Yankee enemies appear to be in tatters, but one can feel the echos of 2003.

Yesterday, as the Asterisks took their first 2020 open batting practice, an anonymous hero emerged from the Florida Man gene pool.

If there is a God - or if the juju gods care about public opinion - it should be a long year for Jose Altuve and the buzzer boys. In every opposing park, boos should rain down like piss on porcelain, and vengeful pitchers - the kind whose past includes an unexplained meltdown in Houston - might seek to enact their own form of vigilante justice.  

Meanwhile, the suddenly quiet Redsocks await their fate on an MLB probe that's probably been neutered by the overwhelming rage directed at Houston. The lords of baseball don't need another Astros situation, certainly not one with a marquee team in an already boiling market. General expectations - for whatever they're worth - say Boston will face a lesser penalty - (as if Houston were flogged in the town square.) A million dollar fine? A draft pick? A stern lecture. Ptttuui. Surely, by now, the Redsocks have closed ranks. Without a Mike Fiers, without a smoking gun, the Fenway Finaglers will skate.

Yesterday, Boston owner John Henry tweeted an apology to the fans for trading Mookie Betts. It was a heartfelt piece of claptrap. He loves the fans. He loved having adorable Mookie on his payroll. He loved that adorable Mookie smile. Then John Henry did what all billionaires do. He poor-mouthed. Oh, how he would have loved to keep Mookie, if only the player hadn't wanted to earn what he is worth on the open market. Why, it's so tragic! If only there was enough money in the larder, but - alas, who can afford such a player. Thus, they had to throw him overboard, shoot Old Yeller, let him go.

You might think that Houston and Boston are done in 2020. But let's get real. Nothing is ever settled in February. Both the Yankees and the AL better not sleep on either team.

The Astros were were built, brick by brick, around an orchestrated multi-year tanking. It's not easy being the worst team in baseball for consecutive seasons. They did it - and reaped the draft picks: Bregman, Correa, et al. If the Astros get off to a fast start, the national Gammonite narrative will quickly portray Houston as "the team with something to prove!" A united roster and absolute need to win - not to mention a front three named Verlander, Grienke and McCullers - could crush the otherwise weak AL West, which basically shapes up as Mike Trout. Want the ugliest outcome to this ugly scandal? What if becoming a national pariah helps the Astros? 

Meanwhile, the last time I looked, Boston still has Chris Sale, Nathan Eovaldi and Eduardo Rodriguez, a front three that easily matches ours, especially with James Paxton out until June. Yeah, they'll miss Mookie. But we haven't yet seen the young OF they received in exchange. If Benintendi rebounds and Rafael Devers continues to improve - (he would reach MVP levels) - they are hardly dead in the water. With the talent they still have, Boston could easily win 90 games. Once in the playoffs... 

The last time I recall the Yankees seeming to dominate Boston so totally over a winter came in 2003. That year, the Redsocks' celebrated trade for Alex Rodriguez was nullified by the players union, allowing the Yankees to swoop in and get him. That winter, we partied over Boston's grave. The Curse of the Bambino would go on forever. They were our patsies, for eternity! It was the last great winter of the Yankees dominance... 

Little did we know. 

And this we do know: The juju gods, they can be bastards.