Watch Alex Rodriguez get punched in the face for picking a dumb fight with the Red Sox

Watch Alex Rodriguez get punched in the face for picking a dumb fight with the Red Sox
(Image credit: Leon Halip/Getty Images)

Remember when Alex Rodriguez got punched in the face for being Alex Rodriguez?

Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the infamous Red Sox-Yankees brawl that began with a routine plunking and ended with this iconic image of A-Rod getting a face full of mitt:

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Rodriguez was then in his first year in pinstripes, and his Yankees had an 8.5-game cushion over Boston in the AL East. With a 3-0 lead in the third inning of a game at Fenway, Rodriguez took a pitch to the elbow from Bronson Arroyo and pouted his way toward first, jawing as he went. Sox catcher Jason Varitek stepped in and, after a little "come at me, bro" gesture from A-Rod, all hell broke loose.

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Boston went on to win the game on a walk-off homer, and then, after staging a historic comeback over the Yankees in the ALCS, they went on to win the World Series, too. Red Sox fans still fondly remember the brouhaha as a turning point in the team's season.

The above image remains a fitting metaphor for how Boston fans feel about A-Rod. And given how Rodriguez has gone nuclear on just about everyone in the Yankees organization, the image probably fits the bill for New York fans, too.

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.