning down to two explanations:

1) Everybody is jealous of their 26 World Championships; and,

2) Everybody is insanely jealous of their 26 World Championships.

OK, OK. So I know that the only difference between choice one and two above is the adjective "insanely"; however, I am completely convinced of this.

Case in point, growing up I was told by my uncle who lived in Massachucetts that if I ever ventured to Fenway Park, I was better off leaving any sign of my allegiance to the Yankees "in the car."

Why, I asked. What would happen to me if, say, I caught a Red Sox game at Fenway Park while wearing my Yankees cap.

"Have you ever spent three hours in the freezing cold with beer spilled all over your head?" my Uncle asked.

Obviously my reply was no.

Partly because I was just a youngster at the time, but also because I wasn't able to fully grasp the idea of the insane jealousy that exists amongst Red Sox fans, who, at the time, hadn't won anything in generations.

As I got older, I understood why Red Sox fans took everything the Yankees did personally. The rivalry between the two teams became more evident.

But, I have never been able to grasp the idea that fans of other teams could be jealous of the Yankees. I mean, what beef do the Milwaukee Brewers have with the Yankees? Or the Chicago Cubs? Or even the Oakland A's, despite playing in the same league?

Certainly each of these teams has had their fair share of superstar players through the years, most of whom never "defected" to the Yankees. The Brewers had a lifer in Robin Yount, the Cubs in Ryne Sandberg and the A's...well, OK - you got me there. But the A's made out pretty well in the first Rickey Henderson deal and I think that the A's got the most out of Jason Giambi before the 2000 AL MVP signed on with the Yankees as a free agent.

And for all the second- and third-place finishes the Yankees endured from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, there were a handful of other teams that consistently won during that time period that drew very little ire from Yankees fans, such as the A's, Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

I mean, how many Yankees fans really despised Orel Hershiser or Fernando Valenzuela? How about Kirk Gibson or Tom Lasorda? Or John Smoltz and Tom Glavine? What about Mark McGwire or Jose Canseco?

As a Yankees fan, I am very much content with my allegiance and do not concern myself with what the next team is doing, be it the Red Sox or the Mets or the Devil Rays, for that matter.

The Yankees play by the rules that were built and agreed to by every other team in Major League Baseball. They share their revenue. They pay their luxury taxes, as appropriate.

So everytime that I read how the Yankees are "everything that's wrong with baseball," I can't help but curiously chuckle, because the explanations that follow are usually devoid of logic and reek of jealous pie.